Barjot
“Hey, you can keep your territory and your obligations. I’m not interested in any of that garbage. All I need are my brothers and sisters, and they’re always with me no matter what else I got.”
One of the smallest and most unusual bloodlines in Kindred history, the Barjot have their origin in late 1860s France, spawned by the fateful meeting of an impressionable unaligned Gangrel named Amaury Jelinek and the early proponents of the mortal Bohemian movement. Immediately attracted to the freedom and defiant wonder of the disenchanted Parisian art community, Jelinek quickly made the acquaintance of several progressive thinkers, spending nearly all of his time in their company. Although he lacked the education and intellectual rigor to hold his own in debate with these mortals, he was endlessly fascinated by their meandering conversations on philosophy, politics and the undeniable truths of human emotion. One night, overwhelmed by the excitement one night’s discussion sparked in him, Jelinek struck both of his heroes down and immediately Embraced them in defiance of local law.
Jelinek and his new childer were brought before the Prince of the domain, forced to stand in judgment for his impetuousness. Unwilling to issue a personal order for the destruction of Jelinek (whom he considered little better than a rogue) and noticing that the three Kindred bore a strange, nearly painful aversion to separation, the Prince declared all three exiled, announcing that they could live together in eternal codependence, so long as they didn’t do it within the boundaries of histerritory. “Jobard,” he called them. “Insane.”
Dejected and banished, the three began a stint of relatively aimless wandering, moving from place to place with little more in mind than the application of their hopeful musings. They would own nothing, they decided, and they would never put down roots that could not be pulled up at any moment. They had been given the opportunity to exist as they always imagined: free of obligation, free of material concern and the bounds of polite society. As they wandered, they slowly picked up more members, an impassioned Embrace here, a carefully considered selection there. At their peak, the brood numbered more than 20 Kindred. At first identifying themselves as Jobard, they soon adopted a verlan slang version of the name: Barjot. The insult eventually became an inside joke, co-opted by the bloodline and reversed into a proud name. What began as a sad exile turned, within years, into a strangely empowered roving party of outlaw vampires.
As decades passed, the close ties of the brood mystically tightened and solidified, supernaturally forcing the members of the Barjot to remain in one another’s company. Individual members who separated themselves from their brothers and sisters became insurmountably anxious, eventually struggling to return to the fold. Some of the original members began to sour on the group, claiming that the proximity of their fellow members soon became a trap more insidious and more frustrating than any of the rules of society. One of Jelinek’s original two childer actually committed suicide in the early years of the 20th century, forever traumatizing the rest of the line.
When the line passed through Amsterdam on a journey across northern Europe, they found immediate welcome and purpose in The Carthian Movement there. Realizing that they were nothing less than an experimental society of their own, Jelinek declared himself and his line to be ardent Carthians, formulizing and carrying out an ongoing experiment in antimaterialist communal existence. Received as a charismatically, he was made most welcome in the domain and allowed to move freely through the territory. But before long, the reckless tendencies of the Barjot began to annoy their hosts and damage the reputation of the line. Avoiding a potential clash, Jelinek gathered his brood and left the domain.
For decades, they traveled. Brussels, Geneva, Budapest, Prague, Rome — all played host to the Barjot at one time or another, and all rapidly ushered them out soon after. It never helped that the brood spread the word of their own revolutionary brand of Carthianism wherever they went, embellishing the tales in an attempt to convince younger, more impressionable Kindred to join up and throw off The Traditions of their elders. Many times, the Barjot were forced to flee a domain before facing charges of corrupting neonates and fomenting rebellion — a thoroughly legitimate claim.
The Barjot were caught in Copenhagen during the Nazi occupation of World War II, and a disastrous attempt to cross the border led to the destruction of three members of the line at once. Never having suffered such a degree of bloodshed before, they were devastated. Jelinek’s remaining childe went into voluntary Torpor, declaring his intent to sleep “one century for each sad loss.” The rest of the line chose to carry his inert body with them in their travels, and have done so ever since.
As soon as they were able, the entire line picked up and left for the Americas, eager to leave the painful memories of Europe behind. First landing at New York harbor, they were quickly turned out by the Kindred of the city and set to wandering again.
In the decades that followed, the Barjot have been up and down the Americas, traveling as far south as Rio de Janeiro and as far north as Anchorage, Alaska. Every so often, they are made welcome in a domain and they stay for as long as they can. Rarely tolerated for long, they eventually move on, looking for a city that can accept their strange ways.
Jelinek and his new childer were brought before the Prince of the domain, forced to stand in judgment for his impetuousness. Unwilling to issue a personal order for the destruction of Jelinek (whom he considered little better than a rogue) and noticing that the three Kindred bore a strange, nearly painful aversion to separation, the Prince declared all three exiled, announcing that they could live together in eternal codependence, so long as they didn’t do it within the boundaries of histerritory. “Jobard,” he called them. “Insane.”
Dejected and banished, the three began a stint of relatively aimless wandering, moving from place to place with little more in mind than the application of their hopeful musings. They would own nothing, they decided, and they would never put down roots that could not be pulled up at any moment. They had been given the opportunity to exist as they always imagined: free of obligation, free of material concern and the bounds of polite society. As they wandered, they slowly picked up more members, an impassioned Embrace here, a carefully considered selection there. At their peak, the brood numbered more than 20 Kindred. At first identifying themselves as Jobard, they soon adopted a verlan slang version of the name: Barjot. The insult eventually became an inside joke, co-opted by the bloodline and reversed into a proud name. What began as a sad exile turned, within years, into a strangely empowered roving party of outlaw vampires.
As decades passed, the close ties of the brood mystically tightened and solidified, supernaturally forcing the members of the Barjot to remain in one another’s company. Individual members who separated themselves from their brothers and sisters became insurmountably anxious, eventually struggling to return to the fold. Some of the original members began to sour on the group, claiming that the proximity of their fellow members soon became a trap more insidious and more frustrating than any of the rules of society. One of Jelinek’s original two childer actually committed suicide in the early years of the 20th century, forever traumatizing the rest of the line.
When the line passed through Amsterdam on a journey across northern Europe, they found immediate welcome and purpose in The Carthian Movement there. Realizing that they were nothing less than an experimental society of their own, Jelinek declared himself and his line to be ardent Carthians, formulizing and carrying out an ongoing experiment in antimaterialist communal existence. Received as a charismatically, he was made most welcome in the domain and allowed to move freely through the territory. But before long, the reckless tendencies of the Barjot began to annoy their hosts and damage the reputation of the line. Avoiding a potential clash, Jelinek gathered his brood and left the domain.
For decades, they traveled. Brussels, Geneva, Budapest, Prague, Rome — all played host to the Barjot at one time or another, and all rapidly ushered them out soon after. It never helped that the brood spread the word of their own revolutionary brand of Carthianism wherever they went, embellishing the tales in an attempt to convince younger, more impressionable Kindred to join up and throw off The Traditions of their elders. Many times, the Barjot were forced to flee a domain before facing charges of corrupting neonates and fomenting rebellion — a thoroughly legitimate claim.
The Barjot were caught in Copenhagen during the Nazi occupation of World War II, and a disastrous attempt to cross the border led to the destruction of three members of the line at once. Never having suffered such a degree of bloodshed before, they were devastated. Jelinek’s remaining childe went into voluntary Torpor, declaring his intent to sleep “one century for each sad loss.” The rest of the line chose to carry his inert body with them in their travels, and have done so ever since.
As soon as they were able, the entire line picked up and left for the Americas, eager to leave the painful memories of Europe behind. First landing at New York harbor, they were quickly turned out by the Kindred of the city and set to wandering again.
In the decades that followed, the Barjot have been up and down the Americas, traveling as far south as Rio de Janeiro and as far north as Anchorage, Alaska. Every so often, they are made welcome in a domain and they stay for as long as they can. Rarely tolerated for long, they eventually move on, looking for a city that can accept their strange ways.
Culture
Culture and cultural heritage
Background: Those mortals who can both draw the attention of the Barjot and then survive the first few years as Kindred without going completely insane are a singular type: charismatic outsiders and frustrated eccentrics, assured of their own intellectual worth and vaguely (or completely) dissatisfied with mainstream life. They are artists and talkers, rebels and freaks, attracted to the unusual existence of the vampires and willing participants in their commune.
Social and Physical Attributes are considered more favorable for Barjot candidates than Mental ones, and such “friendly skills” as Expression, Socialize, Drive and Athletics are much more appealing to the line than such “unfriendly” ones as Brawl, Weaponry or Subterfuge.
Social and Physical Attributes are considered more favorable for Barjot candidates than Mental ones, and such “friendly skills” as Expression, Socialize, Drive and Athletics are much more appealing to the line than such “unfriendly” ones as Brawl, Weaponry or Subterfuge.
Common Dress code
Appearance: Considering that wild experimentation and creative expression are the norm for Jelinene Kindred, the mainstream boundaries of gender, modesty and good taste are of no concern. Loose, flowing garments seem fashionable, as are colorful, comfortable fabrics and revealing cuts.
Most of the Barjot refuse to style their hair, often allowing dreadlocks to form (if they have enough length) or taking a laissez-faire attitude to their coifs. Many are not quite as anxious about hygiene as one might hope, and are dusted with a layer of soot and grime that grows thicker as the years pass.
If the bloodline has a single rule about one’s appearance, it is this: nothing should be bought. If a vampire of the bloodline is seen to wear matching suits or manufactured dresses, she’s likely to face the jeers of her brethren as a “sell out” or a “bourgeois wannabe.” Instead, the Barjot either hand-sew their garments from scratch or patch them together from a collection of found fabrics and otherwise cannibalized clothing.
The Barjot often accessorize with items that are beautiful, but assertively worthless. Cheap plastic baubles, telephone wire necklaces, iridescent Saran-Wrap bracelets — anything that’s both eye-catching and easy to find works as Barjot adornment. They may look like crazy people, but they tend to claim that it’s a statement on the arbitrary nature of value assignment, and will gleefully defend their choices. The useless is elevated to magnificence in their eyes, and commonly accepted precious items are no better than trash.
Most of the Barjot refuse to style their hair, often allowing dreadlocks to form (if they have enough length) or taking a laissez-faire attitude to their coifs. Many are not quite as anxious about hygiene as one might hope, and are dusted with a layer of soot and grime that grows thicker as the years pass.
If the bloodline has a single rule about one’s appearance, it is this: nothing should be bought. If a vampire of the bloodline is seen to wear matching suits or manufactured dresses, she’s likely to face the jeers of her brethren as a “sell out” or a “bourgeois wannabe.” Instead, the Barjot either hand-sew their garments from scratch or patch them together from a collection of found fabrics and otherwise cannibalized clothing.
The Barjot often accessorize with items that are beautiful, but assertively worthless. Cheap plastic baubles, telephone wire necklaces, iridescent Saran-Wrap bracelets — anything that’s both eye-catching and easy to find works as Barjot adornment. They may look like crazy people, but they tend to claim that it’s a statement on the arbitrary nature of value assignment, and will gleefully defend their choices. The useless is elevated to magnificence in their eyes, and commonly accepted precious items are no better than trash.
Art & Architecture
Haven: The Jelinenes will dwell anywhere that’s free, light-tight and large enough to house all of them. Squats in ruined hotels, waterfront warehouses and abandoned factories are favorites for the bloodline, providing the shelter they require without walling the members off from one another. Not all of them know how to invoke the Haven of Soil, and those who do don’t like to isolate themselves from their brothers and sisters.
Wherever they make a home, the Barjot inevitably “decorate”: painting the walls with unusual imagery, scrawling poetry and messages on every available surface and scattering toys, swatches of fabric and anything else they choose to entertain themselves with all around. Their havens are often jokingly referred to as “nests” because of this behavior, but many a visiting vampire has been struck by the awful resemblance to an animal’s Den.
On rare occasion, the Barjot are invited to share the Haven of an outsider. Without fail, they leave it as ruined as their own homes, testing the limits of their host’s patience with their combined ignorance of common courtesy and absolute disregard for another’s privacy. To those who know the Barjot, hosting the bloodline is considered a great (or insanely foolish) act of tolerance and charity. A few French Kindred regularly welcome them into their homes, viewing the inevitable destruction of their property as a kind of penance. Most Kindred, however, are nowhere near as broadminded in their approach.
Wherever they make a home, the Barjot inevitably “decorate”: painting the walls with unusual imagery, scrawling poetry and messages on every available surface and scattering toys, swatches of fabric and anything else they choose to entertain themselves with all around. Their havens are often jokingly referred to as “nests” because of this behavior, but many a visiting vampire has been struck by the awful resemblance to an animal’s Den.
On rare occasion, the Barjot are invited to share the Haven of an outsider. Without fail, they leave it as ruined as their own homes, testing the limits of their host’s patience with their combined ignorance of common courtesy and absolute disregard for another’s privacy. To those who know the Barjot, hosting the bloodline is considered a great (or insanely foolish) act of tolerance and charity. A few French Kindred regularly welcome them into their homes, viewing the inevitable destruction of their property as a kind of penance. Most Kindred, however, are nowhere near as broadminded in their approach.
Major organizations
Covenant: The Barjot identify themselves as Carthians, without exception. The Barjot are a small state unto themselves, and they believe that they should be allowed to determine the parameters of their own government, complete with its laws and customs. Because of their extremely insular behavior and their tendency to wander away, En masse, from any situation that upsets them, the members of the bloodline are sometimes referred to as “Carthian by default.” That is to say, they are too organized to be spoken of as unaligned, but they are too unusual and unmannerly to be considered members of any covenant except The Carthian Movement.
The Barjot have flirted with membership in both The Lancea Sanctum and The Circle of the Crone in the past, participating happily in religious or mystic rituals and readings. The Barjot never stay for long, though, and they rarely bother to learn much from the teachings of either group. It’s not that the Barjot are incompatible with them, but rather that the Barjot just don’t care enough to take the trouble.
The free-spirited Barjot are simply not compatible with the staid etiquette of The Invictus or the guarded secrecy and long study of The Ordo Dracul. Any members of the bloodline who have made any attempt whatsoever to join those covenants in the past have done so half-heartedly, and have been rejected on every occasion. Even those single members who might be considered for membership are unable to spend enough time away from their compatriots to learn the lessons of these covenants.
Organization: The Barjot move in familial troupes, splitting only rarely into smaller sub-groups. Each member relates (and refers) to the others as brothers and sisters, even when dealing with her sire or childer. There are no distinctions of age or class within the Barjot, and there is no intrinsic value to inheritance. Many Barjot are actually Jelinek’s childer or grandchilder, with a few exceptions, and all share the close ties of Blood Sympathy.
Amorous affairs are both common and mercurial among the Barjot. Partnerships are formed, traded and dissolved with remarkable frequency, more as a pleasure game than any serious expression of emotion. Reprehensible as it is to more traditional Kindred, the ready exchange of physical love among the members of the bloodline is arguably one of the factors that help maintain each member’s Humanity. Those who seem to be slipping are often subjected to increased attention from their brood-mates, benefiting from their gentle touch and intimate understanding.
The Barjot engage in their own version of the Carthian Chain at least once a week, if not more often, exchanging gifts and items of clothing (often wearing them to the ceremony and removing them just before handing them over) back and forth, occasionally receiving presents that they themselves had given away years previous. The gifts exchanged are appreciated, but there isn’t much relevance attached to the relative value. Outsiders often question the Barjot’s practice of the Chain, considering that they define all of their possessions as the shared property of the line. Members of the bloodline invariably respond that the practice of the Chain is about the act of giving and receiving, not about the ownership of the gifts themselves. It is a practice that encourages friendly contact and a union of intent and interest. Outsiders are frequently and happily invited to practice the Chain with the Barjot, demonstrating that the line is willing to surrender items in exchange for the gifts of foreigners as well.
Spending as much time in one another’s company as they do, the Kindred of the Barjot often engage in cooperative feeding practice. The joint hunt is surely a joy for the brothers and sisters of the line, but must be horrifying for their targets. The entire line often descends on a small group of mortals, picking a small neighborhood clean in their passing. A definite threat to the Masquerade, the Barjot group hunt often defies the logic and necessity of stealth in Kindred affairs, and the permanent residents of several domains have been forced to clean up the bloodline’s mess on more than one occasion.
In a ritual exercise that is extremely unusual for vampires, the Barjot all recall and celebrate their mortal birthdays, throwing wild parties and taking the whole line into the streets for a roving bash. As the night of revelry draws to a close, the honoree is often drawn into the telling of tales, recalling the highlights of his mortal days. Once again, this practice seems bizarre or unnecessary to many Kindred, but it has a definite positive effect on the Humanity of the bloodline’s members.
Another common ritual for the Barjot is the “crash,” a planned outing to a public event (or Elysium gathering). In preparation, the members of the bloodline dress up in “Disguise,” snagging cheap or free suits and dresses and doing their best to emulate the “normal” crowd. At some predetermined point, they suddenly shred or strip off their outfits, reveling in the relativefreedom of their usual garb. This moment of shedding is considered by many a reinforcing of the values of the Barjot, allowing them to exult in a moment of liberation after the hours-long tension of trying to fit in with the crowd around them. It certainly seems enjoyable to those on the outside: the release is accompanied by laughter and song, often drawing the curious attention of the crowd.
The Barjot have flirted with membership in both The Lancea Sanctum and The Circle of the Crone in the past, participating happily in religious or mystic rituals and readings. The Barjot never stay for long, though, and they rarely bother to learn much from the teachings of either group. It’s not that the Barjot are incompatible with them, but rather that the Barjot just don’t care enough to take the trouble.
The free-spirited Barjot are simply not compatible with the staid etiquette of The Invictus or the guarded secrecy and long study of The Ordo Dracul. Any members of the bloodline who have made any attempt whatsoever to join those covenants in the past have done so half-heartedly, and have been rejected on every occasion. Even those single members who might be considered for membership are unable to spend enough time away from their compatriots to learn the lessons of these covenants.
Organization: The Barjot move in familial troupes, splitting only rarely into smaller sub-groups. Each member relates (and refers) to the others as brothers and sisters, even when dealing with her sire or childer. There are no distinctions of age or class within the Barjot, and there is no intrinsic value to inheritance. Many Barjot are actually Jelinek’s childer or grandchilder, with a few exceptions, and all share the close ties of Blood Sympathy.
Amorous affairs are both common and mercurial among the Barjot. Partnerships are formed, traded and dissolved with remarkable frequency, more as a pleasure game than any serious expression of emotion. Reprehensible as it is to more traditional Kindred, the ready exchange of physical love among the members of the bloodline is arguably one of the factors that help maintain each member’s Humanity. Those who seem to be slipping are often subjected to increased attention from their brood-mates, benefiting from their gentle touch and intimate understanding.
The Barjot engage in their own version of the Carthian Chain at least once a week, if not more often, exchanging gifts and items of clothing (often wearing them to the ceremony and removing them just before handing them over) back and forth, occasionally receiving presents that they themselves had given away years previous. The gifts exchanged are appreciated, but there isn’t much relevance attached to the relative value. Outsiders often question the Barjot’s practice of the Chain, considering that they define all of their possessions as the shared property of the line. Members of the bloodline invariably respond that the practice of the Chain is about the act of giving and receiving, not about the ownership of the gifts themselves. It is a practice that encourages friendly contact and a union of intent and interest. Outsiders are frequently and happily invited to practice the Chain with the Barjot, demonstrating that the line is willing to surrender items in exchange for the gifts of foreigners as well.
Spending as much time in one another’s company as they do, the Kindred of the Barjot often engage in cooperative feeding practice. The joint hunt is surely a joy for the brothers and sisters of the line, but must be horrifying for their targets. The entire line often descends on a small group of mortals, picking a small neighborhood clean in their passing. A definite threat to the Masquerade, the Barjot group hunt often defies the logic and necessity of stealth in Kindred affairs, and the permanent residents of several domains have been forced to clean up the bloodline’s mess on more than one occasion.
In a ritual exercise that is extremely unusual for vampires, the Barjot all recall and celebrate their mortal birthdays, throwing wild parties and taking the whole line into the streets for a roving bash. As the night of revelry draws to a close, the honoree is often drawn into the telling of tales, recalling the highlights of his mortal days. Once again, this practice seems bizarre or unnecessary to many Kindred, but it has a definite positive effect on the Humanity of the bloodline’s members.
Another common ritual for the Barjot is the “crash,” a planned outing to a public event (or Elysium gathering). In preparation, the members of the bloodline dress up in “Disguise,” snagging cheap or free suits and dresses and doing their best to emulate the “normal” crowd. At some predetermined point, they suddenly shred or strip off their outfits, reveling in the relativefreedom of their usual garb. This moment of shedding is considered by many a reinforcing of the values of the Barjot, allowing them to exult in a moment of liberation after the hours-long tension of trying to fit in with the crowd around them. It certainly seems enjoyable to those on the outside: the release is accompanied by laughter and song, often drawing the curious attention of the crowd.
Parent Clan: The founder, Amaury Jelinek, is a vampire of approximately 250 years of age. He still wanders the night with his strange, close-knit line, and is rumored to have spent no more than 10 or 11 years in Torpor throughout his existence, a surprising circumstance for a vampire of his age. Jelinek attributes his stayingpower to the close ties he shares with his blood relations.
Nickname: Jelinenes. The Barjot dislike this term because it suggests a worship of Jelinek that they all deny. While it’s true that they tend to dote on him, no one of them is central to the bloodline, they say, and no one of them deserves to be exalted above the rest. On any given night, they are likely to indulge and idolize one of their neonates just as much as their founder.
Character Creation: Almost all of the Jelinenes are peaceful intellectuals, many of whom have given themselves over to a free-spirited, hedonistic Requiem. As a result, Mental Attributes are commonly primary (despite the Gangrel weakness), but Social Skills are usually prominent. Material Merits are discouraged, as every member of the bloodline must be prepared to abandon all possessions — either in sharing with one another, or in ridding oneself of material ties to a particular domain. A good number of the bloodline bear the Striking Looks merit, even if it may be hidden under a layer of grime.
Bloodline Disciplines: Animalism, Celerity, Protean, Resilience
Weakness: Every member of the bloodline suffers the weakness of the Gangrel clan. In addition, none of the Jelinenes can stand to be removed from the company of his brood. If any one member of the group loses contact (visual, aural or tactile) with any member of the line, he must immediately make a Resolve + Composure roll. Each success he accumulates allows him to remain in place (or moving in his chosen direction) for one turn. As soon as these turns of free action are used up, he must immediately seek out his line-mates, seeking them to the best of his ability. While he seeks the rest of the Barjot, he will lose interest in all other activities, and any rolls to perform actions unrelated to locating and rejoining his family suffer a –3 penalty.
This roll applies only to single members of the bloodline, isolated from the rest. While the other members of the line are likely to become agitated when a member goes missing, they do not suffer the penalty that applies to their lost line-mate. A pair of Barjot apart from their brood likewise will not suffer the penalty, though they certainly feel a pull to rejoin their bloodline as quickly as possible.
Concepts: Atavistic philosopher-poet, easygoing hitchhiker, enlightened communist punk, free-spirited wild child, gentle warrior-gone-soft, manic codependent brat, sleepy-eyed jokester, soothing big sister, talentless avant-garde scribbler, trapped-inhell introvert
Nickname: Jelinenes. The Barjot dislike this term because it suggests a worship of Jelinek that they all deny. While it’s true that they tend to dote on him, no one of them is central to the bloodline, they say, and no one of them deserves to be exalted above the rest. On any given night, they are likely to indulge and idolize one of their neonates just as much as their founder.
Parent ethnicities
Bloodline Disciplines: Animalism, Celerity, Protean, Resilience
Weakness: Every member of the bloodline suffers the weakness of the Gangrel clan. In addition, none of the Jelinenes can stand to be removed from the company of his brood. If any one member of the group loses contact (visual, aural or tactile) with any member of the line, he must immediately make a Resolve + Composure roll. Each success he accumulates allows him to remain in place (or moving in his chosen direction) for one turn. As soon as these turns of free action are used up, he must immediately seek out his line-mates, seeking them to the best of his ability. While he seeks the rest of the Barjot, he will lose interest in all other activities, and any rolls to perform actions unrelated to locating and rejoining his family suffer a –3 penalty.
This roll applies only to single members of the bloodline, isolated from the rest. While the other members of the line are likely to become agitated when a member goes missing, they do not suffer the penalty that applies to their lost line-mate. A pair of Barjot apart from their brood likewise will not suffer the penalty, though they certainly feel a pull to rejoin their bloodline as quickly as possible.
Concepts: Atavistic philosopher-poet, easygoing hitchhiker, enlightened communist punk, free-spirited wild child, gentle warrior-gone-soft, manic codependent brat, sleepy-eyed jokester, soothing big sister, talentless avant-garde scribbler, trapped-inhell introvert
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