Modius is the Toreador Prince of Gary, Indiana, in the original "Forged in Steel" chronicle for Vampire: The Masquerade.
Modius can’t stand that his domain has become a ruined, forsaken industrial wasteland. His eyes have always been set on greater things, If he can’t control the city of Chicago proper, he can at least restore greatness to his own praxis.
Biography[]
Mortal Days[]
While many mortals become vampires while still in the blush of youth, Modius was in his 40s when Annabelle Embraced him. He’d already lived a hard life: marrying twice, raising a few children, holding onto any work he could find.
Born to poor French laborers, his family migrated to the New World, and he grew up alongside the fledgling nation of America, hungry for the promise of a better life. He craved a taste of the American Dream — to work hard, rise above his station, and become something great. This thirst to surpass his current station would never leave him.
Never content with his current residence and livelihood, Modius pressed westward into the United States’ untamed frontier. As a young man, he was full of pioneer spirit — above and beyond the ever-present feeling lingering in the back of his mind that he must make something of himself.
He traded furs, became a guide with the help of native friends, and even settled down to farm. Modius lived a dozen lifetimes in the span of a few short mortal years as he struggled to reconcile the person he was with the person he imagined he could be. None of these things brought him fame, power, or fortune. None of these things fulfilled him.
Through one of his many contacts, Modius found himself at a gala back east, finally rubbing elbows with the wealthy and elite. His time had finally come; he’d be able to make a connection and really become something — someone important.
While he thought he was going to make business connections, he instead drew the attention of someone far more important and far more dangerous — his future sire, Annabelle. She sensed the raw ambition and hunger for power in him and, after a torrid night together, Embraced him.
Kindred Nights[]
This was not the way Modius anticipated he would gain power, but he wasn’t upset about it, either. His first decades of unlife were tumultuous, formative, and confusing — as they often are for neonates. Modius’ unending desire for more power and greater station only amplified with the presence of the Beast, and Annabelle encouraged her childe to push the envelope and garner as much territory for himself as possible.
Unsatisfied with being a relative unknown and outclassed by his rival, Lodin, Modius broke from the fold and attempted to claim the bustling city of Chicago in 1913.
The plan, while bold and ambitious, failed miserably. Lodin and his allies forced Modius out of Chicago, to fall back to his holdings in Gary. Modius refused to give up, continuing to harry Lodin and his claim on Chicago. Eventually, though, resources ran thin, and Lodin forced Modius to concede.
Head held high, Modius set himself as the Prince of Gary, all-powerful ruler of an industrial suburb. Though he’d never admit it, his rulership of Gary was little more than a paper praxis — a sad consolation prize. So, he ruled for decades, until the War of Chicago.
Modius, like everyone else, saw an opportunity to claim the city he craved. During this bloody and brutal conflict, he developed his long-standing rivalry with Juggler.
Even as Gary declined, Modius’ struggles and clashes with Juggler sustained the elder vampire. Beneath their endless squabble lies an unsettled debt Modius owed the Anarch, a festering sore spot between them that fed the animosity the two Kindred feel for each other. Despite this, if Juggler and Modius didn’t have each other to hate, what would they have?
There were whispers that Modius cared more for his feud with Juggler than he did for his own childe.
Modius has made desperate grabs for power, even trying to purchase it in the form of human vessels to avoid the scourging eye of the Second Inquisition. He’s since gained a reputation for his desperation, as he ropes neonates into doing these kinds of torrid things for him with empty promises of power.
Some of them survive and escape to tell the tale, some do not. The prince has railed against any other vampire with any kind of power, issuing challenges to their hegemony and threatening gruesome violence against their followers. Rumor has it he craves any attention, even the kind that will destroy him.
V5 Timeline[]
However, in the present, Modius and Juggler have gone missing, both presumed dead. Someone has finally deposed the Prince of Gary. The first and most obvious suspect would have been Juggler if he wasn’t also missing. Did the two enemies finally kill each other, or did a third party ultimately put an end to their decades-long feud?
Loresheet[]
Modius has never been content. Not in his mortal days, when he yearned toward greatness even as he traded furs and toiled in the fields. Not in all his waking nights, when the throne of Chicago has eluded him at every turn. It’s certainly not for lack of trying — he’s gone to war for Chicago.
He vies to lift Gary from the mire Lodin sank it into. He’s yanked the city back from Juggler and his Anarchs time and again. Modius could be transcendent, if only his fellow Kindred opened their eyes. Though many vampires dismiss Modius as a pauper Prince, he’s done his damnedest to revive Gary, even as his enemies in Chicago push it deeper into decline. He’s built up alliances in the city he rules and gathered followers who admire him — or who at least lie about it convincingly.
He keeps up correspondence with his sire, Toreador Primogen Annabelle, keeping her abreast of his achievements should she spot an opportunity for him in Chicago. His letters go mostly unanswered.
These nights, Modius’s name is most often whispered alongside his long-standing enemy, Juggler. The two revel in their ongoing hostilities, letting their violent conflict add to Gary’s already abominable crime rate.
Followers: You believe in Modius’s capability, even if most others don’t understand why. You’re in contact with a few other like-minded Kindred. Once per chapter, you can call on one of them to do a small favor for you in Gary.- Windy City Ally: You were one of the few who backed the idea of naming Modius as Prince of Chicago this last go-round. It earned you sneers and enmity within the city, but word of your support got back to the pauper Prince. As thanks, he sent one of his employees to you and permitted you to make them your Retainer (••).
- Keys to the Mansion: Modius values your strategic mind, especially when it comes to outthinking the Anarchs. He’s provided you with keys to the guest quarters at the governor’s mansion (Haven •••) and access to his files, with intel on Juggler’s plans. Once per story, ask your Storyteller for a piece of information on recent Anarch movements in the city.
- Since 1913: You were part of Modius’s original attempt at seizing praxis and took part in some of the attacks on Lodin’s loyalists. He’s never forgotten your service and made sure the vampires in Gary heard about your deeds. Gain Status: Gary Camarilla (••••). Modius has also declared that you may feed anywhere in Gary, though the Anarchs are unlikely to abide by that if you wander into their territory.
- Pauper Dynasty: Whatever Chicago’s Kindred think, Modius is a Prince and has been one for over half a century now. He has insight into what it takes to rule and imparts that wisdom to you in the hopes you’ll seize praxis in some other domain — provided it’s neither Gary nor Chicago. Gain Modius as a five-dot Mawla, and gain Influence (••) in a city of your choosing to reflect the groundwork he’s helped you lay there.
Appearance[]
Modius appears as a stately white man of average height in his early 40s with wild, iron gray hair flaring out at the temples and surrounding his weathered face. His Einstein-esque hairstyle is complemented by pale skin and slate-blue eyes. He has a haggard look, one that never left him from a mortal lifetime of labor and hardship. The Prince of Gary always dresses like a wealthy man, in fine suits and designer clothing, which makes him stand out in his impoverished princedom and contrasts starkly with his hard features. When he uses the Blush of Life, he looks less the corpse of a working man in finery and more like a well-dressed laborer who has just gotten off shift.
Character Sheet[]
Fifth Edition[]
Gallery[]
References[]
- VTM: Vampire: The Masquerade Rulebook, p. 215-216
- VTM: Vampire: The Masquerade Second Edition, p. 246
- VTM: Let the Streets Run Red, p. 207-209