Vampire: The Requiem - Lordenshaw City
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Loredoctor
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Vampire: The Requiem - Lordenshaw City
Last edited by Loredoctor on Sat May 16, 2009 2:51 am, edited 2 times in total.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Districts
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Last edited by Loredoctor on Tue Jun 09, 2009 11:30 am, edited 2 times in total.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Lordenshaw City Locations
Old Town
Palepoint Lighthouse
Pike Street General Hospital
Riverview Asylum
The Slums
The Docks (Old Town & Industrial District)
Ghostsilt River
Nobility Bridge
Greencrown Island
Russian District
Vasiliev's
Bayview Terrace
Government District
Lordenshaw Museum
Lordenshaw Opera House (Elysium)
Ottman's Rare Books & Antiquities
Police Department
City Courts
City Hall
Oakhill Cathedral
Oakhill Cemetery
Corporate District
Herald Corporation Tower
Liberty Lake
Scope & Barrel Gun Supply
White Road
Industrial District
The Docks
Waste Processing Facility
Homeless Shelter
The Embrace Nightclub (Elysium)
French Hill Prison
The Mound of the Ghost Eater (Elysium)
Suburbs
East Avenue
Howell College
Lordenshaw City Airport
Queen Mountain Forest
Lordenshaw Metro
The Sewers
Old Town
Palepoint Lighthouse
Pike Street General Hospital
Riverview Asylum
The Slums
The Docks (Old Town & Industrial District)
Ghostsilt River
Nobility Bridge
Greencrown Island
Russian District
Vasiliev's
Bayview Terrace
Government District
Lordenshaw Museum
Lordenshaw Opera House (Elysium)
Ottman's Rare Books & Antiquities
Police Department
City Courts
City Hall
Oakhill Cathedral
Oakhill Cemetery
Corporate District
Herald Corporation Tower
Liberty Lake
Scope & Barrel Gun Supply
White Road
Industrial District
The Docks
Waste Processing Facility
Homeless Shelter
The Embrace Nightclub (Elysium)
French Hill Prison
The Mound of the Ghost Eater (Elysium)
Suburbs
East Avenue
Howell College
Lordenshaw City Airport
Queen Mountain Forest
Lordenshaw Metro
The Sewers
Last edited by Loredoctor on Tue Jun 09, 2009 11:00 am, edited 2 times in total.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Old Town
Lordenshaw was once a small port town that expanded rapidly following the growth of the mining industry. For over a century, the heart of the small city was Old Town, but in the early twentieth century this part of the city was eclipsed by the commerce sector to the north east. Since then, Old Town has died a slow death. Most of the businesses have either moved to the newer parts of the city or simply vanished - the buildings becoming desolate and dilapidated. What businesses remain could hardly be called modern, and most of the population is aged with the younger population looking for work elsewhere or simply escaping the gradual death.
Nothing seems to work here. The power fluctuates and some buildings have no power at all. There are very few modern machines here, as most businesses and apartments use older equipment, which often breaks down. The gas and water piping is falling into disrepair, and the repair companies seem more interested in caring for the northern (across the river) part of the city. Some cars fail to start, and lie slowly rusting on the sides of the road. The streetlights emit a weak, yellow glow, so that the streets appear jaundiced at night.
Rumors: The Ventrue often bring newly created Kindred to Old Town, where the Sire and his or her Childe are forced to stand on the Founding Stone. Whether the childe makes an oath to the sire, or they drink blood from a gilded chalice, the clan refuses to speak.
The original city hall is supposed to be the most haunted building in Lordenshaw.
1. Palepoint Lighthouse
This tall and narrow structure was erected at the turn of the 19th century to prevent sailing vessels coming too close to the treacherous waters prevalent around Palepoint. Once the lighthouse was operated by three or four workers, but now it works automatically. The system that maintains the lighthouse is old, and so the light is weak and flickers. At times, the light does not function at all. The building attached to it is in disrepair, and the fence surrounding the lighthouse grounds is covered in vegetation. The lighthouse itself has lost its veneer of bright white paint, as though the stones sweat mold and lichen.
Rumors: Locals talk about the Ghost in the Rocks, or the Devil's Fish. A pale figure is said to swim amongst the treacherous rocks a few hundred feet from the lighthouse. If you are seen by it you will succumb to a terrible disease, unless you write your name down three times on a piece of paper and throw it into the sea. Some stories say that the ghost also walks on land and stares through windows.
2. Pike Street General Hospital
Pike Street General Hospital has been described as a beacon of hope amid the neglected squalor of Old Town. The lamps in its care parks, the exterior lights, and even the lights inside are brightly lit with a near-actinic glare. They gleam like the light reflected off a sterile scalpel blade. Everything within the hospital is too sanitised, and too brightly lit under the sharp light of the lamps. The floors are polished and contain not a spot of blood, and the walls are always covered in unstained grey-green paint. Even the design of the corridors and rooms reflects a mind obsessed with cleanliness, as the patients are hidden behind doors and thick walls. It is as though the architect had an obsessive compulsive disorder regarding hygiene and purity.
The hospital staff wears stiff white clothes and their hands are always covered in white unsullied gloves. The nurses, cleaners and guards move almost mechanically and barely make a sound. No one laughs or complain. The doctors and administration staff are rarely seen, but one can hear them around a corner or behind a door. Sometimes, one can detect a hint of a rotting smell.
Hierophant Scythia has outlawed Kindred feeding off the patients for fear of spreading disease among the kine. Her own obsession for drinking fresh blood has also led to her outlawing others from taking blood packs.
Rumors: There is a furnace where they burn those that have died from disease. Either it is underneath the hospital or hidden in the building in the southern part of the grounds.
Hierophant Scythia has ghouls who are staff members. However, she denies the rumour. Others say that the ghouls belong to Otto Teufel and guard a laboratory somewhere in the hospital.
3. Riverview Asylum.
Dominating the southern riverbank wall, and the nearby area, is a bleak, grimy building. Originally built as a military fort, in the latter half of the 19th century it was converted into an asylum and the grounds barricaded with barbed wire and a tall fence crowned with pike ends and shards of glass. The grounds, once renowned for the gardens and tall oak trees, have become dead and dusty. The skeletal trees clawing at the sides of the asylum, trying to tear down the grey walls and expose the silent suffering.
Though Riverview Asylum houses more than two hundred mental patients, not a cry can be heard or a pale face seen in one of the windows. The facility is completely silent, and staff were not seen entering and leaving the facility, people would believe it empty. The windows are covered in thick curtains or boarded up, so that at night not even light emanates.
Rumors: Why are there so many cobwebs, and where are the spiders?
The Slums
A sprawling mass of shacks, rotting cabins, rusted trailers, and derelict homes, the Slums is a mazelike warren home to the poor, dispossessed, ruined, dying, disillusioned, and insane. Graffiti is scrawled over almost everything, and most of it seems to warn people away. Occasionally, poetry is etched into wood or rusted metal, speaking of the misery here or odes to lost loved ones. Even the sky appears dim and grey here, as though when you enter you cross a boundary and the light seems to shy away from illuminating so many broken lives.
Nothing grows on the ash-grey and brown land, for even the weeds and bushes seemed to have succumbed to the ever-present aura of dejection. Not even the wind stirs, so it almost remains deathly silent. The only sounds are the distant sirens and gunshots and the murmuring of the slum dwellers. The people scurry like frightened animals, fight over meager possessions or scraps of food, or just wallow in their dilapidated abodes.
Rumors: At night, some of the residents of the slums glow. They emanate a faint grey luminescence and stumble as though drunk or high on some illicit substance. Some have seen a gaunt giant they call the Crawling Man, who moves about on four long limbs and leaves faintly glowing patches where his feet and hands touch the soil.
The Docks (Old Town & Industrial District)
Three lengthy concrete piers extend into the green-black water festooned with rusting cranes and tall mold-ridden poles crowned by yellow lights. Rows of crates are piled high, often five or six crates in height, the metal dull and rusted. Only a few cargo ships dock here, with fishing trawlers tied to the remaining areas of the piers. The wind conveys the scents of the sea, and waves ineffectually strike the sides of the piers.
Behind the docks are lengthy and towering storehouses. Each is filled with cargo waiting to be piled onto trucks or simply forgotten. Occasionally, an indifferent security guard strolls past with a dog at his side.
The dock area is entirely surrounded by tall barbed-wire fences.
Rumors: Why has the cargo ship, Fecund Seas, never left the docks in over twenty years? Its hull is free from rust or wear, so it is being looked after. However, not a single light can be seen from any windows or from the deck.
The docks in the industrial district have massive piles of containers. One of these contains great wealth or the “worst thing in the world”.
Lordenshaw was once a small port town that expanded rapidly following the growth of the mining industry. For over a century, the heart of the small city was Old Town, but in the early twentieth century this part of the city was eclipsed by the commerce sector to the north east. Since then, Old Town has died a slow death. Most of the businesses have either moved to the newer parts of the city or simply vanished - the buildings becoming desolate and dilapidated. What businesses remain could hardly be called modern, and most of the population is aged with the younger population looking for work elsewhere or simply escaping the gradual death.
Nothing seems to work here. The power fluctuates and some buildings have no power at all. There are very few modern machines here, as most businesses and apartments use older equipment, which often breaks down. The gas and water piping is falling into disrepair, and the repair companies seem more interested in caring for the northern (across the river) part of the city. Some cars fail to start, and lie slowly rusting on the sides of the road. The streetlights emit a weak, yellow glow, so that the streets appear jaundiced at night.
Rumors: The Ventrue often bring newly created Kindred to Old Town, where the Sire and his or her Childe are forced to stand on the Founding Stone. Whether the childe makes an oath to the sire, or they drink blood from a gilded chalice, the clan refuses to speak.
The original city hall is supposed to be the most haunted building in Lordenshaw.
1. Palepoint Lighthouse
This tall and narrow structure was erected at the turn of the 19th century to prevent sailing vessels coming too close to the treacherous waters prevalent around Palepoint. Once the lighthouse was operated by three or four workers, but now it works automatically. The system that maintains the lighthouse is old, and so the light is weak and flickers. At times, the light does not function at all. The building attached to it is in disrepair, and the fence surrounding the lighthouse grounds is covered in vegetation. The lighthouse itself has lost its veneer of bright white paint, as though the stones sweat mold and lichen.
Rumors: Locals talk about the Ghost in the Rocks, or the Devil's Fish. A pale figure is said to swim amongst the treacherous rocks a few hundred feet from the lighthouse. If you are seen by it you will succumb to a terrible disease, unless you write your name down three times on a piece of paper and throw it into the sea. Some stories say that the ghost also walks on land and stares through windows.
2. Pike Street General Hospital
Pike Street General Hospital has been described as a beacon of hope amid the neglected squalor of Old Town. The lamps in its care parks, the exterior lights, and even the lights inside are brightly lit with a near-actinic glare. They gleam like the light reflected off a sterile scalpel blade. Everything within the hospital is too sanitised, and too brightly lit under the sharp light of the lamps. The floors are polished and contain not a spot of blood, and the walls are always covered in unstained grey-green paint. Even the design of the corridors and rooms reflects a mind obsessed with cleanliness, as the patients are hidden behind doors and thick walls. It is as though the architect had an obsessive compulsive disorder regarding hygiene and purity.
The hospital staff wears stiff white clothes and their hands are always covered in white unsullied gloves. The nurses, cleaners and guards move almost mechanically and barely make a sound. No one laughs or complain. The doctors and administration staff are rarely seen, but one can hear them around a corner or behind a door. Sometimes, one can detect a hint of a rotting smell.
Hierophant Scythia has outlawed Kindred feeding off the patients for fear of spreading disease among the kine. Her own obsession for drinking fresh blood has also led to her outlawing others from taking blood packs.
Rumors: There is a furnace where they burn those that have died from disease. Either it is underneath the hospital or hidden in the building in the southern part of the grounds.
Hierophant Scythia has ghouls who are staff members. However, she denies the rumour. Others say that the ghouls belong to Otto Teufel and guard a laboratory somewhere in the hospital.
3. Riverview Asylum.
Dominating the southern riverbank wall, and the nearby area, is a bleak, grimy building. Originally built as a military fort, in the latter half of the 19th century it was converted into an asylum and the grounds barricaded with barbed wire and a tall fence crowned with pike ends and shards of glass. The grounds, once renowned for the gardens and tall oak trees, have become dead and dusty. The skeletal trees clawing at the sides of the asylum, trying to tear down the grey walls and expose the silent suffering.
Though Riverview Asylum houses more than two hundred mental patients, not a cry can be heard or a pale face seen in one of the windows. The facility is completely silent, and staff were not seen entering and leaving the facility, people would believe it empty. The windows are covered in thick curtains or boarded up, so that at night not even light emanates.
Rumors: Why are there so many cobwebs, and where are the spiders?
The Slums
A sprawling mass of shacks, rotting cabins, rusted trailers, and derelict homes, the Slums is a mazelike warren home to the poor, dispossessed, ruined, dying, disillusioned, and insane. Graffiti is scrawled over almost everything, and most of it seems to warn people away. Occasionally, poetry is etched into wood or rusted metal, speaking of the misery here or odes to lost loved ones. Even the sky appears dim and grey here, as though when you enter you cross a boundary and the light seems to shy away from illuminating so many broken lives.
Nothing grows on the ash-grey and brown land, for even the weeds and bushes seemed to have succumbed to the ever-present aura of dejection. Not even the wind stirs, so it almost remains deathly silent. The only sounds are the distant sirens and gunshots and the murmuring of the slum dwellers. The people scurry like frightened animals, fight over meager possessions or scraps of food, or just wallow in their dilapidated abodes.
Rumors: At night, some of the residents of the slums glow. They emanate a faint grey luminescence and stumble as though drunk or high on some illicit substance. Some have seen a gaunt giant they call the Crawling Man, who moves about on four long limbs and leaves faintly glowing patches where his feet and hands touch the soil.
The Docks (Old Town & Industrial District)
Three lengthy concrete piers extend into the green-black water festooned with rusting cranes and tall mold-ridden poles crowned by yellow lights. Rows of crates are piled high, often five or six crates in height, the metal dull and rusted. Only a few cargo ships dock here, with fishing trawlers tied to the remaining areas of the piers. The wind conveys the scents of the sea, and waves ineffectually strike the sides of the piers.
Behind the docks are lengthy and towering storehouses. Each is filled with cargo waiting to be piled onto trucks or simply forgotten. Occasionally, an indifferent security guard strolls past with a dog at his side.
The dock area is entirely surrounded by tall barbed-wire fences.
Rumors: Why has the cargo ship, Fecund Seas, never left the docks in over twenty years? Its hull is free from rust or wear, so it is being looked after. However, not a single light can be seen from any windows or from the deck.
The docks in the industrial district have massive piles of containers. One of these contains great wealth or the “worst thing in the world”.
Last edited by Loredoctor on Thu Jun 11, 2009 9:57 am, edited 3 times in total.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Ghostsilt River
Ghostsilt was the name given to the wide river by the Native Americans for the way the sand glows in the moonlight. However, the water is too deep at most points, except further upriver.
Rumors: A history professor argues that the river was called Ghostsilt by French settlers in the eighteenth century. Every time someone died to a mysterious plague they saw the silt near the banks glow a pale grey or blue each night for a week.
Nobility Bridge
Nobility Bridge is a metal and brick structure spanning Ghostsilt river. At both entrances are two squat towers made of brick. Rusted, taut metal cables radiate out from the towers and terminate in the aged metal framework of the bridge. Underneath the brick structures and at the midpoint of the bridge are sets of stone pylons. Each set stands in rapidly flowing water and is buried deep into the riverbed. The bridge stands thirty feet above the water.
The bridge was constructed in the early 19th century, and rebuilt in the 20th century when the river flooded. The towers are the only original parts of the structure, and they have remained vacant for over fifty years. Nobility Bridge has an infamous reputation. In the 19th century, it was used by gangs and union movements to hang corrupt government officials and greedy industrialists (hence the title). The Lancea Sanctum sanctified also delivered Final Death to witches here (some believe that this happened to not a few Circle of the Crone members). The floods were seen as a blessing in disguise, for many Lordenshaw residents believed the structure cursed.
Despite being rebuilt recently, the bridge appears to be close to collapsing. It sways alarmingly during extreme windy conditions, and every time a heavy vehicle crosses it the structure shudders. Occasionally, the metal groans. The metal is rusted or covered in salt.
Rumors: When Nobility Bridge was rebuilt, the workers who built the pylons reported that some of their work was done during the night, despite the fact that no one was allowed to work during after hours. Some claimed to have seen hideous, bloated figures in the water or on the structure. One worker believed that there were tunnels and caverns beneath the riverbed, and that the figures or ghosts (Russian workers called them 'the Vodyanoi') resided there.
The ghosts of those hanged on the bridge can be heard in the groaning of the metal. The strange lights in the towers are said to be their spirits.
Ghostsilt was the name given to the wide river by the Native Americans for the way the sand glows in the moonlight. However, the water is too deep at most points, except further upriver.
Rumors: A history professor argues that the river was called Ghostsilt by French settlers in the eighteenth century. Every time someone died to a mysterious plague they saw the silt near the banks glow a pale grey or blue each night for a week.
Nobility Bridge
Nobility Bridge is a metal and brick structure spanning Ghostsilt river. At both entrances are two squat towers made of brick. Rusted, taut metal cables radiate out from the towers and terminate in the aged metal framework of the bridge. Underneath the brick structures and at the midpoint of the bridge are sets of stone pylons. Each set stands in rapidly flowing water and is buried deep into the riverbed. The bridge stands thirty feet above the water.
The bridge was constructed in the early 19th century, and rebuilt in the 20th century when the river flooded. The towers are the only original parts of the structure, and they have remained vacant for over fifty years. Nobility Bridge has an infamous reputation. In the 19th century, it was used by gangs and union movements to hang corrupt government officials and greedy industrialists (hence the title). The Lancea Sanctum sanctified also delivered Final Death to witches here (some believe that this happened to not a few Circle of the Crone members). The floods were seen as a blessing in disguise, for many Lordenshaw residents believed the structure cursed.
Despite being rebuilt recently, the bridge appears to be close to collapsing. It sways alarmingly during extreme windy conditions, and every time a heavy vehicle crosses it the structure shudders. Occasionally, the metal groans. The metal is rusted or covered in salt.
Rumors: When Nobility Bridge was rebuilt, the workers who built the pylons reported that some of their work was done during the night, despite the fact that no one was allowed to work during after hours. Some claimed to have seen hideous, bloated figures in the water or on the structure. One worker believed that there were tunnels and caverns beneath the riverbed, and that the figures or ghosts (Russian workers called them 'the Vodyanoi') resided there.
The ghosts of those hanged on the bridge can be heard in the groaning of the metal. The strange lights in the towers are said to be their spirits.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Greencrown Island
Greencrown Island was given its name because of the forest covering the large hill at its centre. The shoreline is rocky and the water is shallow and precipitous for at least a hundred feet out into the bay, making it very hazardous for boats approaching the island. However, a small community lives on the small isle, subsisting off crops and cattle.
The island has a disturbing history. At least three times in the last hundred years the inhabitants have fled in to the forest. The hill has a primitive fort made of irregular stones and logs, and this has been used to defend against the ‘invaders’. There is only one living survivor from the last attack, and she is close to ninety years of age. She was only a child when the inhabitants were last forced to flee to the old fort, and cannot recall much other than the name they gave to the attackers.
Of interest, Hierophant Scythia has declared that no Kindred are allowed to feed off the island’s inhabitants or to venture into the forest. She has banished a vampire recently for breaking these laws.
Rumors: Native American artifacts have been found in the grounds surrounding the hill, and some ancient bodies interred in small caves in its sides. Some believe the hill is an ancient burial mound.
Greencrown Island was given its name because of the forest covering the large hill at its centre. The shoreline is rocky and the water is shallow and precipitous for at least a hundred feet out into the bay, making it very hazardous for boats approaching the island. However, a small community lives on the small isle, subsisting off crops and cattle.
The island has a disturbing history. At least three times in the last hundred years the inhabitants have fled in to the forest. The hill has a primitive fort made of irregular stones and logs, and this has been used to defend against the ‘invaders’. There is only one living survivor from the last attack, and she is close to ninety years of age. She was only a child when the inhabitants were last forced to flee to the old fort, and cannot recall much other than the name they gave to the attackers.
Of interest, Hierophant Scythia has declared that no Kindred are allowed to feed off the island’s inhabitants or to venture into the forest. She has banished a vampire recently for breaking these laws.
Rumors: Native American artifacts have been found in the grounds surrounding the hill, and some ancient bodies interred in small caves in its sides. Some believe the hill is an ancient burial mound.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
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Russian District
The Russian district, also known as New Moscow by its inhabitants, sits on the mouth of the Ghostsilt River. No apartment building is taller than three stories. The upper two floors are most often residences, and the ground floor usually contains a convenience store, bar, restaurant, or clothing store. Sometimes, these are simply the fronts for a black market operation. Russian or Polish Graffiti covers most of the buildings and billboards, and all of the street signs and bus stops are in Russian.
There are no gangs in the district, for they are almost always crushed by the Kindred or the remnants of the Russian mafia. Up until two years ago, the Mikhailov family controlled the city. Following a night of violence and a few buildings exploding or burning down, the Mikhailov's lost their power. The locals are now afraid that another mafia family or a gang will take control, eventually leading to more misery and bloodshed. Thus, they are very cautious and distrustful, always reporting their concerns to the local police or to the neighborhood watch. The doors have security locks, and the windows are barred.
Maxim Khripunov is the Regent of the Russian district.
Rumors: All the brothels and prostitutes are controlled by one individual, who may also be trafficking immigrants and more sex workers from Europe. His whores always look sickly and they are easily intimidated as though violence has been use to force submission into them.
The local Orthodox church was burned down in the police raid two years ago. A priest sometimes holds mass in the ruins. Yet the priest supposedly died on that night.
4. Vasiliev's
A gaudy bar located in the Russian Quarter. The bar is open to all types of people, but it especially caters to ethic Russians and ex-Soviets. Converted from an old warehouse, Vasiliev's has a large and open floor space dominated by a circular bar. Private booths line the walls, complimented by rich velvet seats and polished oaken tables. Numerous high tables with tall stools fill out three quarters of the floor, with the remaining floor space taken up by a raised stage.
Vasiliev's is renowned for its excellent service and absence of any fights, although that might be due to the stern-looking Russian guards who stand solidly about. The waitresses - male and female - are always hired for their stunning looks, with many of them being Russian too. Most of the clientele are unsurprisingly of that ethnic group. It is not unusual to see merchant sailors visiting.
Vasiliev's has two levels, the ground floor being the bar. The second level contains an exquisitely furnished lounge (invitation only) and numerous private rooms. Unaligned Kindred often meet here, as well as several Carthians. The owner, Maxim Khripunov ("the Vozhd"), is a vampire as well, and has built a reputation for providing special services to his Kindred clientele. His rule is absolute here, and does not allow any fighting between them (although it has not been declared Elysium). As such, the place has become very popular.
Rumors: A few wonder, noting the owner's name, why the bar is called Vasiliev's. Either the Vozhd diablerised the original owner (if he or she was a Kindred), or he or she is still alive. One Kindred refuses to return, after claiming to have met an elder named Vasiliev. Her beast made her flee, after sensing something "monstrously terrifying" about him. She has since gone missing, so no one has been able to question her.
The Russian district, also known as New Moscow by its inhabitants, sits on the mouth of the Ghostsilt River. No apartment building is taller than three stories. The upper two floors are most often residences, and the ground floor usually contains a convenience store, bar, restaurant, or clothing store. Sometimes, these are simply the fronts for a black market operation. Russian or Polish Graffiti covers most of the buildings and billboards, and all of the street signs and bus stops are in Russian.
There are no gangs in the district, for they are almost always crushed by the Kindred or the remnants of the Russian mafia. Up until two years ago, the Mikhailov family controlled the city. Following a night of violence and a few buildings exploding or burning down, the Mikhailov's lost their power. The locals are now afraid that another mafia family or a gang will take control, eventually leading to more misery and bloodshed. Thus, they are very cautious and distrustful, always reporting their concerns to the local police or to the neighborhood watch. The doors have security locks, and the windows are barred.
Maxim Khripunov is the Regent of the Russian district.
Rumors: All the brothels and prostitutes are controlled by one individual, who may also be trafficking immigrants and more sex workers from Europe. His whores always look sickly and they are easily intimidated as though violence has been use to force submission into them.
The local Orthodox church was burned down in the police raid two years ago. A priest sometimes holds mass in the ruins. Yet the priest supposedly died on that night.
4. Vasiliev's
A gaudy bar located in the Russian Quarter. The bar is open to all types of people, but it especially caters to ethic Russians and ex-Soviets. Converted from an old warehouse, Vasiliev's has a large and open floor space dominated by a circular bar. Private booths line the walls, complimented by rich velvet seats and polished oaken tables. Numerous high tables with tall stools fill out three quarters of the floor, with the remaining floor space taken up by a raised stage.
Vasiliev's is renowned for its excellent service and absence of any fights, although that might be due to the stern-looking Russian guards who stand solidly about. The waitresses - male and female - are always hired for their stunning looks, with many of them being Russian too. Most of the clientele are unsurprisingly of that ethnic group. It is not unusual to see merchant sailors visiting.
Vasiliev's has two levels, the ground floor being the bar. The second level contains an exquisitely furnished lounge (invitation only) and numerous private rooms. Unaligned Kindred often meet here, as well as several Carthians. The owner, Maxim Khripunov ("the Vozhd"), is a vampire as well, and has built a reputation for providing special services to his Kindred clientele. His rule is absolute here, and does not allow any fighting between them (although it has not been declared Elysium). As such, the place has become very popular.
Rumors: A few wonder, noting the owner's name, why the bar is called Vasiliev's. Either the Vozhd diablerised the original owner (if he or she was a Kindred), or he or she is still alive. One Kindred refuses to return, after claiming to have met an elder named Vasiliev. Her beast made her flee, after sensing something "monstrously terrifying" about him. She has since gone missing, so no one has been able to question her.
Last edited by Loredoctor on Tue Jun 09, 2009 11:27 am, edited 2 times in total.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
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Bayview Terrace
Rows of tall apartments line a terraced hill, snaking its way along the bay from the industrial sector to the Russian quarter. The buildings closest to the rocky shoreline often have jetties extending into the water with expensive yachts or skies tied to them. Those closest to the bay and living on the highest tier are amongst the wealthiest people in the city, whereas those living in the terraces in between are middle-income earners.
A Noseferatu that has the name of 'The Baron'is the district's Regent. He places very few restrictions on feeding here, as long as Kindred 'pay' by telling him a secret. It is rumored that he can tell a lie from the truth, but sometimes prefers to hear lies as they tell him more about the individual than truths told. His laissez faire attitude to how Kindred feed has almost endangered the Masquerade on a few occasions. As such, Hierophant Scythia may relinquish his Regency soon. Yet he has been a Regent for over twenty years.
Rumors: Once a month, one of the penthouse apartments is flooded with a lurid green light. There is a strange buzzing sound and several buildings nearby experience power shortages and the water in the pipes reaches boiling point. The next day locals complain of fierce headaches and strange dreams.
Rows of tall apartments line a terraced hill, snaking its way along the bay from the industrial sector to the Russian quarter. The buildings closest to the rocky shoreline often have jetties extending into the water with expensive yachts or skies tied to them. Those closest to the bay and living on the highest tier are amongst the wealthiest people in the city, whereas those living in the terraces in between are middle-income earners.
A Noseferatu that has the name of 'The Baron'is the district's Regent. He places very few restrictions on feeding here, as long as Kindred 'pay' by telling him a secret. It is rumored that he can tell a lie from the truth, but sometimes prefers to hear lies as they tell him more about the individual than truths told. His laissez faire attitude to how Kindred feed has almost endangered the Masquerade on a few occasions. As such, Hierophant Scythia may relinquish his Regency soon. Yet he has been a Regent for over twenty years.
Rumors: Once a month, one of the penthouse apartments is flooded with a lurid green light. There is a strange buzzing sound and several buildings nearby experience power shortages and the water in the pipes reaches boiling point. The next day locals complain of fierce headaches and strange dreams.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
-
Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
Government District
The government district is comprised of three to four storey buildings of a neo-classical design. As the region is the bureaucratic and legal centre of the city most of the buildings here fulfill those functions; and there are more government officials and lawyers here than any other part of the city. However, the district is also the cultural heart of the city, with its museums, opera house, theatres and libraries. The streets are kept in immaculate condition, and the rate of crime is low. Towards Ghostsilt River, one will find apartment buildings and a handful of mansions. These are the homes of high ranking government officials and some celebrities.
The government district has a culture of elitism, with most workers and locals regarding anyone below them as simply not worth their time. Whether this is due to the fact that they are too busy or because they believe they are superior due to the importance of their role depends on the individual. A community has developed that believes the district is the only one that matters, and so seventy percent of business here relates to the area and the rest of the city is now largely ignored.
Rumors: Most of the bureaucrats look and act identical. They talk in the same rapid speech, and use too much government jargon. There is one form of fashion here, and that is a grey or light blue suit. Anyone who does not conform is either found dead within a few weeks or is 'forced' to look and act the same.
5. Lordenshaw Museum
Lordenshaw Museum is over a hundred-and-fifty years old, and is showing signs of its age. The marble facade is starting to fall away, exposing brickwork. Cracks are appearing in the front columns and along the interior walls and walkways. The famous glass ceiling is badly in need of repair, with wooden planks covering most of the roof. Staff members are likewise old, with only a handful looking after the museum.
Some of the artifacts have been stolen, including a Native American warrior's mask and obsidian knife. Behind the display area is a large archive where most of the museum’s collection is left to collect dust.
Rumors: There is an ancient brass coffin covered in Sumerian glyphs kept somewhere in the storeroom. Some say that they feel a presence within it, leading some vampires to conclude that it contains a vampire in torpor. There is a knocking sound coming from within it that occurs once or twice a year. X-ray scans have revealed nothing, save for some bones and a metal cylinder.
6. Lordenshaw Opera House (Elysium)
The Opera House is a broad structure made of glass, granite and steel. The design is very modern, which contrasts strongly with the old-fashioned shows and classical orchestra. The interior is almost completely filled by a vast, thousand-seat theatre. The seats are arranged in four tiers, with the last tier being booths for the rich and individuals wanting completely privacy.
This location is marked as Elysium, and as such, Kindred meetings are common. However, the meetings take place in the lounge, for most vampires dislike others standing on stage and they find it difficult to mingle when they are seated in one of the many rows (especially if some use of the booths on the fourth tier).
Rumors: Some Kindred like to bring their prey to the fourth tier and sup on them during a performance.
7. Ottman's Rare Books & Antiquities
Down a cold alleyway lined with ivy and broken furniture and in view of Nobility Bridge, can be found a small bookstore. The front windows are either boarded up or covered in dust, but a soft golden light is almost always emanating from within the store. Inside, it is cramped and musty, with narrow rows of books and old journals lining the antique book cases and tables. Behind the glass counter is a display where the owner keeps his antiquities - various rare Middle Eastern treasures. A short, stooping Iranian man - Sulab Qufari - stands at the counter or can be found walking between the book shelves muttering to himself in Arabic or some other ancient tongue.
Most of the books are second-hand, and very rarely will one find a book printed later than 1950. They are expensive, and in perfect condition.
Rumors: There is a bottle made of coloured glass containing sand from ancient Persia. The sand is always warm, as though reflecting the heat of the sun (even warm at night). Hidden or misplaced, the store also has a telescope once used by a British explorer. If one extends the brass instrument and looks to the setting sun you supposedly see yourself tomorrow using the instrument. Finally, there is supposed to be an AK-47 from Iraq that makes a wailing sound when it fires on automatic.
Why do the books never age?
8. Police Department
Once, this building served as a stock exchange (up until the 1950s). When the finance sector started construction, the building's interior was demolished leaving the marble and brick exterior untouched. Now it houses the headquarters for the Lordenshaw City Police Force (LCP). Inside, there are four floors and two underground levels. The top-most floor is used by the head of the LCP, as well as the FBI. The ground floor is open to the public, and most interviews with suspects take place here. There are over twenty cells in the basement, and the level below serves as a storage and garage/car park.
Up until recently, the LCPD was regarded as the centre of police corruption. With most of the Mikhailov family dead or incarcerated there have been many profound changes in staff. There is a new head of police, and many of the corrupt cops were either arrested, fired or sent to stations throughout the city. Yet, people do not trust the LCP. The wooden floors and walls have aged rapidly in the last few years, and the ceiling is sagging, rotting or moldy. It is almost as though the moral corruption has tainted the environment.
Rumors: Do not go into cell 7.
9. City Courts
The city court building stands beside the police department, and is just as busy during the day. Almost identical to a Greek temple, marble columns line the two sides that face streets. Under the roof are carved murals, depicting various Greek gods presiding over mortals. One god, looking like a cross between a turtle and a kraken, sits astride a whale. The building is raised above the streets on six sandstone tiers, worn down by countless feet. The interior has a more modern design. Strange crimson and gold paintings and sculptures line the walls.
The Judges have gained a fearsome reputation over the years, and most defendants are found guilty and often receive severe punishments. As such, most people waiting for their court appearance sit apprehensively or miserably. The foyers, corridors and the courts themselves radiate have desolate atmospheres. Additionally, most of the lights are not working, and a crimson mold has started to eat into the walls and carpet. Sometimes they are blood stains from the night before . . .
Rumors: Judge Vaughan never leaves the courts. He either leaves late or lives in the building.
The Judges and lawyers often spend their lunches or dinners in an exclusive bar. The bar is either run by a Kindred or a ghoul.
Several Nosferatu meet in the basement every month. They have their own court and issues between clan members are resolved here. Their judge is said to have been embraced as punishment when she sentenced an innocent man to death.
10. Oakhill Cathedral
The cathedral towers over the surrounding city, not the least because it is built on the tallest hill in Lordenshaw. Gothic spires reach into the night like daggers pointing to a heaven that has given up caring. The immense stained glass windows depict various angels and saints fleeing God, whose angry image is formed by crimson and amber glass.
Within the overarching cavern-like interior are countless rows of pews and tables covered in flickering votive candles. Rich crimson velvet covers the isles and is draped over the raised dais. An immense figure of Christ nailed to a heavy iron cross looms over the altar and brass and gold organ. Priests seem to move furtively under the figure's gaze, and worshipers glance nervously before making the sign of the cross and leaving. The cathedral is almost always quiet.
Living quarters for the priests is also located on the church grounds. The trees and bushes in the gardens are stooped and nearly bare. Concrete almost covers every surface. Elaborate iron gates lead to a cemetery and the road.
As can be expected, the Lancea Sanctum considers the church their territory. However, it is not a haven; they hold a Black Mass here once a month.
Rumors: When the cathedral was built the masons also built one underground, mirroring it. The underground church is inverted and so points downward. Most of it is filled with water or bones, and the priests supposedly are not aware of it.
In 1872, a short humanoid figure with goat legs and covered in ivy and honey jumped over the cemetery wall and threw brass coins into the gardens. The locals called him Mr. Butterkins, or the Devil, and blame the figure for the sickly appearance of the gardens.
Oakhill Cemetery
Regarded as one of the largest cemeteries in North America, Oakhill Cemetery has more than ten thousand bodies buried and almost an equal amount of graves. Elaborate graves and crypts are located at the highest point of the cemetery, and following the slopes down the graves become more prosaic or broken. Oak trees grow in the avenues, and large fig trees loom over the graves with rope-like roots smothering some or worming through the masonry and earth as though hungry for the bones beneath.
Oakhill cemetery ceased accepting new burials, unless the dead were relatives, since the middle of the 20th century. As such, very few people come to mourn here, and most of the visitors are tourists, pretentious Goths, or occultists.
Rumors: One of the crypts has a manhole that connects to an elaborate system of tunnels known as the Ossuary. Either the Mekhet or Nosferatu use the system for their gatherings, or it belongs to Ordo Dracul to hide a library.
The fig trees are sentient and their roots are like worms tunneling through the earth. The roots search for bodies to steal memories. This may explain why some of the trees appear to have faces on the trunks and branches that are eerily similar to the faces that the deceased had when they were alive. One fig tree is called the Weeping Gentleman because of the sad face on its northern side. Some Kindred avow that this face looks exactly like an elder who went into Torpor in the 19th century. He may be buried beneath the Weeping Gentleman, wrapped in roots and impaled.
11. City Hall
City Hall is a broad, three story granite and brick building situated at the centre of Morningford Circus (the circular road surrounding the hall). The hall is also the centre of bureaucracy in the city and its surrounding towns. As such, it is constantly busy with various officials, important and self-important, working feverishly on new statutes, as well as overseeing the running of the city and meeting its constant, overwhelming needs. Only official visitors are allowed, and the mayor will only meet with people very rarely. Thus, there are more security officers here than anywhere else, and the security systems are ubiquitous.
Inside, there are countless offices and conference rooms. The corridors do not directly lead to places, and so it easily to get lost. People are always busily moving about, and there is a constant mutter with phones ringing stridently in the background. The anxiety is almost palpable. Paperwork is piled high, and folders are delivered hourly, or simply go missing in the bureaucratic nightmare. Almost daily, someone is verbally or physically abused by a staff member plagued by anxiety or feelings of impending disaster. During these moments, the lights flicker and computers experience glitches, as though the building suffers.
Rumors: Three years ago one of the mayor's assistants committed suicide. Strangely, he still sends emails to staff members repeating the same phrase: "Get out. Rakshasa is coming. 17x ## Fren## 22."
The mayor is a tyrant, and his staff is terrified of him. He does not come home to his expensive home on East Avenue on a Wednesday night. Instead, he attends meetings at the Lodge of 12, where he partakes in sadistic sex practices.
The government district is comprised of three to four storey buildings of a neo-classical design. As the region is the bureaucratic and legal centre of the city most of the buildings here fulfill those functions; and there are more government officials and lawyers here than any other part of the city. However, the district is also the cultural heart of the city, with its museums, opera house, theatres and libraries. The streets are kept in immaculate condition, and the rate of crime is low. Towards Ghostsilt River, one will find apartment buildings and a handful of mansions. These are the homes of high ranking government officials and some celebrities.
The government district has a culture of elitism, with most workers and locals regarding anyone below them as simply not worth their time. Whether this is due to the fact that they are too busy or because they believe they are superior due to the importance of their role depends on the individual. A community has developed that believes the district is the only one that matters, and so seventy percent of business here relates to the area and the rest of the city is now largely ignored.
Rumors: Most of the bureaucrats look and act identical. They talk in the same rapid speech, and use too much government jargon. There is one form of fashion here, and that is a grey or light blue suit. Anyone who does not conform is either found dead within a few weeks or is 'forced' to look and act the same.
5. Lordenshaw Museum
Lordenshaw Museum is over a hundred-and-fifty years old, and is showing signs of its age. The marble facade is starting to fall away, exposing brickwork. Cracks are appearing in the front columns and along the interior walls and walkways. The famous glass ceiling is badly in need of repair, with wooden planks covering most of the roof. Staff members are likewise old, with only a handful looking after the museum.
Some of the artifacts have been stolen, including a Native American warrior's mask and obsidian knife. Behind the display area is a large archive where most of the museum’s collection is left to collect dust.
Rumors: There is an ancient brass coffin covered in Sumerian glyphs kept somewhere in the storeroom. Some say that they feel a presence within it, leading some vampires to conclude that it contains a vampire in torpor. There is a knocking sound coming from within it that occurs once or twice a year. X-ray scans have revealed nothing, save for some bones and a metal cylinder.
6. Lordenshaw Opera House (Elysium)
The Opera House is a broad structure made of glass, granite and steel. The design is very modern, which contrasts strongly with the old-fashioned shows and classical orchestra. The interior is almost completely filled by a vast, thousand-seat theatre. The seats are arranged in four tiers, with the last tier being booths for the rich and individuals wanting completely privacy.
This location is marked as Elysium, and as such, Kindred meetings are common. However, the meetings take place in the lounge, for most vampires dislike others standing on stage and they find it difficult to mingle when they are seated in one of the many rows (especially if some use of the booths on the fourth tier).
Rumors: Some Kindred like to bring their prey to the fourth tier and sup on them during a performance.
7. Ottman's Rare Books & Antiquities
Down a cold alleyway lined with ivy and broken furniture and in view of Nobility Bridge, can be found a small bookstore. The front windows are either boarded up or covered in dust, but a soft golden light is almost always emanating from within the store. Inside, it is cramped and musty, with narrow rows of books and old journals lining the antique book cases and tables. Behind the glass counter is a display where the owner keeps his antiquities - various rare Middle Eastern treasures. A short, stooping Iranian man - Sulab Qufari - stands at the counter or can be found walking between the book shelves muttering to himself in Arabic or some other ancient tongue.
Most of the books are second-hand, and very rarely will one find a book printed later than 1950. They are expensive, and in perfect condition.
Rumors: There is a bottle made of coloured glass containing sand from ancient Persia. The sand is always warm, as though reflecting the heat of the sun (even warm at night). Hidden or misplaced, the store also has a telescope once used by a British explorer. If one extends the brass instrument and looks to the setting sun you supposedly see yourself tomorrow using the instrument. Finally, there is supposed to be an AK-47 from Iraq that makes a wailing sound when it fires on automatic.
Why do the books never age?
8. Police Department
Once, this building served as a stock exchange (up until the 1950s). When the finance sector started construction, the building's interior was demolished leaving the marble and brick exterior untouched. Now it houses the headquarters for the Lordenshaw City Police Force (LCP). Inside, there are four floors and two underground levels. The top-most floor is used by the head of the LCP, as well as the FBI. The ground floor is open to the public, and most interviews with suspects take place here. There are over twenty cells in the basement, and the level below serves as a storage and garage/car park.
Up until recently, the LCPD was regarded as the centre of police corruption. With most of the Mikhailov family dead or incarcerated there have been many profound changes in staff. There is a new head of police, and many of the corrupt cops were either arrested, fired or sent to stations throughout the city. Yet, people do not trust the LCP. The wooden floors and walls have aged rapidly in the last few years, and the ceiling is sagging, rotting or moldy. It is almost as though the moral corruption has tainted the environment.
Rumors: Do not go into cell 7.
9. City Courts
The city court building stands beside the police department, and is just as busy during the day. Almost identical to a Greek temple, marble columns line the two sides that face streets. Under the roof are carved murals, depicting various Greek gods presiding over mortals. One god, looking like a cross between a turtle and a kraken, sits astride a whale. The building is raised above the streets on six sandstone tiers, worn down by countless feet. The interior has a more modern design. Strange crimson and gold paintings and sculptures line the walls.
The Judges have gained a fearsome reputation over the years, and most defendants are found guilty and often receive severe punishments. As such, most people waiting for their court appearance sit apprehensively or miserably. The foyers, corridors and the courts themselves radiate have desolate atmospheres. Additionally, most of the lights are not working, and a crimson mold has started to eat into the walls and carpet. Sometimes they are blood stains from the night before . . .
Rumors: Judge Vaughan never leaves the courts. He either leaves late or lives in the building.
The Judges and lawyers often spend their lunches or dinners in an exclusive bar. The bar is either run by a Kindred or a ghoul.
Several Nosferatu meet in the basement every month. They have their own court and issues between clan members are resolved here. Their judge is said to have been embraced as punishment when she sentenced an innocent man to death.
10. Oakhill Cathedral
The cathedral towers over the surrounding city, not the least because it is built on the tallest hill in Lordenshaw. Gothic spires reach into the night like daggers pointing to a heaven that has given up caring. The immense stained glass windows depict various angels and saints fleeing God, whose angry image is formed by crimson and amber glass.
Within the overarching cavern-like interior are countless rows of pews and tables covered in flickering votive candles. Rich crimson velvet covers the isles and is draped over the raised dais. An immense figure of Christ nailed to a heavy iron cross looms over the altar and brass and gold organ. Priests seem to move furtively under the figure's gaze, and worshipers glance nervously before making the sign of the cross and leaving. The cathedral is almost always quiet.
Living quarters for the priests is also located on the church grounds. The trees and bushes in the gardens are stooped and nearly bare. Concrete almost covers every surface. Elaborate iron gates lead to a cemetery and the road.
As can be expected, the Lancea Sanctum considers the church their territory. However, it is not a haven; they hold a Black Mass here once a month.
Rumors: When the cathedral was built the masons also built one underground, mirroring it. The underground church is inverted and so points downward. Most of it is filled with water or bones, and the priests supposedly are not aware of it.
In 1872, a short humanoid figure with goat legs and covered in ivy and honey jumped over the cemetery wall and threw brass coins into the gardens. The locals called him Mr. Butterkins, or the Devil, and blame the figure for the sickly appearance of the gardens.
Oakhill Cemetery
Regarded as one of the largest cemeteries in North America, Oakhill Cemetery has more than ten thousand bodies buried and almost an equal amount of graves. Elaborate graves and crypts are located at the highest point of the cemetery, and following the slopes down the graves become more prosaic or broken. Oak trees grow in the avenues, and large fig trees loom over the graves with rope-like roots smothering some or worming through the masonry and earth as though hungry for the bones beneath.
Oakhill cemetery ceased accepting new burials, unless the dead were relatives, since the middle of the 20th century. As such, very few people come to mourn here, and most of the visitors are tourists, pretentious Goths, or occultists.
Rumors: One of the crypts has a manhole that connects to an elaborate system of tunnels known as the Ossuary. Either the Mekhet or Nosferatu use the system for their gatherings, or it belongs to Ordo Dracul to hide a library.
The fig trees are sentient and their roots are like worms tunneling through the earth. The roots search for bodies to steal memories. This may explain why some of the trees appear to have faces on the trunks and branches that are eerily similar to the faces that the deceased had when they were alive. One fig tree is called the Weeping Gentleman because of the sad face on its northern side. Some Kindred avow that this face looks exactly like an elder who went into Torpor in the 19th century. He may be buried beneath the Weeping Gentleman, wrapped in roots and impaled.
11. City Hall
City Hall is a broad, three story granite and brick building situated at the centre of Morningford Circus (the circular road surrounding the hall). The hall is also the centre of bureaucracy in the city and its surrounding towns. As such, it is constantly busy with various officials, important and self-important, working feverishly on new statutes, as well as overseeing the running of the city and meeting its constant, overwhelming needs. Only official visitors are allowed, and the mayor will only meet with people very rarely. Thus, there are more security officers here than anywhere else, and the security systems are ubiquitous.
Inside, there are countless offices and conference rooms. The corridors do not directly lead to places, and so it easily to get lost. People are always busily moving about, and there is a constant mutter with phones ringing stridently in the background. The anxiety is almost palpable. Paperwork is piled high, and folders are delivered hourly, or simply go missing in the bureaucratic nightmare. Almost daily, someone is verbally or physically abused by a staff member plagued by anxiety or feelings of impending disaster. During these moments, the lights flicker and computers experience glitches, as though the building suffers.
Rumors: Three years ago one of the mayor's assistants committed suicide. Strangely, he still sends emails to staff members repeating the same phrase: "Get out. Rakshasa is coming. 17x ## Fren## 22."
The mayor is a tyrant, and his staff is terrified of him. He does not come home to his expensive home on East Avenue on a Wednesday night. Instead, he attends meetings at the Lodge of 12, where he partakes in sadistic sex practices.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
-
Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
Corporate District
Also known as the financial district, this large region is dominated by high-rise buildings and skyscrapers laid out in a grid-pattern. It is home to thousands of white collar workers and approximately a hundred Kindred. Unlike most of the city, it has not been ignored by the city’s council, and so the streets are largely clean, homeless, and free of gangs. However, this is not to say that there is no crime; white-collar crime is extensive and it is said there is more fraudulent activity here than the rest of the city combined.
In Kindred parlance, the corporate district is referred to as ‘the Rack’. The area is a prime feeding ground, and vampires are able to satiate their hungers without risking the Masquerade. As such, the region is in high demand. Most would pay anything to be given permission to feed here. The Regent here would thus hold great power, and a Prince would therefore need to be wise selecting someone for regency.
In this instance, wisdom has been replaced by individuals playing power games. Hierophant Scythia had been advised to place Lydia Hibberd as the Regent. This appointment has incensed most Kindred, particularly the Unaligned and the Carthians. No doubt the Circle of the Crone has gained much power to the anger of the Invictus, but Markus Nwoso appears to be ignoring the pleas of his covenant for the Primogen Council to force Hierophant Scythia to re-assign the position. He merely remains silent.
Rumors: There is a location where the shadows are deeper and the colours more intense. One can hear faint whispers, and strange figures at the edge of vision. In some versions of the rumor, items float or are thrown, and people are sometimes assailed by unseen forces. The air sometimes becomes filled with energy, and often people’s hair stands out or their figures glow with a faint blue light. One rumor has it that this happens on the twentieth floor, and in another version it happens in a car park deep beneath a skyscraper. However, all versions agree on one thing: the activity started when loggers cleared a region of Queen Mountain forest and exposed a ring of stones.
12. Herald Corporation Tower
Herald Corp occupies an impressively tall building (the tallest in Lordenshaw) that looks a skyscraper designed by medieval architects. The tower is overtly Gothic in design with some modern elements. A stone-grey facade covers most of the building, with vertical buttresses running along the sides and flaring out at the base. Every five floors there are narrow platforms surrounding the tower, with chest-high crenellated stone walls at the edges. Brass and iron gargoyles sit between tall black-iron spikes and blood-red spotlights. The buttresses terminate in immense spires at the top of the tower, surrounding a cathedral that sits atop the roof like a Gothic crown. There are very few windows, with each floor having one or two. The windows are either mirrored, or comprised of stained-glass.
In contrast, the interior has a more modern design, with dark wooden paneling, deep red or blue carpets, and large open offices and halls that are unlike constricted medieval rooms. Everything is lit in soft lighting, and the windows allow only soft daylight to pass through. Of note, three quarters of the tower allows more natural light in as most of the staff is mortal. The upper fifteen percent of floors are entirely occupied by Kindred, specifically members of the Lancea Sanctum.
Herald Corporation is a company controlled by the Lancea Sanctum. The corporation's main form of revenue is stock broking and merchant shipping. However, it is not multi-national, and the Kindred are bound by no global secular authority other than the Testament of Longinus. All of the elevators from the ground floor stop at level 47, as only Lancea Sanctum members (and rarely Kindred from other covenants) are allowed entry to the remaining eight floors. The cathedral at the building's summit is barred to anyone not Sanctified.
Rumors: The Sanctified never the leave the tower, for they have all the vitae they need from the staff. Ghoul guards and executives ensure that staff numbers remain high for the needs of their masters, and that the authorities do not look too closely into frequent reports of staff leaving late at night feeling drained and having a ghostly pallor.
Liberty Lake
Liberty Lake is over kilometer in length, and no one knows how deep it is. Its shoreline is overgrown with reeds, and several Willow trees arch over its waters as though peering at their own gaunt reflections. The water is always still and crystal clear, but the bottom of the lake is never visible. After several meters is becomes dark and swimmers say very cold. There are no fish, and birds rarely leave the shoreline.
The park surrounding the lake is overgrown, and during the night it becomes the haven for the homeless and some Kindred.
Rumors: Organised crime groups know that if you throw a body into the lake it is unlikely to be found. However, most bodies that sink into the depths appear a few days later on the shoreline. One in ten bodies never returns.
13. Scope & Barrel Gun Supply
This dimly lit and constricted weapon store is located in the basement of a tower. It is reached by walking down a flight of stairs in an underground car park. Several garages have been sealed off by bricks or heavy iron bars, leaving a fortified door as the only entrance. Inside, Garry Ne Huang (the owner) watches patrons cautiously, a shotgun under his arm and smoking vanilla-scented cigarettes. Some of his weapons have the smell of gunpowder on them, or flecks of dried blood, but no one asks questions as Garry never asks for a license. In fact, the owner never asks questions.
Rumors: Garry has several crates containing bio or chemical weapons. He bought them off a Middle Eastern or Greek man - the story changes with each telling - and because of concerns he refuses to store them in the shop. They are apparently located in container in the industrial zone or the suburbs. However, Garry also refuses to talk in detail about the weapons. Unless they are willing to pay a costly price.
Also known as the financial district, this large region is dominated by high-rise buildings and skyscrapers laid out in a grid-pattern. It is home to thousands of white collar workers and approximately a hundred Kindred. Unlike most of the city, it has not been ignored by the city’s council, and so the streets are largely clean, homeless, and free of gangs. However, this is not to say that there is no crime; white-collar crime is extensive and it is said there is more fraudulent activity here than the rest of the city combined.
In Kindred parlance, the corporate district is referred to as ‘the Rack’. The area is a prime feeding ground, and vampires are able to satiate their hungers without risking the Masquerade. As such, the region is in high demand. Most would pay anything to be given permission to feed here. The Regent here would thus hold great power, and a Prince would therefore need to be wise selecting someone for regency.
In this instance, wisdom has been replaced by individuals playing power games. Hierophant Scythia had been advised to place Lydia Hibberd as the Regent. This appointment has incensed most Kindred, particularly the Unaligned and the Carthians. No doubt the Circle of the Crone has gained much power to the anger of the Invictus, but Markus Nwoso appears to be ignoring the pleas of his covenant for the Primogen Council to force Hierophant Scythia to re-assign the position. He merely remains silent.
Rumors: There is a location where the shadows are deeper and the colours more intense. One can hear faint whispers, and strange figures at the edge of vision. In some versions of the rumor, items float or are thrown, and people are sometimes assailed by unseen forces. The air sometimes becomes filled with energy, and often people’s hair stands out or their figures glow with a faint blue light. One rumor has it that this happens on the twentieth floor, and in another version it happens in a car park deep beneath a skyscraper. However, all versions agree on one thing: the activity started when loggers cleared a region of Queen Mountain forest and exposed a ring of stones.
12. Herald Corporation Tower
Herald Corp occupies an impressively tall building (the tallest in Lordenshaw) that looks a skyscraper designed by medieval architects. The tower is overtly Gothic in design with some modern elements. A stone-grey facade covers most of the building, with vertical buttresses running along the sides and flaring out at the base. Every five floors there are narrow platforms surrounding the tower, with chest-high crenellated stone walls at the edges. Brass and iron gargoyles sit between tall black-iron spikes and blood-red spotlights. The buttresses terminate in immense spires at the top of the tower, surrounding a cathedral that sits atop the roof like a Gothic crown. There are very few windows, with each floor having one or two. The windows are either mirrored, or comprised of stained-glass.
In contrast, the interior has a more modern design, with dark wooden paneling, deep red or blue carpets, and large open offices and halls that are unlike constricted medieval rooms. Everything is lit in soft lighting, and the windows allow only soft daylight to pass through. Of note, three quarters of the tower allows more natural light in as most of the staff is mortal. The upper fifteen percent of floors are entirely occupied by Kindred, specifically members of the Lancea Sanctum.
Herald Corporation is a company controlled by the Lancea Sanctum. The corporation's main form of revenue is stock broking and merchant shipping. However, it is not multi-national, and the Kindred are bound by no global secular authority other than the Testament of Longinus. All of the elevators from the ground floor stop at level 47, as only Lancea Sanctum members (and rarely Kindred from other covenants) are allowed entry to the remaining eight floors. The cathedral at the building's summit is barred to anyone not Sanctified.
Rumors: The Sanctified never the leave the tower, for they have all the vitae they need from the staff. Ghoul guards and executives ensure that staff numbers remain high for the needs of their masters, and that the authorities do not look too closely into frequent reports of staff leaving late at night feeling drained and having a ghostly pallor.
Liberty Lake
Liberty Lake is over kilometer in length, and no one knows how deep it is. Its shoreline is overgrown with reeds, and several Willow trees arch over its waters as though peering at their own gaunt reflections. The water is always still and crystal clear, but the bottom of the lake is never visible. After several meters is becomes dark and swimmers say very cold. There are no fish, and birds rarely leave the shoreline.
The park surrounding the lake is overgrown, and during the night it becomes the haven for the homeless and some Kindred.
Rumors: Organised crime groups know that if you throw a body into the lake it is unlikely to be found. However, most bodies that sink into the depths appear a few days later on the shoreline. One in ten bodies never returns.
13. Scope & Barrel Gun Supply
This dimly lit and constricted weapon store is located in the basement of a tower. It is reached by walking down a flight of stairs in an underground car park. Several garages have been sealed off by bricks or heavy iron bars, leaving a fortified door as the only entrance. Inside, Garry Ne Huang (the owner) watches patrons cautiously, a shotgun under his arm and smoking vanilla-scented cigarettes. Some of his weapons have the smell of gunpowder on them, or flecks of dried blood, but no one asks questions as Garry never asks for a license. In fact, the owner never asks questions.
Rumors: Garry has several crates containing bio or chemical weapons. He bought them off a Middle Eastern or Greek man - the story changes with each telling - and because of concerns he refuses to store them in the shop. They are apparently located in container in the industrial zone or the suburbs. However, Garry also refuses to talk in detail about the weapons. Unless they are willing to pay a costly price.
Last edited by Loredoctor on Wed Sep 09, 2009 9:05 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
White Road
White Road is parallel to the highway that runs through the city. Along White Road is a series of tall, high-density apartment complexes, including a hospital and subway stations. The district is home to thousands of white collar workers and their families, and at least twenty Kindred.
White Road district is considered one of the best places to live in the city, although it has a high level of crime and homelessness. The apartment complexes are thus surrounded by tall walls, and modern security systems monitor the gates, walls and even the corridors inside. The inhabitants care only for those people living in the same building.
The Regent of White Road district is Henrietta Aphese, who rules the region like a true aristocrat. She holds court here, and demands that any Kindred who wish to feed in the region present themselves to her and agree to some form of feudal bond.
Rumors: The Russian mafia are at war with the Regent here, or that is what she wants everyone to think.
White Road is parallel to the highway that runs through the city. Along White Road is a series of tall, high-density apartment complexes, including a hospital and subway stations. The district is home to thousands of white collar workers and their families, and at least twenty Kindred.
White Road district is considered one of the best places to live in the city, although it has a high level of crime and homelessness. The apartment complexes are thus surrounded by tall walls, and modern security systems monitor the gates, walls and even the corridors inside. The inhabitants care only for those people living in the same building.
The Regent of White Road district is Henrietta Aphese, who rules the region like a true aristocrat. She holds court here, and demands that any Kindred who wish to feed in the region present themselves to her and agree to some form of feudal bond.
Rumors: The Russian mafia are at war with the Regent here, or that is what she wants everyone to think.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
Industrial District
A sprawling area of smoking, groaning factories, construction yards, processing plants and steel works. Beside hulking warehouses and factories sit empty and decaying industrial buildings. The constant mechanical roar and shuddering of heavy machinery almost smothers the sounds of trains and heavy vehicles. The wind carries chemical fumes, ash and the scent of processed food, as well as trash that piles up against the rusted fencing and rotten wooden barricades. All of the roads and streets are lined with tall streetlamps that cast a sickly yellow light on the grey asphalt, concrete of gray, brown earth.
Nothing grows in the soil, as a century of exposure to chemicals and radiation has scarred the Earth here. However, rats and insects exist in almost limitless numbers, feasting on the waste that lies scattered about.
There are residential estates in this district, and sometimes houses exist between factories. Most homes are abandoned and empty and the remaining houses are occupied by industrial workers, the poor, or Kindred. Their homes are scarcely better, and often in such a state of disrepair that they barely protect against the elements. The back and front yards are often covered in concrete for the soil is polluted and empty of life. Trash, broken toys, rusted vehicles and the corpses of animals litter the yards.
Rumors: There is a pack of wolves that hunts the metal wasteland, and is fanatically territorial. Several Kindred have received Final Death at their fangs and claws.
The homeless refuse to enter an abandoned warehouse on Lincoln Street.
Waste Plant
There is a constant stench of burning material, processed garbage, and chemicals surrounding the waste plant like diseased atmosphere. The air is stained a grey colour, and every surface is tarnished by oily brown-grey grime. In the muddied distance, indistinct figures shamble between the tall, grey metal buildings, wheezing and coughing. Lurid green and red fires flicker everywhere, like glowing sea animals drifting in some polluted sea. A lengthy corroded metal pipeline snakes it way across the grounds of the plant and into the bay. Like a mammoth metal diseased intestine it pours the waste into the languid waters.
Despite the hazardous atmosphere that cloaks the plant like a pall, the facility is a hive of activity. Waste trucks constantly unload material into the collecting drums, while staff members busy themselves processing the material. Security officers wearing gasmasks patrol the grounds, and sickly-looking guard dogs dart about. Office lights are always on, and occasionally, a silhouette is seen.
Rumors: Something once crawled into the pipe that leads into the bay and made its way into the main processing building. A purge of all the pipes was ordered, but the company found nothing other than the bodies of dogs and a homeless man. Yet, some staff members swear that they still hear something crawling in the pipes.
The manager of the plant has never been seen, and he only works at night. His shadow can be seen in the executive windows of head offices. At least, they assume it is the manager. Workers know when they are going to be fired or that someone will die the next day when this figure writes a fated name on the window. One of the cleaners found that blood was used for the lettering. Two nights ago the figure wrote the word, "EVERYONE".
14. Homeless Shelter
The homeless shelter is a squat wooden structure. Once an attempt to brighten the old building and the narrow street, its yellow light is now faded and discoloured. The windows are all covered in grime or smashed, and most have tattered curtains or wood blocking the view of the interior. A sign hanging lopsided reads: "Lordenshaw Homeless Shelter".
The interior is just as dilapidated. Most of the walls have been knocked down, so that there is only one large room. A soup kitchen takes up most of the space, and to one side are several beds covered in rough or dirty sheets. No matter what time of day or night it is, most of the beds will be occupied and the kitchen busy with sic or depressed-looking individuals eating cheap food. No one appears to care, as everyone is so consumed in their worries, alcohol or illicit substances.
Rumors: The homeless shelter is run by a caring woman that has adopted the title, The Chemical Angel. She was either a heroin addict who took over the shelter after being saved by a dying priest, or an industrial worker disfigured in an accident in one of the chemical plants. She is almost entirely covered in a shawl and walks with a limp. the angel apparently knows every secret in the city, or at least the industrial district, and will sell information for food or money.
15. The Embrace Nightclub (Elysium)
A glittering, garish jewel in a wasteland of rusting metal and polluted asphalt, the Embrace Nightclub appears oddly out of place. Indeed, it is adjoining a rusted spare parts yard and across the street from a chemical storage facility. The building itself was once a two-storey meat processing plant, but has almost completely rebuilt. Midnight-blue and black paint covers every square inch of surface, with blood-red thin neon lighting covering the roof edges and building corner like phosphorescent crimson ivy. The club's is a single neon rose petal with the words "Embrace Nightclub" etched into it. The entrance is a gothic archway with a heavy-set wooden door.
The interior is comprised by two levels. The first floor contains the dance floor, DJ booth, bar and some tables. The second floor is merely a walkway with several couches, and tables with seats that looks out on to the dance floor. Everything is painted red and black, with red neon lighting and strobe lights clustered in the centre of the roof and around the DJ booth.
A Nosferatu by the name of Guttermouth manages the nightclub, and with the Prince's permission has declared it protected under Elysium. In exchange for non-violent behaviour, Kindred are allowed to feed here for a small price. Mortals are given free entry, and the alcohol is cheap. However, only healthy-looking people are allowed to enter. As the club caters to the goth and industrial music scene, no mortals think twice when a stranger bites into the neck of someone (with the proviso that they lick the wounds after feeding to hide the marks). Guttermouth will punish Kindred severely if they kill a mortal during feeding, and demand that they walk drowsy victims to a nearby couch. Most wake up later believing that they have consumed too much alcohol or taken an illicit substance. As far as anyone knows no vampire hunters have investigated the club or attacked Kindred.
Rumors: Guttermouth is having difficulty with some gangs in the industrial district, and is very concerned that Belial's Brood may also be operating in the area.
16. French Hill Prison
Once this structure used to be part of a military base in the nineteenth century, and so it is built like a fort. However, the hedges have been replaced by tall spiked fences choked by rusted barbed wire. The ground is dry and dead, and patrolled by fierce-looking prison guards. Barbed wire covers most of the structure like corroded metal ivy. Rows of glinting metal razor line the uneven roof, windows and corners. The windows are merely slits in the thick, black stone walls. Occasionally an inmate can be seen staring strangely out, like some pale, forgotten memory. A cry of rage or pain is sometimes heard, but it is brief as though smothered or silenced by other means.
The main gate is located at the outer fence, a sign above it reads: "Forbidden Entry. Lethal Force Will Be Used On Anyone Attempting To Gain Access To The Prison Without Authorisation." The guards at the entrance keep a tally on the sign of how many they have shot in the past (24), and they finger the triggers of their guns eagerly with hungry gazes.
A classic prison has been built into the interior. Row upon rows of grey cells with corroded bars stretch into the gloomy darkness, with rusted metal covering the walkways, stairs and ceilings. There are always the sounds of slamming metal, the cries or moans of prisoners, and wind howling through windows. Bright red mold grows in the corners or on the ceilings. The smell of oxidised metal is faint in the warm air.
Rumors: Although the company who runs the prison is known (Symmetry Limited), the identities of those who comprise the management team inside French Hill Prison are unknown. The prison guards simply refer to them as 'The Suits' or 'The Administration'. Few wonder if they are Kindred, for only one vampire was allowed entry two years ago and some managers have been seen moving in the daylight. Any attempts to gain control of them or to arrange deals have failed.
The smell of rust and iron increases the closer one gets to the management or generator sections, and the prisoners become more subdued.
A sprawling area of smoking, groaning factories, construction yards, processing plants and steel works. Beside hulking warehouses and factories sit empty and decaying industrial buildings. The constant mechanical roar and shuddering of heavy machinery almost smothers the sounds of trains and heavy vehicles. The wind carries chemical fumes, ash and the scent of processed food, as well as trash that piles up against the rusted fencing and rotten wooden barricades. All of the roads and streets are lined with tall streetlamps that cast a sickly yellow light on the grey asphalt, concrete of gray, brown earth.
Nothing grows in the soil, as a century of exposure to chemicals and radiation has scarred the Earth here. However, rats and insects exist in almost limitless numbers, feasting on the waste that lies scattered about.
There are residential estates in this district, and sometimes houses exist between factories. Most homes are abandoned and empty and the remaining houses are occupied by industrial workers, the poor, or Kindred. Their homes are scarcely better, and often in such a state of disrepair that they barely protect against the elements. The back and front yards are often covered in concrete for the soil is polluted and empty of life. Trash, broken toys, rusted vehicles and the corpses of animals litter the yards.
Rumors: There is a pack of wolves that hunts the metal wasteland, and is fanatically territorial. Several Kindred have received Final Death at their fangs and claws.
The homeless refuse to enter an abandoned warehouse on Lincoln Street.
Waste Plant
There is a constant stench of burning material, processed garbage, and chemicals surrounding the waste plant like diseased atmosphere. The air is stained a grey colour, and every surface is tarnished by oily brown-grey grime. In the muddied distance, indistinct figures shamble between the tall, grey metal buildings, wheezing and coughing. Lurid green and red fires flicker everywhere, like glowing sea animals drifting in some polluted sea. A lengthy corroded metal pipeline snakes it way across the grounds of the plant and into the bay. Like a mammoth metal diseased intestine it pours the waste into the languid waters.
Despite the hazardous atmosphere that cloaks the plant like a pall, the facility is a hive of activity. Waste trucks constantly unload material into the collecting drums, while staff members busy themselves processing the material. Security officers wearing gasmasks patrol the grounds, and sickly-looking guard dogs dart about. Office lights are always on, and occasionally, a silhouette is seen.
Rumors: Something once crawled into the pipe that leads into the bay and made its way into the main processing building. A purge of all the pipes was ordered, but the company found nothing other than the bodies of dogs and a homeless man. Yet, some staff members swear that they still hear something crawling in the pipes.
The manager of the plant has never been seen, and he only works at night. His shadow can be seen in the executive windows of head offices. At least, they assume it is the manager. Workers know when they are going to be fired or that someone will die the next day when this figure writes a fated name on the window. One of the cleaners found that blood was used for the lettering. Two nights ago the figure wrote the word, "EVERYONE".
14. Homeless Shelter
The homeless shelter is a squat wooden structure. Once an attempt to brighten the old building and the narrow street, its yellow light is now faded and discoloured. The windows are all covered in grime or smashed, and most have tattered curtains or wood blocking the view of the interior. A sign hanging lopsided reads: "Lordenshaw Homeless Shelter".
The interior is just as dilapidated. Most of the walls have been knocked down, so that there is only one large room. A soup kitchen takes up most of the space, and to one side are several beds covered in rough or dirty sheets. No matter what time of day or night it is, most of the beds will be occupied and the kitchen busy with sic or depressed-looking individuals eating cheap food. No one appears to care, as everyone is so consumed in their worries, alcohol or illicit substances.
Rumors: The homeless shelter is run by a caring woman that has adopted the title, The Chemical Angel. She was either a heroin addict who took over the shelter after being saved by a dying priest, or an industrial worker disfigured in an accident in one of the chemical plants. She is almost entirely covered in a shawl and walks with a limp. the angel apparently knows every secret in the city, or at least the industrial district, and will sell information for food or money.
15. The Embrace Nightclub (Elysium)
A glittering, garish jewel in a wasteland of rusting metal and polluted asphalt, the Embrace Nightclub appears oddly out of place. Indeed, it is adjoining a rusted spare parts yard and across the street from a chemical storage facility. The building itself was once a two-storey meat processing plant, but has almost completely rebuilt. Midnight-blue and black paint covers every square inch of surface, with blood-red thin neon lighting covering the roof edges and building corner like phosphorescent crimson ivy. The club's is a single neon rose petal with the words "Embrace Nightclub" etched into it. The entrance is a gothic archway with a heavy-set wooden door.
The interior is comprised by two levels. The first floor contains the dance floor, DJ booth, bar and some tables. The second floor is merely a walkway with several couches, and tables with seats that looks out on to the dance floor. Everything is painted red and black, with red neon lighting and strobe lights clustered in the centre of the roof and around the DJ booth.
A Nosferatu by the name of Guttermouth manages the nightclub, and with the Prince's permission has declared it protected under Elysium. In exchange for non-violent behaviour, Kindred are allowed to feed here for a small price. Mortals are given free entry, and the alcohol is cheap. However, only healthy-looking people are allowed to enter. As the club caters to the goth and industrial music scene, no mortals think twice when a stranger bites into the neck of someone (with the proviso that they lick the wounds after feeding to hide the marks). Guttermouth will punish Kindred severely if they kill a mortal during feeding, and demand that they walk drowsy victims to a nearby couch. Most wake up later believing that they have consumed too much alcohol or taken an illicit substance. As far as anyone knows no vampire hunters have investigated the club or attacked Kindred.
Rumors: Guttermouth is having difficulty with some gangs in the industrial district, and is very concerned that Belial's Brood may also be operating in the area.
16. French Hill Prison
Once this structure used to be part of a military base in the nineteenth century, and so it is built like a fort. However, the hedges have been replaced by tall spiked fences choked by rusted barbed wire. The ground is dry and dead, and patrolled by fierce-looking prison guards. Barbed wire covers most of the structure like corroded metal ivy. Rows of glinting metal razor line the uneven roof, windows and corners. The windows are merely slits in the thick, black stone walls. Occasionally an inmate can be seen staring strangely out, like some pale, forgotten memory. A cry of rage or pain is sometimes heard, but it is brief as though smothered or silenced by other means.
The main gate is located at the outer fence, a sign above it reads: "Forbidden Entry. Lethal Force Will Be Used On Anyone Attempting To Gain Access To The Prison Without Authorisation." The guards at the entrance keep a tally on the sign of how many they have shot in the past (24), and they finger the triggers of their guns eagerly with hungry gazes.
A classic prison has been built into the interior. Row upon rows of grey cells with corroded bars stretch into the gloomy darkness, with rusted metal covering the walkways, stairs and ceilings. There are always the sounds of slamming metal, the cries or moans of prisoners, and wind howling through windows. Bright red mold grows in the corners or on the ceilings. The smell of oxidised metal is faint in the warm air.
Rumors: Although the company who runs the prison is known (Symmetry Limited), the identities of those who comprise the management team inside French Hill Prison are unknown. The prison guards simply refer to them as 'The Suits' or 'The Administration'. Few wonder if they are Kindred, for only one vampire was allowed entry two years ago and some managers have been seen moving in the daylight. Any attempts to gain control of them or to arrange deals have failed.
The smell of rust and iron increases the closer one gets to the management or generator sections, and the prisoners become more subdued.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
The Mound of the Ghost Eater (Elysium)
A large Native American burial mound located in the north east of the city. A ring of ancient stone monoliths is located atop the broad crown of the grassy hill. A raised plinth of granite sits in the centre covered in glyphs and dried blood.
The sides gently slope out for a hundred feet. The mound sits in the middle of a wide clearing near Ghostsilt River. Surrounding the clearing are clusters of huts and tall structures belonging to the history department of Howell University.
The Mound belongs to the Circle of the Crone covenant, however all Kindred (even the Lancea Sanctum) are allowed. The only exception occurs on ceremony nights (for instance, equinoxes). During these times, it is not uncommon for uninvited guests – mortal and Kindred alike – to be used for sacrifices to the Crone.
Rumors: Studies of the Mound have revealed that it contains several chambers, including a large one almost beneath the circle of stones. Archaeologists have yet to dig in to the mound. Not for a lack of intent, for every time plans are made to explore the interior equipment becomes missing or staff are threatened. The Circle of the Crone denies that it is responsible, although the covenant of Lordenshaw city believes that a Goddess within will arise “when the time is right”.
Native American tribes once told tales of the terrible Ghost Eater. She danced like the heat waves above rocks, hunted like an Eagle, and spoke to the tribes like a hundred wise chiefs. Her wrath was a nightmare to all when roused, but it never ceased when she saw the Europeans. A French general shot a bullet that “shattered her heart” and the tribes fled. A laughing crow and a weeping cougar were said to have buried her in the Mound.
A large Native American burial mound located in the north east of the city. A ring of ancient stone monoliths is located atop the broad crown of the grassy hill. A raised plinth of granite sits in the centre covered in glyphs and dried blood.
The sides gently slope out for a hundred feet. The mound sits in the middle of a wide clearing near Ghostsilt River. Surrounding the clearing are clusters of huts and tall structures belonging to the history department of Howell University.
The Mound belongs to the Circle of the Crone covenant, however all Kindred (even the Lancea Sanctum) are allowed. The only exception occurs on ceremony nights (for instance, equinoxes). During these times, it is not uncommon for uninvited guests – mortal and Kindred alike – to be used for sacrifices to the Crone.
Rumors: Studies of the Mound have revealed that it contains several chambers, including a large one almost beneath the circle of stones. Archaeologists have yet to dig in to the mound. Not for a lack of intent, for every time plans are made to explore the interior equipment becomes missing or staff are threatened. The Circle of the Crone denies that it is responsible, although the covenant of Lordenshaw city believes that a Goddess within will arise “when the time is right”.
Native American tribes once told tales of the terrible Ghost Eater. She danced like the heat waves above rocks, hunted like an Eagle, and spoke to the tribes like a hundred wise chiefs. Her wrath was a nightmare to all when roused, but it never ceased when she saw the Europeans. A French general shot a bullet that “shattered her heart” and the tribes fled. A laughing crow and a weeping cougar were said to have buried her in the Mound.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
-
Loredoctor
- Lord
- Posts: 18609
- Joined: Sun Jul 14, 2002 11:35 pm
- Location: Melbourne, Victoria
- Contact:
The Suburbs
The largest district in the city, the suburbs is a sprawling landscape of medium to low density houses. Most of the city’s population lives here, in varying states of wealth. Generally, lower income earners will reside in the less prosperous neighbourhoods, but most of suburbs belong to those of a middle income. High income earners either live in the centre of the city or along East Avenue.
There is a sense of monotony here. Most streets and roads are placed in right-angled patterns with very little variance. The suburbs is a rambling grid of asphalt streets and low set homes, identical gardens and over a million people living oblivious to the wider world or to its darker ‘truths’. Even the malls exhibit a sense of artificiality and tediousness, selling products to dampen the minds but to briefly entertain; the citizens are encouraged to live commonplace, plastic lives. Despite the monotony there are some unusual places – locations where the other world has breached this suburban wasteland.
Lordenshaw city council have ignored the needs of most of the city for several years. The roads in the suburbs are in disrepair, there is no police or fire stations, and litter seems to lie on every street and in the choked gutters.
Rumors: A Kindred stalks Happyrise Mall and feasts on anybody remaining after hours. Security guards never last more than a few months, for some are terrified by sightings of “hunched black man that crawls on the ceiling”. The Prince would demand the vampire executed for endangering the masquerade if this was the same individual; the Kindred is a pale, effete figure.
Compton Park is the least visited park in the city. Children are never seen in its playgrounds, and very few adults spend more than a few minutes walking on the grass. Once every few months locals are observed standing around the pond at the park’s southern end, leading a child in to the black waters.
East Avenue
Considered by many to be the most exclusive place to live, beside the waterfront estate, East Avenue is a lengthy road that stretches from east to west for more than three kilometres. Lining both sides of the busy road are the estates of the wealthy and famous. Most of the buildings are richly furnished apartment buildings, but one out of three is a mansion or normal-sized house in a large estate. As can be expected, most of the estates have excellent security - electronic and hired guards. Hence, the wealthy keep to themselves and ignore the outside world - associating with their own social groups. However, there is a certain level of paranoia, for they watch each others' homes and the sidewalks for their own safety.
The wealthy cannot abide homelessness due to arrogance or feelings of guilt, and so it is not uncommon to see the police assaulting the destitute and poor before dragging them in to their cars. Sometimes private guards will venture out and do this, although they are often unrestrained; occasionally, a dead or near-dead person will be carried in to the estate to be disposed of. Sometimes they are dragged kicking and screaming, relatively unharmed . . .
Rumors: There are more Ventrue havens on East Avenue than in any other location.
There is an apartment complex with the highest rate of suicides among its tenants. The lift is said to moan at times, as though someone has been hanged from underneath the lift car and is not yet dead.
Howell College
Howell College is one of the largest colleges on the East Cost. It is home to thousands of students, mostly international, and is comprised of at least twenty faculties. The buildings are a mix of the old and the new, with old European style structures adjoining metal and glass modern constructions. The facility is a block of its own, spanning several square miles. A large green park surrounds the buildings, with many copses allowing Kindred to feed from the crowds at night. For vampires who enjoy the blood of the young, of bright minds, of liberal values, the university is a rich feeding ground.
The Regent of the domain is Markus Nwoso, who supposedly gained the feeding ground by providing an exceptionally important favour to Hierophant Scythia. He is very particular about who feeds here and ensures that it is costly, but appears not to ask a high price from the Sanctified of the Lancea Sanctum.
Rumors: A savage murder took place in the Mining faculty, and it was closed down following an investigation. Students wonder why they do not open it up again since the case was closed three years ago. The lecturers do not ask the same question, and seem to be hiding something. Coincidentally, at the same time the department's Dean vanished.
A few Kindred are night students and live on campus, and one is apparently a mathematics lecturer.
The largest district in the city, the suburbs is a sprawling landscape of medium to low density houses. Most of the city’s population lives here, in varying states of wealth. Generally, lower income earners will reside in the less prosperous neighbourhoods, but most of suburbs belong to those of a middle income. High income earners either live in the centre of the city or along East Avenue.
There is a sense of monotony here. Most streets and roads are placed in right-angled patterns with very little variance. The suburbs is a rambling grid of asphalt streets and low set homes, identical gardens and over a million people living oblivious to the wider world or to its darker ‘truths’. Even the malls exhibit a sense of artificiality and tediousness, selling products to dampen the minds but to briefly entertain; the citizens are encouraged to live commonplace, plastic lives. Despite the monotony there are some unusual places – locations where the other world has breached this suburban wasteland.
Lordenshaw city council have ignored the needs of most of the city for several years. The roads in the suburbs are in disrepair, there is no police or fire stations, and litter seems to lie on every street and in the choked gutters.
Rumors: A Kindred stalks Happyrise Mall and feasts on anybody remaining after hours. Security guards never last more than a few months, for some are terrified by sightings of “hunched black man that crawls on the ceiling”. The Prince would demand the vampire executed for endangering the masquerade if this was the same individual; the Kindred is a pale, effete figure.
Compton Park is the least visited park in the city. Children are never seen in its playgrounds, and very few adults spend more than a few minutes walking on the grass. Once every few months locals are observed standing around the pond at the park’s southern end, leading a child in to the black waters.
East Avenue
Considered by many to be the most exclusive place to live, beside the waterfront estate, East Avenue is a lengthy road that stretches from east to west for more than three kilometres. Lining both sides of the busy road are the estates of the wealthy and famous. Most of the buildings are richly furnished apartment buildings, but one out of three is a mansion or normal-sized house in a large estate. As can be expected, most of the estates have excellent security - electronic and hired guards. Hence, the wealthy keep to themselves and ignore the outside world - associating with their own social groups. However, there is a certain level of paranoia, for they watch each others' homes and the sidewalks for their own safety.
The wealthy cannot abide homelessness due to arrogance or feelings of guilt, and so it is not uncommon to see the police assaulting the destitute and poor before dragging them in to their cars. Sometimes private guards will venture out and do this, although they are often unrestrained; occasionally, a dead or near-dead person will be carried in to the estate to be disposed of. Sometimes they are dragged kicking and screaming, relatively unharmed . . .
Rumors: There are more Ventrue havens on East Avenue than in any other location.
There is an apartment complex with the highest rate of suicides among its tenants. The lift is said to moan at times, as though someone has been hanged from underneath the lift car and is not yet dead.
Howell College
Howell College is one of the largest colleges on the East Cost. It is home to thousands of students, mostly international, and is comprised of at least twenty faculties. The buildings are a mix of the old and the new, with old European style structures adjoining metal and glass modern constructions. The facility is a block of its own, spanning several square miles. A large green park surrounds the buildings, with many copses allowing Kindred to feed from the crowds at night. For vampires who enjoy the blood of the young, of bright minds, of liberal values, the university is a rich feeding ground.
The Regent of the domain is Markus Nwoso, who supposedly gained the feeding ground by providing an exceptionally important favour to Hierophant Scythia. He is very particular about who feeds here and ensures that it is costly, but appears not to ask a high price from the Sanctified of the Lancea Sanctum.
Rumors: A savage murder took place in the Mining faculty, and it was closed down following an investigation. Students wonder why they do not open it up again since the case was closed three years ago. The lecturers do not ask the same question, and seem to be hiding something. Coincidentally, at the same time the department's Dean vanished.
A few Kindred are night students and live on campus, and one is apparently a mathematics lecturer.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Lordenshaw City Airport
Lordenshaw City Airport is divided into two terminals: international and domestic. However, the domestic terminal is still in the process of being reconstructed. Consequently, the airport only services passengers coming from, and going to, other countries. Those wishing to fly within the United States must be content to use the national rail system. Because of this, several Kindred have havens in the domestic section, and the other terminal, the hotels, hangers and repair sheds, has become their feeding ground.
It is not easy for Kindred to feed here. The intensive security and the requirement to own a valid pass or identification means it is difficult for vampires to actually feed. The Regent (or Regis) here, Callidia, thus ensures she grants exclusive feeding rights. It is difficult to be given permission, and all too frequently Kindred will find their rights revoked (sometimes while they are feeding, and her ghoul security will deal with them).
Rumors: Sometimes a strange sound can be heard on one of the flight radio channels. However, this occurs only within the airport grounds. If one listens closely, it sounds like a woman singing with very faint mocking laughter in the background.
Queen Mountain Forest
This wide forest sits at the base of Queen Mountain and extends for many miles to Lordenshaw city. Extensive logging operations and years of open-cut mining has denuded the forest of much of its vegetation, and so it is no longer so pristine or vast. The forest is predominantly comprised of evergreens, although closer to the city and the river the land becomes a swamp with pines, cedar and cypress trees predominating.
Queen Mountain forest is empty. Most of the forest is devoid of civilisation. There is one large logging encampment, and a town rumoured to be hidden in the depths, and very little else. A few Kindred live in the forest, either out of choice or because they were banished. There are very few animals, and virtually none closer to the city. Strangely, there no breezes and the weather is mostly calm. Consequently, the forest is eerily silent.
Rumors: There are hundreds of fang marks on dead trees. This would suggest that some unknown animals, possibly Kindred, are sucking the sap out of the trees.
Wolves have not been seen in the forest for over a fifty years.
Lordenshaw City Airport is divided into two terminals: international and domestic. However, the domestic terminal is still in the process of being reconstructed. Consequently, the airport only services passengers coming from, and going to, other countries. Those wishing to fly within the United States must be content to use the national rail system. Because of this, several Kindred have havens in the domestic section, and the other terminal, the hotels, hangers and repair sheds, has become their feeding ground.
It is not easy for Kindred to feed here. The intensive security and the requirement to own a valid pass or identification means it is difficult for vampires to actually feed. The Regent (or Regis) here, Callidia, thus ensures she grants exclusive feeding rights. It is difficult to be given permission, and all too frequently Kindred will find their rights revoked (sometimes while they are feeding, and her ghoul security will deal with them).
Rumors: Sometimes a strange sound can be heard on one of the flight radio channels. However, this occurs only within the airport grounds. If one listens closely, it sounds like a woman singing with very faint mocking laughter in the background.
Queen Mountain Forest
This wide forest sits at the base of Queen Mountain and extends for many miles to Lordenshaw city. Extensive logging operations and years of open-cut mining has denuded the forest of much of its vegetation, and so it is no longer so pristine or vast. The forest is predominantly comprised of evergreens, although closer to the city and the river the land becomes a swamp with pines, cedar and cypress trees predominating.
Queen Mountain forest is empty. Most of the forest is devoid of civilisation. There is one large logging encampment, and a town rumoured to be hidden in the depths, and very little else. A few Kindred live in the forest, either out of choice or because they were banished. There are very few animals, and virtually none closer to the city. Strangely, there no breezes and the weather is mostly calm. Consequently, the forest is eerily silent.
Rumors: There are hundreds of fang marks on dead trees. This would suggest that some unknown animals, possibly Kindred, are sucking the sap out of the trees.
Wolves have not been seen in the forest for over a fifty years.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Lordenshaw Metro
The Lordenshaw Metro system is a network of light-rail tunnels used by commuters to travel to distant parts of the city. The tunnels are thirty feet below the surface, and only accessible via the numerous metro stations located in the city. A valid ticket is needed to get through the gates.
There are several metro lines, or routes. They all converge on Liberty Station, which is near Liberty Lake. This is the busiest station, and thousands of commuters pass through its gates each day. Other busy stations include the City Hall and Howell Road (located in the suburbs) Stations. These three stations are prime feeding grounds for Kindred.
Suicides are common, especially at Commerce Square Station (corporate district). Every week some unfortunate person throws themselves in front of a train. Death, by electrocution from the middle rail or being caught under one of the wheels of the train, is the usual outcome. Commerce Square Station now has a gloomy mood, with weak or broken lighting and nearly sub-audible whispers heard by some. Cleaners have given up attempting to remove a bloody stain on platform 2.
Rumors: The trains stop at midnight, but there is a train on the blue line that runs until sunrise. Some say there is no driver, and others murmur that the train is operated by a cripple who was paralysed after he was hit by a train. The cripple is a quadriplegic, but the train can read his mind. The train will only allow people to board it who shed blood on a platform or place a penny under their tongues.
The Lordenshaw Metro system is a network of light-rail tunnels used by commuters to travel to distant parts of the city. The tunnels are thirty feet below the surface, and only accessible via the numerous metro stations located in the city. A valid ticket is needed to get through the gates.
There are several metro lines, or routes. They all converge on Liberty Station, which is near Liberty Lake. This is the busiest station, and thousands of commuters pass through its gates each day. Other busy stations include the City Hall and Howell Road (located in the suburbs) Stations. These three stations are prime feeding grounds for Kindred.
Suicides are common, especially at Commerce Square Station (corporate district). Every week some unfortunate person throws themselves in front of a train. Death, by electrocution from the middle rail or being caught under one of the wheels of the train, is the usual outcome. Commerce Square Station now has a gloomy mood, with weak or broken lighting and nearly sub-audible whispers heard by some. Cleaners have given up attempting to remove a bloody stain on platform 2.
Rumors: The trains stop at midnight, but there is a train on the blue line that runs until sunrise. Some say there is no driver, and others murmur that the train is operated by a cripple who was paralysed after he was hit by a train. The cripple is a quadriplegic, but the train can read his mind. The train will only allow people to board it who shed blood on a platform or place a penny under their tongues.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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The Sewers
Lordenshaw’s sewerage system is almost laid out in the same pattern as the roads and streets. A manhole allows access, and one will be on every street. Some roads, most of them in the central business district, will also have sewer grating, which steam at night or on cold days and carry the smell of effluvia or rotting material. The sewers are approximately twenty feet below the surface. The sewer pipes are circular in cross-section, and have a diameter of eight feet. Underneath Old Town, the diameter is ten feet. There are some sections (such as underneath the financial district) where the pipes are narrow (five feet).
Every hundred feet a pipe widens into a junction that connects to other pipes. The junctions usually are numbered and have a red or blue light illuminating them. Sometimes other symbols are visible, which are used by Nosferatu residents. There are some markings that even these Kindred are unable to identify or explain.
There is a Nosferatu community in the sewers. They are located beneath Old Town, converting most of the tunnels underneath the old pumping station and town hall into a warren of chambers. The Nosferatu Priscus, Jack Notherington, presides over this domain, but he is not the Regent of the sewer system.
Rumors: Sewer workers have been finding bodies completely drained of blood in the tunnels underneath the financial district. There are bruises suggesting that something massive and snake like has constricted their bodies, and hundreds of smaller bite marks over the bodies. One worker claimed to have heard chanting on another occasion. Another became insane after seeing “something monstrous” seated atop a pile of pale bodies.
The system beneath the industrial district is off-limits to sewer workers. All reports regarding the reason were censored or passed on to the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The restriction was placed over twenty years ago following the ‘Burnham Incident’.
Lordenshaw’s sewerage system is almost laid out in the same pattern as the roads and streets. A manhole allows access, and one will be on every street. Some roads, most of them in the central business district, will also have sewer grating, which steam at night or on cold days and carry the smell of effluvia or rotting material. The sewers are approximately twenty feet below the surface. The sewer pipes are circular in cross-section, and have a diameter of eight feet. Underneath Old Town, the diameter is ten feet. There are some sections (such as underneath the financial district) where the pipes are narrow (five feet).
Every hundred feet a pipe widens into a junction that connects to other pipes. The junctions usually are numbered and have a red or blue light illuminating them. Sometimes other symbols are visible, which are used by Nosferatu residents. There are some markings that even these Kindred are unable to identify or explain.
There is a Nosferatu community in the sewers. They are located beneath Old Town, converting most of the tunnels underneath the old pumping station and town hall into a warren of chambers. The Nosferatu Priscus, Jack Notherington, presides over this domain, but he is not the Regent of the sewer system.
Rumors: Sewer workers have been finding bodies completely drained of blood in the tunnels underneath the financial district. There are bruises suggesting that something massive and snake like has constricted their bodies, and hundreds of smaller bite marks over the bodies. One worker claimed to have heard chanting on another occasion. Another became insane after seeing “something monstrous” seated atop a pile of pale bodies.
The system beneath the industrial district is off-limits to sewer workers. All reports regarding the reason were censored or passed on to the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The restriction was placed over twenty years ago following the ‘Burnham Incident’.
Waddley wrote:your Highness Sir Dr. Loredoctor, PhD, Esq, the Magnificent, First of his name, Second Cousin of Dragons, White-Gold-Plate Wielder!
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Loredoctor
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Layson Street (Papillon)
Walking down Layson street is to descend into the material and spiritual equivalent of decadence. This mile-long red-light district has countless bars, several whore houses of varying quality, moderately-sized casinos, greasy fast-food restaurants, and up market and low market clubs. The clientele vary, for one will rub shoulders with men and women wearing expensive suits, be shouldered by persons looking for a fight, and step over collapsed drunks or figures overdosed on drugs. Bouncers seem to stand like statues at almost every entrance. The alleys team with trash, the homeless and discarded condoms and syringes.
There are two gay clubs - Blitzkrieg and Honesty/Deceit. The former is considered one of the best dance clubs in Lordenshaw city, and draws a very diverse crowd. The latter is a beat and a haven for desperate gay men, most of them older than thirty. Divided down the middle with red lighting on one side (Deceit) and blue lighting on the other (Honesty), homosexuals select a section to meet other men. However, there is no real difference in behaviour among the clients if they are in the red or blue section. There are numerous rooms for overnight stays, located in the basement.
Crime, as is expected, is high. Almost all laws are broken every week, with drug taking, prostitution, assault and sexual assault occurring almost nightly. A group of priests live in a church at one end of the street, working late every night to help those in need.
Layson street is referred to as a papillon by the Kindred, because of the nature of the district. It is the easiest place to feed, and no one looks twice at the pale victims lying about. For that reason, the place is the city's prime hunting ground and thus most frequented by vampires. Otto Tuefel is the Regent of the district, but he allows almost anyone to feed here as long as they do not cause too many problems.
Rumors: There is something strange inside the brothel at 55 Layson Street. The clientele report seeing weird figures at the corner of their eyes - legs in high heels and fishnet stockings attached to large quivering lips or vaginas dripping with disease-fluids. An aura of hunger and lasciviousness pervades these brief apparitions, and sometimes the sex becomes violent and grotesque as the copulating couple begin to bite each other as though sexual stimulation is never enough.
One of the priests claims to have evidence that vampires are real. Some Kindred would like to meet him, but he appears to be able to evade them. It is suspected that he has an informant among the vampires of the city.
Walking down Layson street is to descend into the material and spiritual equivalent of decadence. This mile-long red-light district has countless bars, several whore houses of varying quality, moderately-sized casinos, greasy fast-food restaurants, and up market and low market clubs. The clientele vary, for one will rub shoulders with men and women wearing expensive suits, be shouldered by persons looking for a fight, and step over collapsed drunks or figures overdosed on drugs. Bouncers seem to stand like statues at almost every entrance. The alleys team with trash, the homeless and discarded condoms and syringes.
There are two gay clubs - Blitzkrieg and Honesty/Deceit. The former is considered one of the best dance clubs in Lordenshaw city, and draws a very diverse crowd. The latter is a beat and a haven for desperate gay men, most of them older than thirty. Divided down the middle with red lighting on one side (Deceit) and blue lighting on the other (Honesty), homosexuals select a section to meet other men. However, there is no real difference in behaviour among the clients if they are in the red or blue section. There are numerous rooms for overnight stays, located in the basement.
Crime, as is expected, is high. Almost all laws are broken every week, with drug taking, prostitution, assault and sexual assault occurring almost nightly. A group of priests live in a church at one end of the street, working late every night to help those in need.
Layson street is referred to as a papillon by the Kindred, because of the nature of the district. It is the easiest place to feed, and no one looks twice at the pale victims lying about. For that reason, the place is the city's prime hunting ground and thus most frequented by vampires. Otto Tuefel is the Regent of the district, but he allows almost anyone to feed here as long as they do not cause too many problems.
Rumors: There is something strange inside the brothel at 55 Layson Street. The clientele report seeing weird figures at the corner of their eyes - legs in high heels and fishnet stockings attached to large quivering lips or vaginas dripping with disease-fluids. An aura of hunger and lasciviousness pervades these brief apparitions, and sometimes the sex becomes violent and grotesque as the copulating couple begin to bite each other as though sexual stimulation is never enough.
One of the priests claims to have evidence that vampires are real. Some Kindred would like to meet him, but he appears to be able to evade them. It is suspected that he has an informant among the vampires of the city.