EVALUADOR MEDIOAMBIENTAL DE REGADÍOS
RED DE DRENAJE3.3. Metodología
The rumors Kindred spread of the Yanussaren vary wildly from domain to domain. The name itself came from stories told after the Thirty Years War, tales of the ghosts of dead Ottoman soldiers (Janissaries) returned to take vengeance on those who would serve the living dead. Another common legend painted the Yanussaren as the shades of Christian dead who died fighting one another at the behest of the Kindred, while the Ottoman Empire lurked at Austria’s borders. Others claim that the Yanus- saren are the female handmaidens of God, come to earth to smite those impudent Kindred who use thralls to spread their influence into the realms of the day.
According to Kindred folklore, any ghoul who braves a thunderstorm during the height of the day draws the attention of one of the Yanussaren, who, according to most traditions, ride with the Wild Hunt. These monsters, visible only to the hunted ghoul as a fiery specter, hound
their quarry to a secluded location before falling upon him, tearing their victim limb from limb and crushing his bones before finally releasing him to death. Only by avoiding midday thunderstorms, the Kindred claim, can a ghoul escape such a fate. Those rare thralls who survive a visitation by the Yanussaren live on borrowed time; the next thunderstorm, so it is said, will be their last.
Worse yet, it is believed that when a ghoul dies at the hands of a Yanussare, the creature sucks from the victim’s marrow, learning the whereabouts of its master’s haven. A vampire whose servant has suffered such a fate is sure to experience the same, unless he takes care to secure his haven against noontime intrusions by creatures made of light given form.
Yanussaren
Keep running… I have eternity.
Her fair features radiate a pale golden light that feels like ice as it falls across one’s skin. She is tall, statuesque and regal, her angular features home to full lips and a pair of eyes that forever seek her quarry. Her diaphanous gown falls lightly across her form, like thin, high clouds across the sun, and her hair shifts between the burning auburn of the dawn and the bright golden of the sun at its zenith. She walks towards her marked target, and the crowd, faceless men and women with umbrellas or newspapers held overhead against the rain, parts for her. Only then does her prey recognize that he’s the only one who can see her.
The Yanussaren are hunters, first and foremost. They seem to take a perverse joy in destroying the servants of vampires — an almost sadistic attitude that belies the sto- ries that paint them as angels or benevolent spirits. They appear seemingly from nowhere, ensure that their prey sees them, then commence the hunt, running the ghoul down until he is exhausted and on the brink of madness. Only then does the creature strike, breaking the poor soul’s bones and strewing his organs across the street in a frenzied orgy of violence. As she sucks the marrow from the pathetic slave’s bones, her eyes turn in the direction of his slumbering master’s haven.
Attributes: Power 4, Finesse 5, Resistance 5 Willpower: 9
Essence: 15 Initiative: 10
Defense: 5 Speed: 14 Size: 5 Corpus: 10
Weapons/Attacks:
Type Damage Range Dice Pool Special Brutal 0(B) — 9 +3 with Strike Vigorous Strength Vice-like — — 10 +3 with Grip Vigorous Strength Supernatural Powers Dread: As the Nightmare Discipline of the same name,
save that the Yanussare spends 1 Essence and rolls Power + Finesse against a single target (usually her ghoul quarry).
Drinking the Marrow: By sucking the marrow from the
bones of one of his ghouls, the Yanussare can expend 6 Es- sence to determine the location of a slumbering vampire. Because this power is so draining, most Yanussare prefer to keep that information for later, waiting to regain their re- serves before going on the offensive… and possibly giving the vampire the time needed to escape her brutal judgment.
Fiery Aura: At the cost of 2 Essence, a Yanussare may
engulf itself in radiant flames for a scene. She gains Armor of 2/2 and inflicts lethal damage with unarmed attacks (aggravated against vampires). Any character who comes into contact with her automatically suffers 1 point of lethal (or aggravated) damage.
Finding the Slave: The Yanussare can spend one Es-
sence to automatically determine whether or not anyone within her line of sight is a ghoul. If she senses a ghoul, she may roll Power + Finesse to determine which specific individual carries the taint of vampire blood. If there are multiple ghouls in the area, she spies the one with the lowest Willpower. If two have the same Willpower, she notices the one whose regnant has the highest Blood Po- tency. If two or more ghouls are identical in both respects, she recognizes each of them for what he is.
Otherworldly Beauty: The Yanussaren may be terrible,
but they are terrible beauties. By expending 1 Essence, a Yanussare can gain the benefits of Striking Looks 4.
Terrify: As the Numen of the same name (p. 212, the World of Darkness Rulebook).
Vigorous Strength: The Yanussaren can spend one Es-
The beginning of the 15thcentury marked the explosion of European exploration of the world. Western civilization was taken across the seas and into lands that were not yet ready for the changes it brought. Mortals were not the only ones interested in what the new trade routes and, later, colonial expansion offered. Kindred, too, made concerted ef- forts to take advantage of the larger world around them. In addition to the vast resources being accumulated by men, strange vampires and their secrets were being discovered.
The first and most successful collaboration of Kindred who took part in this age of discovery and exploration was the Grémio de Corajoso. Organized by a brood of Portuguese elders, they dominated all Kindred efforts across the oceans and in the colonies around the world. In modern nights, the major covenants deny the success of such a minor guild, insisting that it was but a faction of the Invictus. Fortunately, vampires from that age passed the truth through the generations and into tonight’s Elysiums.
Memories fade and journals are lost, but actual lineage and the traditions of Kindred spawned from a particular period of history — and the historical events themselves — preserve that knowledge. The Corajoso bloodline formed from within the Grémio, during the height of the guild’s power. Even in modern nights, its members continue the guild’s pursuit of lost Kindred secrets. One of the most significant “discoveries” the Grémio is responsible for is the Adroanzi. Self-proclaimed gods (indeed, some Kindred scholars think the first Nosferatu originated in central Africa), they ruled entire tribes and lorded over the their mortal subjects. Forced into the world outside of Africa, the Adroanzi nearly disintegrated in the resulting clash of cultures. Fortunately, their affinity for creating precious lacrima allowed the lost gods to be reborn. Both bloodlines bear a significant grudge towards those who attempted to rewrite history and exterminate them in the process.