Mictlan vampires are very attuned with death; they don't believe that they are cheating her, but to have been gifted to become the earthly reminders of the dark powers of the afterlife. They are predators though they don't see their feeding as a hunt, but rather as taking their rightful piece of sacrifice as messengers of the gods. As aztec cosmology, Mictlan philosophy is very convoluted.

The true nature of the Mictlan vampires resides in their Embrace: after the victim is drained, the soul is left to wander off into the Shadowlands; by the ways of the Discipline of Mictlampa (Side of Mictlan), the Tlatoani calls the soul back and ties it to the body with the blood of the Sire, her own blood, and the blood of Mictlaxochitl. Afterwards, the new vampire is to pass the initiation rite: a very demanding series of tests that follow the mythical journey into the land of the dead. If she survives, she is trained by her Sire into the ways of the Mictlan.

Besides surviving initiation, one of the reasons that Mictlan vampires are few is that there can be no accidental Embraces. Those who have tried to Embrace without the participation of the Tlatoani either kill their intended Progeny or create monsters: the victim is consumed by the darkness and becomes a ravening beast. These creatures are destroyed upon capture, although they are sometimes used as shock troops against the Sabbat.

The blood coursing through the Mictlan vampire's veins is tainted by the touch of Death, and thus they are closer to wraiths than to Kindred. Maybe it was a cruel joke by Mictlantecuhtli, no one knows.

This strong connection to the Shadowlands allow the Mictlan the use of Mictlampa, a very powerful Discipline that, at higher levels, allow the use of a Wraith Arcanos depending on the Calpulli. That was the gift of Mictlantecuhtli.

They also can learn and use Cainite Disciplines; that was the gift of Mictecacihuatl.

Some of the Calpullis have developed their own Disciplines, unique to them in the sense that no one can learn it save from diablerie; that was the gift of the Celestines.

They suffer the Itzyolotl, the Obsidian Heart; a manifestation of both Beast and Shadow. That was the curse from all of them.

Although it still is vampirism the Mictlan undeath is a little different from the traditional. The following characteristics apply to Mictlan vampires:

* Sun and fire destroys them as any other Kindred; R”tshreck, however is not as strong (-2 difficulty on the Courage roll), as a Mictlan vampire is not as selfish as regular Kindred. Younger Mictlani might fear fire as normal, as they haven't been fully indoctrinated.

* They drink blood as normal, have the normal Blood Pools for their Generation and do have fangs. Blood spent naturally is used both to sustain the body as to tie the soul to the dead flesh.

* Normal Blood characteristics apply: Blood Bonds, diablerie, regeneration, Attribute raise, etc. tlaltecuhtlis can't lower their Generation by diablerising Cainites and can't Blood Bind a Cainite with their blood, though they can be Bound by theirs. A Bond to a human or Garou is still possible.

* They don't feel the Beast as Cainites do; and thus are not tormented by Frenzies. However, by their very nature, they suffer the Itzyolotl, the Obsidian Heart, a far more subtle and, in the long run, terrible foe. Their Virtues are: Spirituality (replaces Conscience and Callousness), Purpose (replaces Self-Control and Instinct) and Courage (same as normal vampires). They follow the Path of Miquiztli (Death). All are explained below.

* To any Garou, they register more as "Wyrm tainted" than as "of the Wyrm"

* They cannot reach Golconda.

* Experience costs are the same.

Itzyolotl

The Itzyolotl can't speak to the host, but he can awaken dark urges within the spirit, although not as strong as the Beast incites frenzy in the Cainites; these urges will always be contrary to the character's Nature and the purpose of his Calpulli. As the Obsidian Heart is sustained by the blood the tlaltecuhtli drinks, every time she feeds she must make a Purpose roll, as the Itzyolotl is stronger then and will attempt to take over and make the character stray away from her mission. This is the same as a Self-Control roll.

In times of moral conflict, the Itzyolotl will also try to take over, by trying to sever the Mictlan vampire from her god. This is resisted by a Spirituality roll.

If the Itzyolotl ever takes over the Mictlani, it will make her darkest side surface. She becomes what she hates the most, indulging in the power of undeath, ignoring her purpose in life, straying from the will of Mictlantecuhtli; she will commit crimes that in a normal state would be horrid to her. This state lasts for a scene and the Itzyolotl wil lie dormant for a day afterwards. The character goes one point down in her Path, recoverable as normal Humanity.

Virtues

Spirituality.-The connection of the Mictlan vampire to her god. Each Calpulli follows a god and a given mission, this permits a range of moral viewpoints ranging from the savage honor of Huitzilopochtli to the forceful wisdom of Quetzalcoatl, passing through the apparent monstruosity of Xipe Totec and the ambiguous altruism of Tlaloc. Thus, a Mictlan will feel no remorse for actions that another might see as evil.

Purpose.-The amount of importance a vampire gives to the purpose of both his Calpulli and the Mictlan as a whole. It gives a safe haven in a mad world. The more the tlaltecuhtli clings to her Purpose, the more she is able to resist the temptations of Itzyolotl.

Courage.-The same as in normal rules.

10.-Recklessly lose control of oneself.
9.-Disobey the elders and the traditions to preserve personal honor.
8.-Disobey the elders and the traditions with no good reason.
7.-Fail to accomplish the Calpulli's purpose.
6.-Fall under the control of the Itzyolotl accidentally.
5.-Conspire to achieve dominion over others for personal gain, be it personal, political, religious, emotional, etc.
4.-Disobey willingly the Calpulli's purpose.
3.-Killing for the benefit of oneself; not for the gods' or the victim's.
2.-Betray the Mictlan and all that it stands for.
1.- Giving up willingly to the Itzyolotl, tormenting others for personal pleasure and believing oneself god to both mortals and vampires.

Background: Once they selected only mortals of pure indian descent, but they know try all people they judge worthy of the role of a Mictlan vampire. Each Calpulli chooses it's members from varying backgrounds.

Character Creation: Buying Generation is advisable, since most of the Mictlan are at least one hundread years old. Also, select Abilities according to the role of the Calpulli, since it's the possesion of those talents, skills and knowledges that made the character elegible to be part of the Mictlan. Tezcatlipoca's brood would choose Occult and Perception, while a Quetzalcoatl would have Charisma and Leadership, among other Abilities.

Clan Discipline: Mictlampa

Weaknesses: Each Calpulli has it's own weakness.

Gaining Clan Prestige: Fullfiling one's Calpulli's purpose succesfully; succeeding in any action against the Sabbat.

Quote: "Men are not as gods, and we are not as gods. The Gods of Death wait for us all, and right now, you are going to meet them"

Stereotypes:

The Camarilla-- Ignorant, selfish and prideful, these vampires believe they are cheating our parents the Gods of Death, but they only postpone their meeting. And what kind of existence is that lived in fear of your own Father?

"Queer and enigmatic, should we have payed closer attention to them, we might have kept Mexico from the Sabbat. They are too self-righteous, though, talking to one of them is close to a religious debate".
-Santiago Lopez-Sanchez, 8th Gen. Tremere

The Sabbat-- Brutal savages, they are the prime examples of what Mictlantecuhtli wishes us not to become. They exalt in their powers, thinking themselves superior to all, but they die as easily as any other vampire; these invaders will die too.

"Pain in the ass if you ask me, their hollier-than-thou speech really gets on my nerves and guess what?, some of them joined us, the assholes. Caine take them; ooooh, sorry, I forgot they were not from Caine. Pah!"
-"Garra", 11th Gen. Brujah antitribu.

The Inconnu-- Old ones hiding from their duties; but they are wise beyond their kin, they deserve a close study.

"It is puzzling, but their affirmations of descendancy might be true; what this means, that there could be other kinds of vampirism, might be a key to our own understanding, their purpose and sense of duty are admirable".
- Anonymous Gangrel.

• The Mictlan Main Page
• Origins, history and the ties to the Underworld.
• The Calpullis
• The powers of the dead.

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This page was done by Alejandro Melchor, and last modified in 20/Sep/1995