Italia

Roma

Dark Ages:

Dark Medival Italy

By the middle of the 13th century, Italy is a geographicallocation and nothing more. Kinship comes from cities, which bloom under the pressure of constant immigration from the surrounding countryside, creating a new and complex layered society where both kine and Cainite thrive. As the towns become the centers of commerce, artisans, and traders group into guilds to protect their business from papal and imperial taxing, forming close-knit self-support networks which can be formidable foes – or excellent opportunities for the shrewdest of Cainites. Mimicking the human political structure and taking advantage of its independence, many ancillae have claimed their role as primus inter pares in their city’s area, in open defince of the larger power structures.

The City States

Taking advantage of the power struggle between the Pope and the Emperor, some of the largest cities have obtained their independence or act de facto as city-states in their own right, with their own laws, tribunals, and currency. One of the most popular solutions to deal with the litigious families and guilds is to appoint an external podestà, a temporary ruler kept separate from the populace to guarantee their impartiality. As they stand at the apex of their might, some communes are starting to crack under the pressure of internal conflct, but the collapse brought by the Black Death is still to come. With famine and fear will also come the need for absolute rulers, transforming the podestà into signori and destroying the republican nature of the communes.

​Italy is a state at the Mediterranean, which most supernaturals having ties to the Roman Empire of antiquity or the advances of the Renaissance cities. Today, the situation has slightly changed, and many among the supernaturals are forced to maintain a low profile due the high percentage of Witch-huntersactive in Italy.

Please not that the information below mainly concern themselves with Italy in the Modern Nights. For information about Italy in Antiquity, visit Rome.

Vampire: The Masquerade

The Kindred of Italy have fallen on hard times since the Anarch Revolt. Camarilla and Sabbat alike maintain low profiles and conspire against each other, as most of the native Kindred simply do not exercise any measure of cooperation or strategic planning with other sect officials. They prefer to bicker amongst themselves and keep up centuries-old squabbles over whom invaded whose city and so on. The cities suffer as a result.

The vast majority of Italian princes are Brujah, Toreador or Ventrue, but there are also a prominent set of Lasombra dioceses that date back to the Long Night, the most prominent (until recently) being Giangaleazzo, as well as Grimaldi strongholds that are controlled by the Tzimisce. Nearly all of them live in the distant past, longing nostalgically for their youth. The absent-mindness and carelessness of the ruling vampires results in a variety of “The Anarch Movement”- as most Anarchs in Europe are Ancillae and fairly set in their ways compared to their American counterparts- domains especially in the rural north of the country. Sabbat activity has recently increased, as many packs travel to Italy to retake Milan and punish Giangaleazzo, but the Camarilla has reacted by sending their own elite corps down there, rekindling the sect war on European ground. Before their destruction, The Tal’Mahe’Ra entertained a minor Revenantfamily in the Po valley, the Rafastio, who were also potent hedge mages.

The true power in Italy, however, rests with the Giovanni (and, by extension, the Putanesca and Rosselinifamilies that were adopted into the Clan). Other clans fear the Giovanni, though they are loath to admit this. The Giovanni are slowly taking over the financial realms of the Elders and looking for more rapid expansion through the European Economic Community. Thanks to their mortal family members, they are among the few clans that have managed to gain footholds in the Vatican itself. No one is willing to question the Giovanni - much less oppose them - in Italy.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse

Although Italy is part of the Eurohub and thus clad in the Weaver’s Webs, the northern alps still have some wolf populations and the Garou Nation maintains its presence here. Most are Glass Walkers, who are comfortable with cities, but a fairly great number of Black Furies also maintains a permanent residence, and the Get of Fenris have claimed Caerns they still hold today after their ancestors had aided the sacking of Rome. Furies and Get alike used to squabble among each other, but recently, infighting has ceased under Konietzko’s approach. Still, tensions between both tribes are high and in no place these two tribes clash more often. Another small enclave is hold by the Children of Gaia, who try to bring an end to the conflict between the two tribes, and the Red Talons, who fight a desperate battle for survival in central Italy's forests.

Other Fera are rarely found, although there are rumors that the Italian Alps are the hidden refugees for sleeping Gurahl.

Mage: The Ascension

As the wellspring of several mystical traditions of antiquity, many of these saw a reformation in the Renessaince. As a result, both the Order of Reason and the Nine Traditions had several foci there, trying to imbed their ideals in the minds of artists and thinkers alike.

In modern times, the Celestial Chorus (to no one’s surprise) is one of the main Traditions on the peninsula, although the Order of Hermes, Verbena and the Cult of Ecstasy, who have their own Covenants that- in some cases-date back to antiquity, are also present. A Euthanatos coven that date back as far as the Etruscans and who has maintained its unique style of magic also remains, even if they are restricted to one family line. Many Etherites also maintain their own Chantries within Italy, trying to uncover the secrets of Renaissance tinkers like da Vinci. Milan serves as a beacon for European Hollow Ones, who admire the gothic cathedrals of the city. Technocratic presence is strong, but has waned over the years, as the Union withdrew its focus from religion as a means to unification. Still, the Void Engineers retain many traditional Constructs within Italy’s borders

Wraith: The Oblivion

The Italian Shadowlands were subsumed by the Stygian Republic long before Charon assumed the mantle of Emperor after the First Great Maelstrom. Since then, it has always been connected to Stygia, given that many of its institutions were originally inspired by the Roman Republic. Many ruins of Roman and Etruscan origin have a relatively thin Shroud and allow interaction with the Skinlands much more easily, attracting certain ghosts who want to commune with the world of the living.

The Sixth Maelstrom destroyed the Underworld and nearly all Necropoli under Stygian rule were destroyed by the shock.

Changeling: The Dreaming

Italy is part of the Galacian Confoderation and, as it stands, under Commoner rule. During the Resurgence, Italy was place of various fierce battles between the returning Sidhe and the Commoners who had stayed in the Autumn Lands after the Shattering. In contrast to most northern nations within the Confoderation, Italy is fairly lax, given the steady influx of tourists and artists, who generate plenty Banality and Glamour alike. This means that Italian Changelings have an easier time generating Glamour, but that the stakes are also constantly higher for them to maintain their faerie self.

Hunter: The Reckoning

Italy’s presence of mortals who know of the supernatural is frightening high. Rome is the ancestral home of the Society of Leopold and the presence of Inquisitors on the peninsula is heavy. San Marino is a bastion of the Arcanum and Benandanti are more present in Italy than elsewhere. The arrival of the Imbued has led to careful examinations if one of the groups could become an ally, but given the small number of Imbued, there are no concrete plans.

An additional phenomenon of Italy is the presence of the Mafia, who is known to maintain arcane ties to several supernatural beings who have either a vested interest in the organization since the beginning (like the Brujah) or are sometimes even family members (some Glass Walker Kinfolk lines have originate in their ranks). The Mafia sometimes cooperates with these supernaturals, but remains wary of their intentions.

Demon: The Fallen

Earthbound cults flourished among the Etruscans and later the Romans. Rome was turned into an experiment by Abaddon and Asmodeus, to mimick Lucifer's own Grand Experiment during the Age of Babel, with the intent of enslaving the human spirit to their whims forever. Christianity and the convertion of Constantine, however, put an end to this scheme. Many Earthbound were sendt into slumber after their cults were massacred or converted to Christianity, breaking free from the Dread Kings. Some Earthbound raged against the new institution, trying to corrupt it from within by making cardinals and bishops their secret thralls and fostering heresy. Ultimately, however, all their aspirations failed and they were forced to slumber.

Italy is attractive for many of the modern Fallen, who enjoy the percentual strength of Faith within the population. The appocalyptic fervor of the Final Nights have aroused many Earthbound, as people are becoming desperate and begin to turn away from clerical institutions for a more personal approach.​