The Sanjiyan are two Bloodlines descended from Saulot residing in the far East. A strong bloodline, the Sanjiyan boast over 1000 members between both sects. While the depredations of the Tremere have not decimated the Sanjiyan, they have left their mark. Indeed the loss of their founder is the root of their current division. They have grown into two distinct Bloodlines with their own Disciplines, Organization and methods. However the intermittent warfare between the two elder founders of each Bloodline threatens to destroy the remaining descendants of Saulot.
Sanjiyan who follow the Warrior way are led by the 4th generation methuselah Askandi. The Sanjiyan who follow the way of the Healer are led by a 4th generation methuselah Pahvariti, who was Askandi's sister when they were alive. Saulot embraced them both at roughly the same time and left them in the East when he returned to his Clan. For several centuries they helped one another complementing each other's weaknesses. Between the two they formed a society of healers and protectors who sought to ease the suffering of the mortals in their care and protect them from the increasing depredations of Kuei Jin who had turned against their duties of protecting the mortals and now only preyed upon them.
However when Tremere committed Diablerie upon Saulot, Askandi launched a series of campaigns of genocide against the Tremere. During his travels through Eastern Europe he encountered many Salubri and taught them the warrior ways. However it was not the Tremere who drove Askandi from medieval Europe but the Tzimisce. Askandi had allied himself with a Tzimisce Koldun who was intent on driving the Tremere from his lands. On the night of their greatest victory the Tzimisce held a celebration of typical Tzimisce debauchery. Askandi was sickened to his soul and halfway through the beginning of the tortures he slew the Tzimisce and all his childer. Before leaving he freed the captured Tremere and their servants but his skills were insufficient to ease their sufferings. Most of the mortal servants of the captured Tremere died as he ministered to them. Sickened and desolate he left. He returned to the east to his sister and the healing that only she could provide him.
However when he came to his sister she fled at the mere sight of him. Years of battle had strengthened his beast and hardened his soul. Such was his appearance that the sensitive and gentle Pahvariti believed that he had come to end her existence. Shocked by her reaction Askandi hunted her down and captured her. He locked her in his own fortress and forced her to enact the healing rites upon him. She was only partially successful.
Askandi remains cold and withdrawn. He is still slightly insane and refuses to believe that Pahvariti cannot heal him. But she knows the truth, once flaws are overlooked, they cannot later be cleared. To protect her childer she has ordered them to have no further contact with the warrior sect. Those warriors who had need of the healer's services found it impossible to beseech the reclusive sect members. In anger they took to kidnapping the healers and forcing them to do their bidding. In a haunting reflection of their sect founder's actions they have hunted the healer sect to near extinction. If this were to happen their own demise would not be far behind. The arrogant and forceful warriors would degenerate into bestial murderers without the healers to tend to their souls. They have spent too many Millennia as opposite halves of the same whole to survive separation now. Nickname: Triclops Appearance: Warrior Sanjiyan often dress in the apparel they wore in life, some of them going so far as to use the same armor and weapons they used when they were mortal warriors. Healers on the other hand tend to adopt the style and dress of the people of the area where they reside. Haven: The Warriors of this Bloodline will usually reside in fortresses or prisons. Areas where access is restricted and entry is difficult is preferred. Healers tend to gravitate towards temples and places of religious significance. Background: Sanjiyan have two distinct preferences in dealing with childer. The Healers prefer to embrace women who are humble and pious. The Warriors prefer to embrace men who are arrogant and fanatical. Character Creation: Sanjiyan will generally have their Mental attributes as secondary regardless of inclination. Warrior Salubri will almost always have their Physical attributes as their primary category while Healers prefer their Social attributes. Warriors always have Talents as their primary Abilities, while Healers have Knowledges as theirs. Favored Backgrounds for both bloodlines are Allies, Contacts, Generation, Herd and Mentor. Sanjiyan can follow the Paths of Honorable Accord, Path of Inner Focus, Path of Harmony and Path of Power and Inner Voice as well as Humanity. Clan Disciplines: Healers possess Auspex, Fortitude, and Obeah. Warriors possess Auspex, Fortitude and Valeren. Weakness: Members of this bloodline have a third eye in the middle of their forehead. Unlike the Western Salubri a Sanjiyan has the third eye from the moment of creation. This eye reveals itself every time the Sanjiyan uses his Vampiric powers. Automatic powers like Potence and Fortitude do not trigger the third eye which is invisible when not in use. Organization: The Healer sect has very little organization and prefers to disperse and hide in the face of concentrated efforts to exterminate them. While the Warriors often travel in groups of three to five called squadrons, usually of the same age and nationality though of different sires. To the Warriors there is safety in numbers and a squadron of warriors will often keep a Healer captive to tend to them in imitation of their founder. Gaining Clan Prestige: Prestige is gained by acts which bring honor to the bloodline as a whole and by personal acts of courage by the individual. A warrior might be given great prestige for hunting down and enslaving many of the healer Sanjiyan, but he may also be honored for protecting a healer from his fellow warriors if he shows that he is committed. Quote: "We are one though we are opposite. Yin and Yang, creation and destruction. Is it any wonder that the mortals believe we are gods?" Stereotypes
• The Camarilla- We ended our war with the Tremere centuries ago. If they seek to do us no harm we will leave them be and do are best to avoid their lands. What?
-Frederick Bartouque, Brujah scribe.
• The Sabbat- We remember the depravity of the Tzimisce and how that alone was enough to drive the wedge between our two halves. For this we shall remain ever vigilant lest they bring their filth to our lands. Despicable creatures, wolves in sheep's clothing the lot of them. The thing is you never realize how powerful they really are until you try to destroy them. And by then it's usually too late.
-Bors Hatyr, Tzimisce Koldun
• The Inconnu- The sons of Hassam and the others have more dealings with them than us. Some nights I can't help but wonder, what if things had been different? But I can't say for sure that if Askandi had stayed, things would have been better or worse for us.
-Joseph, Salubri Monitor of Israel
Valeren
The Discipline of Valeran is detailed in Vampire the Dark Ages Companion. Only those Sanjiyan belonging to the Martial Bloodline will possess the powers described below. Sanjiyan healers will possess Obeah as it appears in the Vampire's Players Guide.
• Sense Anima
The Sanjiyan who follow the way of the Warrior have developed their inner eye to sense the energy of others. This allows them also to feel the intentions others rather than to feel their pain such as the healers do. Both uses of the eye are similar in execution if not effect, for wishing another harm does cause pain to the wisher whatever they may believe. When any creature wishes the Sanjiyan harm he will sense the intentions like a physical presence. System: The Sanjiyan can sense the presence of others within his vicinity and with concentration can pinpoint their locations. A Vampire with Obfuscate can be sensed just as easily as one without unless he can hide his Aura. In this case there is no way for the Sanjiyan to detect him.
Whenever an opponent wishes to do harm to the Sanjiyan, whether by ambush or surprise, the Sanjiyan can use this power to gauge the opponent's intentions and thereby predict when the attack will come. The Sanjiyan can choose to dodge any attack directed at him no matter from what direction or circumstances. The Sanjiyan spends an action as normal to dodge the attack.
The Sanjiyan can use the Anima sense in combat to attack foes he would not otherwise be able to see. For each success on a Perception + Empathy roll, difficulty 8, the Player can counter one die of penalty
•• Soft Touch
This precise blow can paralyze an opponent by interrupting the flow of energy through the victim's limbs. The Sanjiyan must strike his opponent with his bare hand. System: The Vampire must roll Wits + Martial Arts, difficulty 6, the number of successes determines how long the paralysis lasts. Each success reduces the opponents dice pool by one. The paralysis lasts for an amount of time described in the chart below.
1 Success
A single turn.
2 Successes
An entire scene.
3 Successes
One night.
4 Successes
A week.
5 Successes
An entire month.
••• Burning Touch
The Sanjiyan can cause grievous injuries to his opponent with the touch of his hands. System: The Sanjiyan must spend Blood to cause Aggravated damage. Each Blood Point spent causes one Health Level of Aggravated damage. These wounds are especially debilitating and cause a two dice penalty to dice pools. The wounds can only be soaked with Fortitude and no amount of armor or additional protections can be used to soak them. If the attack roll fails the blood is lost burning off into the air within moments. The Sanjiyan can only put as many Blood Points into this attack as he can spend in a turn, but these may be split into different attacks. For example if the Sanjiyan can spend three Blood Points per turn he could elect to spend them all in one attack, two on one attack and one in another or one Blood Point on three attacks.
•••• Warrior Spirit
The true warrior can end a battle by force of will alone. With extreme confidence and utmost calm the warrior faces his opponent and attempts to stare him down. During this time the two opponents can attack each other and cast taunts. Successfully injuring an opponent can break his concentration reducing his chances of winning the contest of wills. System: The Vampire and his victim enter a contest of wills. Both of them must roll Willpower, the target of this test is the Willpower of the opponent and is rolled at the beginning of each turn. Modifiers for wounds are also added to the roll. This is an extended roll and the first one to acquire three successes more than his opponent wins. If the Sanjiyan warrior wins then his opponent has lost his nerve and cannot fight or act effectively. Melee actions are reduced to one per turn and all dice pools are reduced to two dice or less. In addition the victim cannot spend Willpower for the rest of the scene. If the Sanjiyan loses he has his Permanent Willpower reduced by one and his Path/Humanity rating reduced by three. Furthermore this is such a traumatic blow to the confidence of the warrior that he will never be able to employ this power against the one who bested him ever again.
••••• True Strike
Like the Samurai of Japan the Sanjiyan can strike first and strike last. The True Strike is a terrible blow that almost always hits and when it does causes terrible damage. Usually enough to end the fight almost before it has begun. System: The Sanjiyan Warrior must spend three blood points to use this power. His next strike will hit before his opponents and all successes to hit are added to the damage total. If this power is used at the beginning of the turn then the Warrior automatically gains the initiative. If this power is used during the middle of combat it can be used to interrupt an opponents attack by striking when it is the opponents turn to strike. This strike cannot be dodged but the damage can be soaked and a successful parry adds to the soak roll. If the attack misses the Warrior loses his next action and is at -3 difficulty to be struck until his next action.
Level Six Death Blow: The Warrior can extinguish a life with a single blow. The soul of the victim is not lost however and the Sanjiyan can release it into Transcendence or back into it's body. While the soul is absent from it's body the body will stop functioning and, if the target is mortal, will die in five minutes. A Vampire will be in Torpor unless his soul is released into Transcendence at which point his body begins to rapidly decay. System: The Warrior must strike and hit his target but no damage is rolled. A weapon cannot be used in this attack the blow must be a strike with some part of the Warrior's body. Once the Warrior has struck his target he enters a contested Willpower roll with his target. The Sanjiyan must accumulate as many successes as the target has points in his Humanity/Path rating. The target wins if he acquires as many successes as the Warrior's Empathy rating. If the target wins or the Warrior botches the contest ceases and the target is free to attack the Warrior or flee as he desires. The Warrior on the other hand is stunned and can do nothing for the rest of the turn or the next turn after that.
Level Seven Right of Challenge: With this power the Sanjiyan Warrior can single out a particular opponent and be sure that none will interfere in their duel. This power is especially useful in mass combat where the target is surrounded by fighting men and would otherwise be impossible to reach. However its uses in modern times are not to be diminished. Being able to single out a particularly dangerous and crafty foe for single combat can stop gunfights from degenerating into urban warfare. System: The Warrior must spend two Willpower points and state his target. The target can resist by spending Willpower to retreat until he is no longer in visual range of the Warrior. Once the target has been named everyone else will avoid attacking either the Warrior or the target and allow them to pass without hindering them. The target will try to reach the Warrior by as direct a route as possible unless he spends Willpower to resist. The Warrior must go towards his opponent by the most direct route possible or else the power is broken. Anyone who attempts to attack either of the opponents or fire off an attack that would affect the area they are in must first roll his Willpower, difficulty of the Warrior's Willpower and get as many successes as the Warrior has in his Intimidation rating. This is a single roll and must be successful for each attempt to harm either of the opponents.
Level Eight Unstoppable Warrior: With this power a Warrior can become an almost unstoppable juggernaut able to shake off incredible injuries without apparent ill effect. System: The Warrior announces how many Blood Points he is going to transform into Health levels. There is no roll but the Warrior can only convert a number of Blood Points equal to the amount he can expend each turn at a time. So a sixth Generation Warrior would have to spend two turns to convert twelve Blood Points into twelve Health Levels. Once the Blood Points have been converted to Health Levels they cannot be used for anything else. A sixth Generation Warrior that has twelve extra Health Levels would have an effective Blood Pool of eighteen. To free up the space for more Blood the Warrior must remove the extra Health Level. In combat damage is taken from the extra Health Levels first. Only after that can the Warrior lose Health Levels from his normal Health Level track. Wounds made to the extra Health levels must be healed before they can be used for storing blood or to convert into extra Health Levels. Converting Blood into Health Levels while wounded does not heal damage already taken but the extra levels must be used up before damage can continue to the Warrior's normal Health track. (A Vampire who is Mauled converts three of his remaining Blood points into Health Levels. These three extra levels must be used up before the Warrior can be Crippled or Incapacitated. But he still suffers the dice penalty for being Mauled.)
Level Nine Vajra Ahrat: The Warrior cloaks himself in a spiritual mantle of divine energy. This can intimidate foes but its main use is in protecting the Warrior from special forms of damage and the debilitating effects of Frenzy and Rötschreck. The Sanjiyan looks like a divine being. An indescribable aura hangs around the person of the Sanjiyan which is more like a sensation than an actual physical manifestation of power. System: No roll is necessary and the divine mantle is always present. The mantle lowers the difficulty of all Social rolls including intimidation by two. A Sanjiyan whose Courage is higher than his Conscience is immune to Fire and Heat damage. If the reverse is true the Sanjiyan is immune to Sunlight. If both Virtues are the same then the Vampire cannot be sent into Torpor by a stake through the Heart. In any case the Sanjiyan with this power can roll his Stamina to resist Aggravated Damage. Furthermore all levels of Fortitude except those used to purchase special powers are considered automatic successes against normal damage. The Sanjiyan must still roll Fortitude against Aggravated damage. Certain Mental disciplines are also negated by this mantle. Though the Vajra Ahrat does not confer complete immunity from such Disciplines as Auspex, Animalism, Dementation, Dominate, Chimerstry, Obfuscate, Presence and all the rest, it does protect the Sanjiyan from being influenced into doing something he doesn't want to do. As an extreme example suppose a Vampire uses Obfuscate, Protean or Vicissitude to appear as someone else and the Sanjiyan wants to kill or harm the person the Vampire is imitating, but has no interest in harming the Vampire himself he will stop just before attacking since something is 'not quite right'. The extent and limitations of this power are in the storytellers hands. (Note: Since Vicissitude is an alien parasite that slowly takes over its host, a Vampire with this power cannot develop the Discipline since he can't be infected with it.) Magic is also an uncertain weapon against the Vajra Ahrat and hedge magic is almost completely useless against the Sanjiyan. All difficulties for True Magick rolls made against the Vajra Ahrat are at +3 difficulty. Users of Blood magic and Hedge magic must succeed in a contested Willpower vs. Willpower roll, difficulty 8 to affect the Vajra Ahrat. The Sanjiyan is also immune to provocation and fear and never suffers from Frenzy or Rötschreck though guilt is another matter.
Sanjiyan Merits
The Merits and Flaws a Sanjiyan starts with will often reflect which side of the Bloodline he belongs to. Healers and Warriors often possess radically different Merits though they often have similar flaws.
Healer Captive (3 point merit)
You have a captive Healer, most likely of higher Generation and less age than yourself. The Healer tends your wounds and simply having her confers upon you a measure of prestige. It also makes it more likely that other Sanjiyan Warriors will join you in a Squadron. For each point of Backgrounds that you spend on Allies you gain a companion Sanjiyan who is of equal status to yourself. However you must provide for her and neglecting or mistreating your Healer will gain you the scorn of your peers.
Vicissitude Immunity (5 point merit)
You were most likely created from a line founded after Askandi returned from Europe and have been granted immunity from the disease of the Tzimisce by the remnants of Askandi's blood in your veins. Not only are you unable to develop Vicissitude no matter how much tainted blood you drink, but all difficulties for Vicissitude rolls made against you are at +3 difficulty. If this takes the difficulty over 10 then that power cannot be used on you. This applies even if you are a willing recipient of the power.
