Lord Ruthven is a powerful 4th generation Tzimisce of mysterious origins.
Biography[]
Lord Ruthven was a childe of the Tzimisce Antediluvian, but very little information has been given regarding the unlife of this ancient vampire - beside the fact that he sired a prestigious line among Transylvanian Fiends that bear his name to this night. In the past, the Ruthvens were so powerful that they had their own Revenant Family, known as the Ruthvenski. In the modern nights, however, their revenants have been absorbed by the larger families.
The Ruthven descendants seem to have strong ties to the Eldest. Lord Ruthven was sire to none other than Damek Ruthven, one of the caretakers of the Antediluvian's god-tree form. But another Cainite known as Lambach Ruthven had a closer and personal relationship with the Antediluvian of their clan as well — as if the Antediluvian had chosen Lambach as his prótegé, and the ultimate witness to his ascension. However, even before his favoritism was revealed, Lambach had been privy to the location of the Eldest's sleeping chambers at the Sernog Monastery.
It was the very same Lambach Ruthven who guided the Anarchs to the Eldest in torpor, and he alone was allowed to pierce the ruse behind the Diablerie performed by "Lugoj". Clanbook Tzimisce: Revised classified this Lambach as a direct childe of the Eldest, who listened to the memoirs of the Antediluvian side by side with mighty Yorak - a statement that could imply that Lambach was the true Lord Ruthven all along. Sources outside the revised clanbook do not confirm this information, however, and the matter of Lambach's true generation is filled with contradictory information.
Ultimately, the question of whether Lambach is the original Lord Ruthven or not, might only be answered by Damek or the Eldest himself.
Trivia[]
There is the Clan Ruthven, a Lowland Scottish clan. The name comes from the Scottish Gaelic, Ruadhainn which means Dun uplands. Also, Lord Ruthven is a title in the peerage of Scotland from 1488, used until 1581 on the creation of Earl of Gowrie.
The name may be a reference to Lord Ruthven, a character from The Vampyr, one of the first vampires in English fiction. The character is an English lord who is considered a parody of Lord Byron, who was involved in the original creation of the story.
References[]
- VTM: Clanbook: Tzimisce Revised, p. 21-23, 33, 57
- VTM: Lair of the Hidden, p. 79
- VTDA: Transylvania Chronicles I, p. 73-74
- VTDA: Dark Ages Clan Novel: Tzimisce, p. 224