Page 69 - V20 WtWf-VtM20th_Neat

Clan Malkavian is twice damned: once by the curse Sect: In their moments of lucidity, the Malkavians of-
of being Kindred, and again by the turmoil that dis- fer their unorthodox perspectives and Devil’s advocacy to
turbs their hearts and minds. Upon the Embrace, ev- the Camarilla, offering their visions and unique insights
ery Malkavian is afflicted with an insurmountable to cut through the webs of deceit. Princes and Primogen
insanity that fractures her outlook for every night tolerate the Lunatics to varying degrees, but the Clan as a
thereafter, making her unlife one of madness. whole has always been a supporter of the Ivory Tower.
Some consider this a form of oracular insight,
while others simply consider them dangerous. Appearance: While Malkavians can come from any
culture, the madness following the Embrace tends to
Make no mistake: Malkavian insanity is a lead them to extremes of self-presentation. Malkavians
painful, alienating phenomenon, but it occa- may appear disheveled, injured, or simply dirty. They
sionally provides the Lunatics with bursts of in- could still be wearing the same clothes from the night
sight or heretofore unknown perspective. Madness of their Embrace or they may have stolen clothes from
for the Malkavians may take the form of any clinical a laundromat or a department store during a fit of con-
form of insanity, or it may be a hyperacuity of senses fusion or fugue. Of course, Malkavians are just as likely
others don’t know they have; a supernatural puppe-
teer pulling the Malkavian’s strings, or a sense that
the Malkavian is somehow ahead of evolutionary
schedule. A Malkavian may believe herself to
be an idea given physical form or an avatar of
some concept the World of Darkness has yet
to encounter. She may be a nonstop ravening
psychopath, or may be a mostly lucid indi-
vidual sometimes rendered catatonic by fear of
an impending cosmic cataclysm.

Their precarious stability makes it hard for other
Kindred (or, indeed, any vessels with whom they may
meet) to interact with Malkavians. The Clan some-
times indulges in elaborate, terrifying, and dangerous
“pranks” which do little to endear them to other vam-
pires. These incidents are nominally meant to educate
the target, but the lesson can often be lost between the
vampire’s scramble for safety and the inability to parse
the Malkavian’s inner logic. Common pranks might be
to replace a vain Toreador’s haven door with a guillo-
tine or to redistribute a Brujah elder’s wealth while he’s
at Elysium, or it might take the form of giving a hunter
the location where the Nosferatu gather. Kindred both
dread and resent the word “prank” almost as much as
they do the Lunatics themselves.

Nickname: Lunatics

60 CHAPTER TWO: SECTS AND CLANS