Los Angeles (WOD)

Los Angeles is a major city in southern California.

Gothic-Punk Los Angeles is even more extravagant than the real world. Acting as the fashion center for every style imaginable, supernaturals can easily mask themselves. Gothic-Punk L.A has seen many setbacks in the early 21th century, from large earthquakes to terror attacks.

Vampire: The Masquerade
The first vampire to arrive in the area of modern Los Angeles was the child-Elder Christopher Houghton, an outcast from the Toreador society of Boston who originally wanted to leave the Americas and Europe with their outmoded views on art behind and travel to the Middle Kingdom. His ship crashed in 1828 and Houghton was saved by a loyal ghoul, whom he killed in frustration when he found his plans thwarted, along with the family that had taken them in. The only survivor, Don Sebastian Juan Dominguez, he ghouled and made into his servant, transforming the ranch of Don Sebastian into his haven. After consideration, Houghton decided to found his own city modelled after Carthage to show the Toreador of the East Coast true art. Using his influence and the one of his ghoul, the Toreador pushed for the secularization of the mission in California, causing the missionaries to leave and Houghton to be able to indulge himself in vices of every sort. When the United States defeated Mexico and acquired California in the wake of the Mexican-American War, new settlers arrived who discovered gold. The resulting gold rush caused a population explosion, much to the satisfaction of the Toreador. The city soon became known as one of the worst dens of sin in America, which Houghton encouraged to feed his own appetites.

In 1870, the Elder had a change of heart, rumoured to be the result of outside manipulation by an unknown force. He decided that earnestly follow his dream of a city of artists and also decided to keep himself hidden from other vampires until he deemed the city perfect. He Embraced Don Sebastian and allowed him to become the Prince of Los Angeles. Under their influence, Los Angeles grew from a simple vice den into a prosperous city that soon attracted large numbers of Kindred. Anyone who challenged Don Sebastian met a mysterious and violent death, along with all their supporters, so most Elders supported the Prince without question. Houghton, in the meantime, searched for the perfect art form and in 1909, discovered motion pictures. Intrigued, Houghton became a driving force behind major productions and the studio system (which, some naysayers claim, is the reason behind the little imaginative work in many Hollywood productions). Anarchs and similar malcontents that were banished from domains on the East Coast arrived in growing numbers, among them the charismatic Brujah Jeremy McNeil. Houghton was immediately smitten with him and forbade Don Sebastian from banishing him from the domain. Tensions between the decadent court of Don Sebastian and the large Anarch population lead to unrest during the Zoo-Suit Riot, which caused the Primogen to lobby for a more oppressive style against them. As Jeremy McNeil became more and more of a public figure, Don Sebastian feared that Houghton would replace him with the charismatic anarch and reacted by capturing him, severely beating him and telling him to leave and never return. This proved to be a fatal mistake, since the mistreatment of their popular leader, along with the arrival of new revolutionary veterans like Salvador Garcia, spurred the Anarchs into action. In 1944, the Second Anarch Revolt took place, killing the majority of the cities’ Elders. Don Sebastian was found dead in his haven by Salvador Garcia, who claimed the deed for himself. At December 22, 1944, McNeil declared Los Angeles a free city and the first of the Anarch Free States.

While the Second Anarch Revolt continued beyond Los Angeles’ borders, the city fell into chaos without the infrastructure provided by the Camarilla Elders. McNeil and his allies tried their best to fix the situation, with mixed results. Threats of an alliance with the gaki held the Camarilla at bay (even though no Anarch knew any gaki), who instead sent infiltrators into the growing Free States to probe them for weakness. In Los Angeles, McNeil, Garcia and the other leaders of the revolt drafted the Status Perfectus, which was to serve as the guideline for the Free States, before disbanding any hierarchy that had established itself during the revolt. Following that, coteries calling themselves gangs established themselves to secure the most bountiful domains for themselves, while defending their turfs viciously against other vampires. A massive influx of Kindred from other domains, most of them Caitiff that hoped for a better life in the Free State, resulted in turf wars that continued until McNeil called all gangs together in 1956. He established the title of Baron among the gangs, while claiming central Los Angeles as a neutral meeting ground. The new order proved to be resilient and weathered a Sabbat crusade during the Watts Riots and Setite infiltration. During the Rodney King riots, weaknesses began to show, when the Crypt’s Sons under the Sabbat infiltrator Mohammed al-Muthlim used the riot to attack rival gangs. At its prime, around thirteen gangs controlled the domain of Los Angeles. Clubs for vampires include A Taste of L.A at skid row and Club Zombie Downtown (status unknown following the cathayan invasion), the Asylum in Santa Monica (renamed the New Asylum in 2005), the Asp Hole in Hollywood and Downtown bar called the Last Round. On the streets, the unbound ghoul biker gang known as the Young Bloods is on the prowl for careless vampires, seeking to obtain their vitae by force.

Revised
In 1998, the Anarchs found themselves under attack, not from the Camarilla or the Sabbat, but strange vampires that came across the ocean. Numerous gangs fell and the Anarchs were forced to rally together against the invaders. When the Kuei-jin suffered an unexplained setback in 1999, the Anarchs struck back, liberating large parts of L.A and eventually forcing the Kuei-jin to negotiate. This lead to the acknowledgment of Kuei-jin territory in Chinatown, with their regional leader being regarded as a baron. There are hints that was in some part orchestrated by Houghton. When several prominent Anarch leaders, including Garcia, sided openly with the Kuei-jin, L.A was incorporated into the New Promise Mandarinate. Other Anarchs, such as McNeil, protested, but were forced to leave the city and instead headed to San Francisco, where the conflict was still ongoing and rumors of a negotiation between the Quincunx and the Camarilla for official recognition of the Mandarinate were rumoured to have been made. The Sabbat was officially under the leadership of a Pander bishop who had been installed in the aftermath of the crusade in the 70s, but real power rested in the hands of Priscus Leila Monroe, who entered negotiations with the Cathayans by herself. The Setites controlled two temples, one in Beverley Hills and one in the Encino Hills, it is unknown if they are still inhabited. The Giovanni have a mansion in the San Fernando Valley, which answers to the Clan Elders in Las Vegas.

In the wake of the negotiations, Los Angeles was left in an unstable vacuum, with several factions vying for control under a tenuous truce. To protect their interests, the Camarilla installed a young Prince, the ambitious Ventrue Sebastian LaCroix. LaCroix built a cadre of primogen around himself; including the recently arrived Tremere who had established a chantry in Downtown not far from his headquarter. Some Kindred in L.A, like Therese Voerman of Santa Monica, acknowledged him, others, like Isaac Abrams of Hollywood, refused any territorial claims. As a result, Los Angeles was a patchwork of domains under the control of different factions. Thin-bloods used the lax enforcement to gather in large numbers in the city, but found themselves welcome in no domain. Around late 2004, the status quo fell apart, heralded by the arrival of the ship Elizabeth Dane and the artefact it carried, the Ankaran Sarcophagus. In the wake of the struggle, the Kuei-jin were driven from LA and Prince LaCroix met Final Death.

Gehenna: The Final Night
In the wake of LaCroix’s death, Tara of San Diego, a former Anarch baron that had betrayed the movement for the Camarilla, claimed Los Angeles as her domain. After the Kuei-jin retreated from Los Angeles in recompense for $5,000,000, Tara found herself in trouble with the leader of the growing thin-blood movement, Jenna Cross. Cross killed her and claimed Los Angeles for herself, against the resistance of the Camarilla.

As Gehenna commences, Cross and her thin-bloods reveal themselves to mortal authorities. Kapanaeus thinks that if vampiric society survives, Cross will become a great leader of the survivors.

V20
In V20, the Anarch Free State appears to have been reinstituted itself, thanks to the upsurge of technologically savant Kindred aligned with the Anarch Movement. The Free State, however, is still under threat, by the Camarilla, the Sabbat, the Kuei-jin and other forces, with violence being imminent. Under Jenna Cross, the thin-blooded have clustered in Santa Monica, establishing a makeshift Elysium at the Santa Monica pier.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse
The Uktena had a Caern in the Topangya Canyon near the Santa Monica mountains long before the modern city of Los Angeles was founded. Even when the city was constructed and the Caern diminished in its spiritual potency, the Uktena remained, protecting their native Kinfolk and now live mainly in the east of Los Angeles proper. Constant skirmishes with the Wyrm and its servants reduced the numbers of Gaia’s warriors until only a handful remained.

This changed in the 1910s. The Glass Walkers under the leadership of Don Leandro moved in, investing into the agribusiness and technology business. In the Modern Nights, most of them congregate around Caltech and maintain amiable relationships to the local spirits, particular the water elementals. Black Furies have taken up the guardianship of the Caern in Topangya Canyon, while Uktena and Bone Gnawers dwell in downtown. A sept of Get of Fenris and Shadow Lords maintains a small camp in the Los Angeles National Forest, policing the wilderness for wyrmspawn. Malibu is known to be off-limits to vampires, with the vampires fighting back against them by setting large amounts of woodland on fire.

The Wyrm has not remained idle. Next to the leeches that fill the city, its other servants draw on the strength of a Pit hidden beneath the city. Pentex subsidiary Rainbow Inc. has its international headquarters east of the city, in Vernon. Other subsidiaries with a strong presence are Tellus Enterprises and Sunburst Computers, whose companies stand in Western Los Angeles. Nastrom Enterprises has a facility in the east, where Pentex often conducts experiments. Nastrom also works to keep the Garou and the leeches on each other’s throats. At Griffith Park, the Black Spiral Dancers have tunnels that connect to several other locations and lead to a Pit that is located deep below the city. Some believe that it is the presence of this Pit that makes L.A so attractive for the weak and corrupt. As a new development, Shinzui, a growing megacorporation from Japan with spiritual ties to the Weaver, has opened up its first base of operations outside of Asia in metropolitan Los Angeles.

Mage: The Ascension
The streets of Los Angeles attract numerous Hollow Ones and other Orphan mages who are still looking for their place in the world. A chantry headed by the Verbena is hidden in the Santa Monica mountains, which seeks to harness the energies of a nearby Garou Caern for their own purpose. One of the earthly aspects of the great Chantry Vali Shallar, shared between the Akashic Brotherhood and the Dreamspeakers, lies near a constellation of ley lines at the beach. A cult of Sleepers serving the mages of Vali Shallar and the Umbrood Lord Surya that is allied with them exists hidden amidst the population, acting as agents and informants of their masters. Los Angeles also served as the meeting point of a group of Tradition mages that defeated Jodi Blake, an infamous Nephandus. Afterwards, these mages formed a New Horizon Council to replace the leaders they lost in the Reckoning, drawing on the weakened Consensus of Los Angeles in the wake of the Devil’s Night earthquake and the subsequent angel sightings.

The Technocratic Union has only focused on Los Angeles since the 90s. Building their strength in the nearby city of Vernon, the New World Order closely monitors the events in Los Angeles, unconcerned with minor politics. The New World Order used to house projects of reality perception manipulation in Disneyland, but much of that is now relocated into the Digital Web and similar virtual realms. The Syndicate has a major stronghold in Hollywood, where the VPO of Media maintains his office. Other mages are the Wu Lung, who live among the Chinese community of Los Angeles.

Changeling: The Dreaming
Los Angeles is part of the Kingdom of Pacifica. In the days of the Accordance War, Los Angeles Commoners resisted the invading Nobles for several months and continued to wage a silent guerrilla war against their occupators until the end of the conflict. The main hold of the Changelings is Caer Angeles, which is used as a residence for the High King should he visit Pacifica. Queen Aeron uses it as her seat of regency, although as of late, she has retreated to San Francisco together with her lover, the Satyr Hamal.

Los Angeles is apparently divided into several separate dukedoms. One of the known dukes is Jayson of Hollywood, who has recently reacted to the influx of Kuei-jin by experimenting how to affect them with Cantrips and similar chimerical arts, which seem alien to the foreigners. A freehold, called Land’s End, at Santa Monica is under the watch of the Pooka Thierry Alain Chevalier. The troll priest Father James, an early supporter of the Civil Rights Movement, maintains his parish in the city and his counsel is highly regarded by Nobles all over Pacifica. An agent of the Shadow Court, Tyria Winter of House Leanhaun, moves through the music scene of the city, preying on the talented via Rhapsody.

Kindred of the East
The Kuei-jin only arrived in Los Angeles in the late 1990s. The Great Leap Outward had been sanctioned by the Quincunx and the Glorious Ocean-Crossing Warriors of the Jade Invasion arrived, expecting Los Angeles to collapse like a house of cards in the face of their superiority and the feuding kin-jin. Building a network of safehouses and Scarlet Screens, the Kuei-jin prepared for battle. When the confrontation came, the united Kuei-jin triumphed over the surprised and feuding anarch gangs, wiping out numerous smaller gangs and securing large parts of the city for themselves. Their victories, however, were shortlived. A Great Maelstrom of never before seen intensity ripped through the Yin World, destroying the supplies of the Kuei-jin, their allies from the Yellow Springs and several experienced wu that had been there when the catastrophe hit. The Anarchs proved to be more resilient than anticipated, gathering around Louis Fortier, whose gang managed to exterminate two well-trained war wu of jina and retook Venice Beach, and Jeremy MacNeil, who managed to rally anarchs across the Free State for its defence and instil doubt in the Kuei-jin that arrived of the justness of their cause. The leader of the invasion, Monkey Trip Wu, was officially named Baron of Chinatown by MacNeil after short negotiations and hostilities came to a standstill. Bamboo Princes and Anarchs came to a better understanding of each other and while no alliance was formed, both sides realized that they had more in common with each other than their superiors. Los Angeles became an elephant trap and with the losses suffered in San Diego and San Francisco, the leader of the Great Leap Outward, Hao Wei-Lang, had to face the Eye of Heaven.

Within Los Angeles, the Kuei-jin took great pains to avoid appearing as another gang. Instead of aggressive expansion, they focused on mediating conflicts between rival Anarchs and staging themselves as lawbringers. When Salvador Garcia betrayed the Free State and joined the Asian invaders, the Camarilla and the Quincunx made their exchange and the New Promise Mandarinate was founded, Monkey Trip Wu was named Ancestor of Los Angeles, but only barely survived the rite. Around 2001, Monkey Trip Wu suffered a critical Act of Blindness and retreated into the Pacific. Ming Xiao was sent as his replacement.

Ming Xiao had not only to deal with the Anarchs, but also with a resurgent Camarilla under the leadership of Prince LaCroix. Upon her arrival, she funded the Tong to act as her agents and established the Fu Syndicate under the Mandarin to learn more about the weaknesses of western vampires. Styling herself as high priestess of the Temple of Golden Virtue, she presented a face of civility to the people of the district, while subtly controlling the criminal underworld for her own advantage. Making a pact with LaCroix to drive out anarch leader Rodriguez, she murdered the Malkavian Primogen Alistair Grout and made sure that a witness was present when she left transformed. Later, upon learning of the arrival of the Ankaran Sarcophagus, she turned against LaCroix, sending her own agents to secure it. Through the actions of Suckhead, an agent of the prince, her schemes were discovered. A “terrorist attack” on the Temple of Golden Virtue was recorded in mortal tabloids, likely indicating Suckheads decision to attack her to gain the key for the Ankaran Sarcophagus.

After the conflict, the Kuei-jin were largely driven from Los Angeles. Under the leader of the Great Leap Outward, Jiejie Li, they wait for their chance to return.

Hunter: The Reckoning
The NSA has agents in the city that monitor it for supernatural events. The Columbian drug cartels, having recently learned of the existence of vampires from Detroit’s Sapa Inca cartel, have begun their own crusade to rid themselves from these bloodsuckers. The Society of Leopold had a monastery in Malibu, headed by Gladius Dei member Grünfeld Bach and several Condotierri, but the base was blown up in 2004. Imbued here work together with those in the San Diego area.

Demon: The Fallen
Even before the Abyss cracked, Los Angeles was home to demons. Lucifer had settled in the city around the 1930s, exerting influence on the entertainment industry. When the Fallen returned to Earth, a dozen or so found themselves in Los Angeles. As more and more demons flocked to Los Angeles, the Devil Spentu Mainyu, fearful that a more powerful demon could arrive and disrupt his carefully constructed network of power, proclaimed himself Tyrant and founded the Infernal Court. Hidden, the Earthbound Manishtusu and Enshagkushanna arrived in the city, following hints for the presence of Lucifer. Both were contacted by Belial, who had followed the same clues. The Archduke convinced both to cease their conflicts and work together to locate the Morningstar. To this end, Belial used his command over the world’s ley lines to summon a devastating earthquake, with the cults of the other two Earthbound using the chaos to spread even more mayhem. The event was called the Devil’s Night riots and lasted for five days. In the end, the servants of the Earthbound managed to corner the Morningstar, but instead of fleeing, Lucifer revealed his Apocalyptic form, in front of thousands of rioters, national guards and reporters of every major news network. The sight inspired Faith in millions all over the world, ended the riots and acted as a beacon to draw Fallen from all over the world to L.A.

The sudden influx of hundreds of other Fallen overwhelmed Spentu Mainyu, who found he had nearly no time for his own projects. When the higher-ranked Scourge Kishar arrived, he relinquished his title and swore fealty to the new tyrant. In exchange, he was placed as the head of the Ministry of Dragons, and much of the structure of his court was directly assumed by Kishar, including the other Ministers who were still aligned to Spentu Mainyu. In order to occupy Kishar’s attention, the devil went to the Fiend Anat and persuaded her to found her own Court. The Faustian agreed and founded the Blood Court, surrounding herself with several battle-hardened high-torment demons while naming Spentu Mainyu the Minister of Dragons for his advice. Spentu Mainyu now plays both Courts to his advantage while he seeks a way to restore his power over the city. There is no outright hostility between these two courts as of yet, mostly because the idea of two governing bodies claiming the same territory is such a bizarre concept to the Fallen that they do not quite know what to make of it. Members of both groups are working even now, though, to secure as much power and eminence as they can as insurance against the inevitable day when the courts come into open conflict and must vie directly against one another for supreme influence over the city.

Faustians that arrive are directly recruited by Spentu Mainyu or tied up in politicking so that they pose no danger to his ambitions. The city has become a pilgrimage for the Luciferans from all over the world, who seek clues about the whereabouts of their leader. Cryptics come out of their desire to secure another traveling node for their own purpose, as well as for the universities and museums, in which several have found clues of artifacts from the Age of Wrath. Raveners have prospered in the riot and are now the faction with the largest numbers, although few of their number deign to involve themselves in Court politics. The Earthbound have refrained from any overt actions and now operate in secret. Enshagkushanna has retreated to Catalina Island, Manishtusu remains in South Central L. A, while Belial move across the city, thanks to his mobile reliquaries.

The events of the Devil’s Night have not bypassed L.A completely, great efforts from several fundraisers all across the world on the contrary. Occult glyphs in the One Language and Enochian have found their way into the graffiti of gang cultures. Religious cults have exploded and attract people from all over the United States that have seen Lucifer on TV. Unknown to most, Michael’s sword has been hidden by Lucifer on Catalina Island in a pocket dimension.

Downtown
Downtown Los Angeles is the home of the Ventrue Prince Sebastian LaCroix, as well as the Brujah Anarchs Smiling Jack and Nines Rodriguez.

Santa Monica
Santa Monica is considered the domain of Chenrezig, a Fiend minister of the Eagle of the Infernal Court. To the Kindred, it used to be inside the domain of Baron Louis Fortier, but by the mid-2000s, Therese Voerman became the primary contender for the title of Baron, with an eye to joining the Camarilla.

Hollywood
During the Anarch Free State's existence, Hollywood was the domain of Louis Fortier, followed by the Toreador Baron Isaac Abrams. The Nosferatu warren of Los Angeles has an exit point in the local cemetery.

South Central LA and Compton
It is the domain of Mohammed al-Muthlim and the Crypt's Sons (Sabbat).

East LA
The barony of Salvador Garcia and the La Hermandad gang.

Chinatown
Chinatown is under the jurisdiction of the Kuei-jin and their local leader, Ming-Xiao.

Trivia

 * In Beckett’s Jyhad Diary, the situation is presented as being that previously to the developments in Nights of Prophecy, with the same sequence of events playing over, only six years later. Bloodlines, in which these events took place and are referenced in (such as Jack mentioning the fall of San Francisco), still happened before. How the Camarilla managed to install a prince in the very heart of Anarch territory in this case is not explained.