History
1782: The kindred first move into the area, along with the migrating human population. There are very few here (maybe six) at the time and most are fairly young. The two eldest are Charles Masters a 900 Year old Toreador, and Alexander Trevane, an 1100 year old Malkavian. The two begin to build their power bases, and kept bumping across each other.
Charles Masters made a few attempts to work with Trevane, but found him impossible.
They worked mostly independently without much structure for a few years.
1787: It is decided that someone must choose a prince to keep things in order. There are 12 european vampires now, and a decent amount of humans. Masters declares himself prince and is supported by every inhabitant except Trevane.
Trevane lures Masters into a trap, and attacks him the very next night. He lets loose with everything, including some ghouled humans, and two unauthorized childer. Masters, who had come to the meeting alone, is eventually destroyed, but the deception and the destruction are spotted by his oldest childer Aaron Winthrop. Aaron, pulls back and organizes and all out assault. He declares a bloodhunt against Trevane, and it is fully supported. Trevane is hunted down, and trapped in a cabin. The cabin is burned, and Trevane is believed destroyed.
1835: Aaron Winthrop, art collector, and still Toreador prince of Louisville, comes across a unique painting. Supposedly a lost painting of Vincent Van Gogh, the painting is called "The Grey Door". Aaron makes every attempt to buy the painting, and eventually learns the painting is owned by the person who it had originally painted for, and not an heir. Further investigation, reveals the owner, one Cyrus Dane, is some sort of immortal unaging supernatural, but not a kindred.
1858: Aaron Winthrop[ps reputation as prince has spread far and wide. He steps in for the Toreador Archon to offer assistance in a pressing matter. During a very nasty political struggle with the Archons, Louisville is chosen to hold a 'trial' because of a great respect for Winthrop's 'fairness and justice'. All sides agree he is one of the most benevolent justice minded princes who has ever managed to hold power.
1879: Cyrus Dane and Aaron Winthrop have a rather ruthless showdown over art collections. The two build a rather nasty rivalry, both uncertain about the other, both afraid of the other. Both desperate to find a way to destroy the enemy.
1922: Winthrop's city thrives, and respect for him continues to grow. His city fills to maximum, often with childer and even caitiff seeking a fair shake. Many of the other camarilla elders feel he is 'too lenient' and 'too forgiving' to some of the unrecognized clans. Between 1910-and 1938 no less than fifteen ventrue attempts to unseat Winthrop are made, and they all fail.
1962: Somewhere in Romania, several gypsy seers report to the Ravnos council They have seen a horrid vision of a great beast destroying all of gypsy kind. The gypsies fall one after another when finally the beast stops in its tracks. A white light emits from the beast itself, and it falls, saving the last of the gypsies, and the Ravnos clan.
The vision interpretation comes down to "The ravnos must join the Camarilla, and have a voice inside of it, or the camarilla will destroy them." The ravnos are not happy about this, but they do value the sight of prophecy.
1969: The Ravnos decide to use louisville as a set up ground to join the camarilla, due to Aaron Winthrop's amazing reputation for fairness, and for his focus on respecting individuals rather than any specific clan type.
: Aaron Winthrop is still prince of Louisville.In his research about Cyrus Dane he has learned on thing of great importance, the painting the "Grey Door" has some mystical connection to Cyrus Dane. But all his attempts to retrieve the painting meet with failure, and he decides he does not want a war with the unknown force Cyrus Dane.
In September of 1975, a cat burglar, known in the vernacular as the sleeping bag bandit manages to steal the painting.
Seeing this as his opportunity Aaron requests all kindred of the city to find this painting.
Cyrus Dane confronts Aaron and accuses him of the theft.
The two are obviously afraid of each other, but still command much respect.
October 1975 December 1975-The hunt begins for the Gray Door. As kindred begin looking for the painting, they are stalked by a suspicious Cyrus Dane, but also by another figure.
One young Nosferatu childer named Brenda is staked after being in the city about an hour, for mistakingly ghouling a werewolf.
She eventually reports a strange figure stalking her while she was staked. She is partially blood bond to it.
Strange things begin to happen, and Aaron Winthrop begins to act more and more erratically. The spirit of Vincent Van Gogh is eventually called forth, and names Cyrus Dane as a great evil. Several kindred believe Dane should be destroyed, but that Aaron would use the painting for its artistic merits, and not be willing to destroy it.
After much puzzling Van Gogh's cryptic message, several characters race to recover the painting.
Bane, (the current seneshal) and a mummy who has been assisting Aaron named (Derrick) both get to the site where the painting is hiding. They uncover the painting and turn it over not to Aaron, but to Dulcinda of the Ravnos clan, who apparently has a plan for using the painting to destroy Cyrus Dane.
Banes bodyguard is sent out of town, as Bane is planning on participating in a very dangerous task he feels his friend will prevent him from performing. Bane,the entire ravnos clan all participate in a conspiracy to keep the painting from Aaron, frame (derrick), and destroy Cyrus Dane.
Bane is destroyed in a battle with Cyrus Dane, trying to keep him distracted while the others perform the ritual. The ritual goes off, Dane is destroyed, (Derrick) is turned over to Aaron as a non-kindred and a traitor for stealing the painting, Most people do not learn what truly happened to Dane, the painting, or any of the rest of it until much later. (Derrick) is never to learn who framed him and befriends the Ravnos clan in the meantime, asking them to help him learn the truth. (Isn't irony grand)
Dulcinda relates a story of all the conspiracies and destruction, and turns the remains of the painting to Aaron Winthrop. THrough deception, the Ravnos win several life boons from Winthrop. He exchanges them all by recognizing the Ravnos clan as a camarilla clan in his domain.
January 1976: Though Dane is destroyed, Aaron Winthrop continues to act strangely. The sheriff (Fincher) investigates and discovers the truth. Alexander Trevane has returned to Louisville and is stalking Aaron in hopes of destroying him. Unfortunately, before he can tell anyone, he is destroyed. Angered, over finding his friend and ally destroyed, one particular Tremere known as Drake, confronts Winthrop about the dead sheriff, and Aaron destroys him in a fit of rage. Obviously the once fair and reasonable prince is succumbing to an angry madness.
Using every investigator they can, the Ravnos eventually find the tape that (fincher) was killed for. They learn that Trevane is alive, and has been driving Aaron Winthrop insane bit by bit Trevane manages to destroy several other kindred, including an elder visiting from long ago. Finally, Winthrop retreats into madness, Trevane begins to show his hand, and the city is left without many elders, and with no reigning prince, all the while stalked by a fiercely vengeful and dangerous Alexander Trevane.
Meanwhile a Venture elder breezes into town, and realizes he can not trace the lineage of a single Ventrue though there are five in the city. A quick investigation leads him to believe that all five are impostors. At least one of the impostors (Doc) Turns out to be Sabbat. The other four (Derrick, Randy, Dante, and someone else) are told to leave.
February 1976: The recent occurrences catch the attention of Marcus, the Ventrue Justicar. He enters town with two of his Archons. He begins to investigate, while Trevane makes his plan to become prince. Trevane approaches Marcus and explains many of the accusations are silly childer mistakes. That he is in fact the only elder worthy of taking the prince position. He is partially right, as the only remaining elder in the city after Trevane's murders is Rom.
Trevane makes an appearance to the city as a whole to announce his princedom, but the Ravnos have other plans. The ravnos use their illusions on Trevane to convince him Aaron is still alive. That combined with a truck hurled at him by the Tremere, Trevane reveals his true self and tries to destroy everyone in the city. Driven into a frenzied rage, he attacks nearly everyone, destroying several including the recently exiled (randy). Trevane is destroyed and turns to ashes before everyone's eyes.
Seeing the city without a prince, and not being comfortable leaving Rom in charge, Marcus places one of his Archons in charge of the city, an elder Toreador named Mandor Fanincotter. Not being happy with the promotion, Mandor begins to try to put in order a city in chaos.
The Ravnos become aware of a strange virus, a virus which began in romania infecting the gypsy population. The plague begins to wipe out huge european populations, and the gypsies become a scapegoat. For whatever reason, the ravnos in Europe blame the camarilla for the near wholesale attempts to destroy the gypsy people. And several gypsy seers say, :"It has begun"
March 1976 - August 1976: Already this temporary assignment of Mandor's grows wearisome, and perhaps much longer than anticipated. Mandor decides to honor Winthrop by continuing his tradition of accepting the Ravnos, among other traditions.
Mandor manages to get things under control and the city seems to be running itself well.
However his relationships with the Garou are causing much strain on the city. Wanting to end their terror once and for all, Mandor learns of a place of power held by the garou. He stages a raid upon it, and uncovers not a Garou place of power, but a mage place of storage. Several artifacts are obtained, not the least of which is a strange puzzle box. The puzzle box had strange inscriptions and riddles, but was eventually opened in Elysium. It's affects on the city can still sometimes be felt. The box was the box of dreams, and prophecy. It's properties of foretelling were legendary, but so were it's powers of obsession. A city, now filled with prophecies of a future filled with chaos and torment, was also filled with kindred who would stop at nothing to gain the powers of the box.
The kindred gaining the artifacts placed them in the center of a great war between two mages. The exact nature of what happened during that war is lost to obscurity. Apparently something called a 'paradox storm' caused much of what happened to garble in peoples minds. Reports on everything from the dead rising from their graves, to the elysium being destroyed by thunder can be recalled, but never with clarity. No evidence of any of these claims exist. In short, no one knows exactly what happened during the mage war.
After the mage war settled down, the box was eventually turned over to some local changelings, who took the box of dreams to the place of dreams, where it could exist only within itself.
August 1976: Several medical institutes at once, primarily in the medical capital of Louisville Kentucky, announce they have found the cure for "Benieria" The plague which has swept through europe, and later the united states, striking primary at the hearts of true Romanian or 'gypsy' people. The disease is known in the vernacular as both "Rom's curse" and "Wander fever" Due to it's tendency to strike at modern nomadic people.
September 1976: Mandor is relieved at first when Aaron Winthrop returns from his disappearance to reclaim his throne, and demands Mandor step down immediately. IT does not take long to realize however that Trevane's assault of Aaron's mind was complete, and that Aaron is simply to unhinged to rule. Aaron declares Mandor an usurper and the feud begins.
No one in the city wanted Aaron to reclaim the throne, but they also quickly learn that Mandor, when faced with such a powerful opponent, is a coward, and would rather run that fight. Staging full support for Mandor, every kindred in the city faces down Aaron. Mandor calls a bloodhunt on Aaron, and he is subsequently destroyed. Mandor continues to rule for some time.
March 1977: Eventually Mandor gives in to Rom, and declares Rom the first Ravnos prince in Camarilla history.
Rom rules but a short time however, when fate intervenes. The Rom curse of madness descends, and the Ravnos clan destroys their elder, and their prince. Mandor steps in again, but this time a seemingly competent ruler steps to the plate and moves to Louisville seeing an opportunity for power. His name is Cromwell, and he is a respected Malkavian.
In February 1978 Cromwell is declared prince. His short reign is to be the longest reigning prince for some time to come.
1978-1999 Cromwell reigns as a fair but firm prince. His tolerance is limited. His "malkavian madness' Seems to take the form of an obsession with order and clarity. He is perhaps a bit power mad as well, but both of these things only serve to make him a stronger prince. He is not well liked by his clan however, and Malkavians, who have a tendency to disrupt his cherished order, have a very short life span in his city. One Malkavian is staked and destroyed in his very introduction. So long as one could strive to appear normal, and not break the masquerade however, Cromwell was lenient.
Meanwhile Cromwell's ability to deal with the other supernatural forces in the city was legendary. He made a pact with several mages and used them to create an elysium that is superbly defended and virtually incapable of being destroyed. Over the years the gypsy tea room is purchased, and turned into the "Tam Lin", a bar restaurant with an irish theme. Cromwell does not realize at first that the new owners are in fact Garou, but when he learns of it, he manages to create a very uneasy peace. The garou caern, changeling freehold, and kindred elysium all find they are within a few hundred feet of each other. None wants to give in to the other, nor do they wish all out war.
Cromwell will not give up his magically reinforced elysium, the garou can not abandon their caern which exists just outside in a concrete park known as the belvedere, and the changelings will not leave this mighty theater, one of the strongest freeholds in the city, even with the kindreds banality affecting it each monday.
Cromwell's progress is monitored carefully by Mandor and Marcus and they are pleased. Cromwell is however continually threatened by the garou, as well as others. He is eventually destroyed in a huge conflict, and within moments a new prince is declared. The second Ravnos prince in history once again is in Louisville. There have been no others in the cam world, despite the fact that the ravnos are recognized rather tenuously as being "Camarilla bound"
`This new prince was something different however. Though younger than most, he was about to subject Louisville to the greatest reign of terror it would ever know.
June 1999: Cromwell being destroyed, Yuri claims princedom. He starts out somewhat calmly, but within a few months, his close associates have seen changes in him.
He openly declared the city anarch for one night, presumably to 'test for loyalties to the camarilla and to him within the city." The elder camarilla members disapproved and became concerned. They sent several advisors to check on the legitimacy of Yuri's rule.
Yuri was attacked several times and became more and more paranoid. The ravnos gypsy council of advisors began to question the wisdom of a ravnos prince that could not be fully expected to win the confidence of the camarilla.
July 1999: Yuri declares all Tremere are criminals and orders them all out of the city. As a direct response, Vienna sends their most important spokesperson, Karl Osterkoenig, to Louisville to settle the matter. After a confrontation, Karl removes Bradley from the city, and Yuri releases the Tremere ban. The exchange between the two was not pleasant.
October 2011: Devon, learning he has been stricken with a disease that causes all mortals he feeds from to be infected with HIV, and Hepatitis, charged several kindred in a rage, and detonated an incindirary device on his person committing apparent suicide. His body was later burned.
March 2013: At least three children of import have entered the supernatural community, and now two of them appear connected.
Corey, son of Garrett and the selkie fae Maggie. He came to Louisville to meet his unwitting father fro the first time.
Isaac, son of the garou Fiana and a kindred hunter known as Scythe. Some of the kindred who killed scythe have promised to help take care of Issac somehow.
(Tony), son of the former changeling duchess and (randy the sorcerer). He is in town to find his mother, but no one knows her whereabouts.
Corey and Issac have somehow learned that they are cousins (Fianna and Maggie were sisters). Corey has taken Isaac to meet his mother, and to make permanent arrangements for 'Kitty to care for Issac.
Current plots:
At the death of Devon, Mackenzie finds she is now the only Louisville resident carrying the plague. As the mysterious Doctor Jones still strives to find a cure, Rat and others send spies into Sabbat territory to find the answers that will save her, and the spread of the disease in Chicago.
Locke has a confrontation with Gideon, asking all others to stay out of it, over the final disposition of Kitty. Kitty has been ghouled, but Gideon still feels since it was his actions that brought her into this strange world, it is his responsibility. Locke wins the confrontation, and Gideon agrees to step out.
Locke holds another confrontation with a changeling who had manipulated his mind. The relations between the kindred and the changeling seem to be at a new low.
Radu and Santera continue their quiet war. Radu returns from a 'sudden trip' to find his ghouls have been destroyed, his property attacked. Within a short time one kindred responsible mysteriously vanishes.
Gypsies are continuing to disappear in the hundreds each month. Many simply vanish, some meet calamity, others are said to be fleeing to a mystical gypsy sanctuary that exists outside are world.
In an odd turn of events, a recent mafia leader steps down and begins naming names of enforcers. However at least two of the people he names do not seem to exist. This is the second time in as many months that this has occurred. The first time, the offender was killed in prison during a muslim uprising.
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