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The "Twin Cities" is the popular moniker for the Minneapolis and Saint Paul two-city metropolitan area.

Minneapolis is the most populous city and the cultural center of Minnesota.

Minneapolis-Comics

Minneapolis at night

Vampire: The Masquerade[]

In Clan Novel: Brujah: Slave Ring, Theo Bell visits Minneapolis and meets with Prince Elizabeth. There, he is hired to deal with a rogue vampire they have been unable to track down. He also becomes embroiled in a conflict with the so-called Minneapolis Triangle.

In Winter's Teeth, the city of St. Paul is described as the first of the Twin Cities to be laid claim to by the Camarilla, cementing a reputation as a stronghold of Clan Toreador due to its Gallic origins and thriving (if humble) arts scene. For the past century it had been lorded over by Prince Samantha Merrain, who claimed the style "Prince of the Twin Cities" despite having only nominal influence over the sister city of Minneapolis. The main reason for this contention was Minneapolis' own culture of grassroots civil rights and social justice movements, making it a hotbed of Anarch activity.

In 2005, a riot stemming from a University of Minneapolis hockey victory was blamed on Anarch agitators: the so-called "Minneapolis Six". Prince Merrain capitalized on the opportunity and had three of the "perpetrators" among the local Unbound leadership executed, forcibly blood binding the remaining three.

Come modern nights, the Twin Cities had cultivated a reputation as a relatively stable domain, remaining untroubled even as other cities succumbed to internal strife or fell to the Second Inquisition. However, in 2021, an attempted coup by the Tremere Calder Wendt would see Prince Merrain sent to the Final Death. The bloody power struggle that followed saw several long-time members of the Twin Cities' court destroyed, with the Brujah Cecily Bain eventually emerging as the new Prince.

Description[]

Minneapolis[]

While St. Paul may claim the distinction of age over her twin sister city, Minneapolis has her beat on both size and population. Beginning life as a milling outpost along the Mississippi River, Minneapolis has swung back and forth on the pendulum of progress in nights since.

Skyscrapers loom proudly over the downtown district while soft, yellow streetlights illuminate the fine dining of the riverfront. Between the city's expansive sculpture garden and the Minneapolis Institute of Art, an appreciation for the fine arts has been blended into the city's soul. Outside of New York City, Minneapolis boasts the largest number of theaters per capita in the United States. Even pop culture has been shaped by the City of Lakes, who can claim famed musicians such as Bob Dylan and Prince as native sons.

When the Camarilla arrived in Minneapolis, they had already laid claim to the sister city of St. Paul. Despite Anarch protestations, Prince Samantha Merrain has claimed praxis over both of the Twin Cities and considers all Kindred dwelling within to be her subjects. However, cooler heads within the Camarilla of the domains are wary to directly support her reign, having grown fearful of uprisings in similarly fractured domains, such as Berlin. Some within the Anarch movement have also noticed certain similarities to those of their German brethren, and rumors of a possible revolt have begun to propagate the night.

Loresheet[]

  • Menu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet The Nod Lot: This unofficial district, located in the northwest of the city, is known among the local Kindred as the "Nod Lot." Though the hunting there is just as bountiful as it is in more posh locales such as the Rack, the population of the Nod Lot consists of the discarded, forgotten, and despairing. You have cultivated a small Herd (••), whose blood resonance varies from the melancholic to completely absent. Additionally, feeding from such victims presents a high risk of transferring blood-borne pathogens, potentially poisoning the well. You must take the Flaw Addiction (•) or Dark Secret – Plague Bearer (•).
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet The Artist Formerly Known As...: You are one of the lucky few who has managed to make a name for yourself within the music industry as a performing artist. Unfortunately, since your Embrace, your renown has become a double-edged sword, especially after the highly publicized reports of your death. You gain Fame (•••); however, you must also take the Flaw Mask (Known Corpse).
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet The Revolution: Minneapolis, like many American cities, is plagued with a history of racism and societal injustice, whose wounds still bleed well into the modern nights. However, Minneapolis also has a strong tradition of those who fight for equal rights and representation. Perhaps you were once an active force for change within your community, or have otherwise become familiar with those who are currently. You gain four dots to spend among Allies, Contacts, or Influence to represent your affiliation with prominent grassroots movements, local leaders, or institutions. This activism among mortals has made you a target among your elite Camarilla enemies, however—you must take the Flaw Status: Shunned – Camarilla (-).
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bullet The River Rats: The Kindred of Clan Nosferatu infest the city of Minneapolis from the sewers and the riverfront to the dark corners of the skywalk and the ruins of ancient flour mills. While many object to their loathsome presence, few can deny the invaluable intel that information brokers within the Clan of the Hidden will provide for the right price. You have somehow managed to ingratiate yourself to this cabal of secret-seekers. You may distribute three dots between Contacts and Mawla (Nosferatu Mawla only), and once per story, you may gain one valuable piece of information (at the Storyteller's discretion) relevant to your character's Ambition.
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bullet The Minneapolis Six: In 2003, a riot stemming from a University of Minneapolis hockey victory was blamed on the Anarch community. Prince Merrain capitalized upon the opportunity to cripple Minneapolis' Anarch leadership and had three of the six perpetrators put to Final Death. The remaining three were forcibly blood bound to the Prince to ensure their continued loyalty. You are one of the surviving three. Your blood bond has broken, and now, you and your kin hunger for retribution. Once per chronicle, you may evoke the memory of the Minneapolis Six to sway the Anarch community to your cause, at the discretion of the Storyteller.

St. Paul[]

Built upon native Dakota land, the kine have their various pseudonyms for it: Imnizaska, the Saintly City, the "Pig's Eye," and the Last City of the East. That final nickname is particularly true for the city's Kindred, who view St. Paul as the last bastion of American Camarilla power before one reaches the lupine-dominated Rockies and the chaotic battlegrounds of the so-called Anarch Free States.

Of late, even its sister city of Minneapolis has become more and more defiant of Camarilla authority. Nevertheless, those who claim praxis over St. Paul tend to claim the title happily: "Prince of the Twin Cities." To many within the Ivory Tower, St. Paul is little more than a bourgeois pretender—an up-jumped satellite domain to the realm of Chicago. But for those who have dwelled there through decades and centuries, St. Paul represents everything that Clan Toreador holds dear.

From its Gaelic origins to the thriving (if humble) local arts scene, the Clan of the Rose fancy themselves as the bringers of culture and civilization to a raucous American frontier.

For the past century, the monarch of St. Paul has been Prince Samantha Merrain, a Toreador elder of seemingly ancient origins. Though her true age and generation are a closely guarded secret, Merrain has seemingly avoided the siren call of the Beckoning. A beloved protector of arts and culture to some—a spoiled, vapid tyrant to others—Merrain's direct influence over Minneapolis has waxed and waned with the tenacity of the local AnLoresheet arch movement, yet her hold over St. Paul is all but absolute.

Loresheet[]

  • Menu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet Dirty Boot: If there is anything that Prince Samantha values, it's talent. Those who are useful for furthering the Prince's goals often find themselves awash in superficial praises from Merrain and her court. However, word travels fast between the Twin Cities, and those who may find themselves celebrated in St. Paul may be marked with suspicion elsewhere. You gain one rank (••) of Status (Camarilla) within the domain of St. Paul. However, you gain the Flaw Shunned (Anarchs) when in the borders of Minneapolis.
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet The Caves: An open secret to locals, the man-made caves located underneath the otherwise innocuous Wabasha Street have played host to miners, mushroom farmers, bootleggers, and nightclubs throughout the years. Suffice it to say, their subterranean location has made them the ideal haven for Kindred, and many an Elysium has been held in the spacious, sandstone dancehall carved into the underground tunnels. As one of the denizens of the caves, you gain Haven (•••) with the merits Postern (•) and Luxury (•).
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bulletMenu bullet Criminal History: Though the age of Prohibition and gangsters may be over, organized crime still finds a foothold in St. Paul. From Baby Face Nelson to John Dillinger to Machine Gun Kelly, you represent a heritage of underworld culture that lives on into the modern nights. You gain a +2 dice bonus to all Streetwise rolls made to gather information on local criminal activity, and a specialty of your choice in Larceny.
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu bullet Courtier: Those who know how to cater to a Toreador Prince's whims have learned to make themselves not only little worker bees but beautiful social butterflies. You gain the specialty Etiquette (High Society) and may add +2 dice to any Social Conflict roll made within an Elysium or courtly setting once per session.
  • Menu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bulletMenu hover bullet Dual Citizenship: Perhaps your service to Prince Merrain has been so subtle as to not attract the ire of your fellow Kindred across the river. Or perhaps you've become so well-embedded as an Anarch within St. Paul that none would dare question your presence in either city. You gain a cover identity in the form of Mask (**) for the purposes of undercover traveling within whichever Twin City you do not reside. That identity may also gain two ranks of Status with either the Camarilla (for St. Paul) or the Anarchs (for Minneapolis). Once per story, any egregious breaking of the Masquerade (or that city's Traditions) may be blamed upon that false identity (and, by extension, that Sect), leaving you to suffer little to no consequences. This is an ideal strategy for both infiltrators and Agents Provocateur within both sects.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse[]

Garou had roamed the nearby Rocky Mountains since pre-Colonial times, establishing the Powderhorn Caern in what would eventually become the city of Minneapolis. During the events of Crimson Thaw, that same caern would fall prey to the schemes of the Tremere Justicar Ian Carfax - prompting a swift and brutal retaliation by the werewolves of the Great Lakes Pack.

Residents[]

Locations[]

  • Galtier Towers, Minneapolis skyscrapper

Gallery[]

References[]

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