Nickname: Harpies
Clan Origin: The Gorgus began in the dark ages when a Tremere, tired of looking at the hideous Gargoyles which protected him, began experimentally mixing the blood of Toreador with that of the Gargoyle. He succeed, creating a blood line that were as fierce as the Gargoyles, but as beautiful as the Toreador. But his creation escaped his bonds. It is theorized that, when the Tremere bred in beauty, he bred out the dampened will of the original Gargoyle.
A pack of half starved Gargoyles were sent out to destroy the wayward Harpy, but none returned. The Tremere assumed that, since daylight was only a few moments away, the escapee had perished in the sun. But soon came reports of beautiful winged women with monstrous claws, stealing the women from nearby villages. Again the Tremere sent out a wave of Gargoyles, and again none returned.
And to this day the feud wages on, Gargoyle against Harpy. The Gargoyles still hunt and attempt to destroy any Harpy they can find, but their weak wills and relatively low intelligence make them easy marks for the much more wily Gorgus. It is rumored that when the original Gorgus, her name is shrouded in secrecy, gives a predetermined signal, the Harpies will rise up against the Tremere. Many Tremere fear this, for their lack of Gargoyle protectors makes them easy prey to the harpies, who have been taught their secrets for centuries.
Appearance: Harpies have great leathern wings from their Gargoyle origins, but unlike Gargoyles, the Harpies are mostly human in appearance. In fact most are quite lovely. However, all Harpies have clawed talons for hands and feet, which increases all rolls for manual dexterity by 2. The Harpies' talons inflict aggravated damage at Strength +1 for hands and Strength +2 for feet. The rolls to use these in combat are: Hands Dexterity + Brawl (difficulty 6): Feet Dexterity + Brawl (difficulty 7). Harpies rarely wear clothing, and when they do, they don nothing more than loose fitting tunics or rags.
Haven: Harpies prefer dark cavernous areas for their havens. Most hide away in sewers or in basements of deserted houses.
Background: Gorgus choose only women for their progeny, and they can be from any walk of life. Most are attractive, some are not, all are fit and athletic. The only unifying factor in candidates for Gorgus seems to be their lust for vengeance.
Character Creation: Gorgus characters can be anyone, as long as the character is female. Harpies have no set standard for Nature and Demeanor. Physical Attributes are primary, as are Talents. Harpies must start the game with at least one point in Visceratika. Also, Harpies automatically take the flaw: Vengeance (they gain no freebie points from this).
Clan Disciplines: Potence, Thaumaturgy, Visceratika, Gargoyle Flight
Weakness: Harpies must roll a Conscience or Callousness roll (difficulty 5 for humans, 4 for animals) whenever they feed from living creatures. They need one success or they loose a humanity or path point.
Organization: The Gorgus meet once a month under the full moon to plan. These monthly meetings are never open to outsiders, and because of their extensive use of Visceratika, not even the Nosferatu can infiltrate them. It is speculated that the Harpies gather to plot the destruction of the Tremere, and through an ancient Thaumaturgical ritual, the original Gorgus herself, speaks directly to the clan.
Gaining Clan Prestige: Gorgus award prestige to those who destroy the Tremere and Gargoyles. A points system is used to determine how "good" a kill was. More points are awarded for bringing in a live, staked Gargoyle or Tremere. Honor goes to the Gorgus with the highest points, and she is revered at the monthly gatherings. A pecking order follows the point system, those with the most points having more stature than those with less.
Quote: "Death to the Tremere pigs!"
Stereotypes:
Camarilla: "They ally themselves to easily with the Tremere for my tastes."
- They are wild and free spirited. They are also deadly, keep at an arm's length if you can. – Eurynomous, Prince of Corpus Christi
Tremere: "The Tremere are our hated enemies, but as yet are to powerful for us to conquer. Wait for the signal, and we shall be victorious."
- No such creatures exist, if they did we would exterminated them, for they are an extreme threat to the Kindred. – Mithras, Primogen of Corpus Christi
Sabbat: "Monsters in there own right, these fiends have taught us much."
- It is said, the first Gorgus helped found the Sabbat. – Dmitri, sabbat scout
Gargoyles: "Destroy any you find, or die trying."
- Our feud has raged for centuries, perhaps it is time to reconsider what started it in the first place. Our clans may find they have a common enemy. – Kriegor, Gargoyle elder
