Death makes angels of us all and gives us wings where we had shoulders smooth as ravens' claws-Jim Morrison, the doors
The Wandering. After they are Embraced, Gangrel childer are set free by their sires to wander in the wilderness. This wandering may last as short as a night, or as long as a month. The Sire usually watches over the childe during this time, though not constantly, and sees how they develop.
However, during the Wandering, there is at least a bit of time where the Sire is not watching over the Childe, and the Childe disappears. The childe reappears, and nothing more is thought of it. However, this period of missing time is universal. Many Kindred have come up with theories as to where the Gangrel childer go, but none hold much water. The most common is that the childer actually meet up with some Elder (some say Gangrel herself) and he/she teaches them something very important, but then erases the fact from their mind. This is what keeps Gangrel wandering and restless, trying to relearn the secret that they once knew.
But that's just a myth, of course.
A Hint. Let's face facts here. The Brujah aren't the best fighters in the Camarilla; it's the Gangrel. I'm not exaggerating here, and you know it. Protean and Fortitude are an excellent mix. But why don't they get the reputation for it? Their stand-offish nature. The Brujah are very social creatures, they're always boatsing, bragging and being bullies. But the Gangrel are much more like the quiet kid who sat in the back of the class and never got noticed.
I know what you're thinking: so what? Tell us something new. OK, I will. You can use this to your advantage so easily. Play up the quiet type. Try to avoid getting into fights. And then, just after enough time has passed for people to accept that there's nothing secret about you, tear into the next person that bugs you. Really cut loose. Maim them.
And no one will bother you again.
Hey, it's Enrico Pallazzo!
One thing to remember about the Gangrel is that they are individualists. They are not by nature social creatures, which makes them tough to play in a LARP setting. They do not have a strong clan structure and they don't often obey orders from anyone but themselves. Respect? Yes, if you prove yourself. Loyalty? Hell no. The only Tradition they really keep is the first one, the Masquerade, and that's because it's a survival issue.Some Gangrel may well have loyalties to other people: true loves, best friends, the like. Others won't. Rarely if ever is it based on power or politics. Gangrel are, in general, the type of people who, if they declare you a friend, will give their lives for you. Likewise, if one declares you his enemy, you can count on his enmity for as long as you both live. Such a friend/enemy may be a way to draw a Gangrel into the intrigue of a LARP.
Gangrel are not Tremere wannabes! In fact, they are exactly the opposite. They don't tend to be schemers and they don't have the hierarchy of the Tremere.
By Andi Bigelow
Wed, 24-Sept-1997 | 00:06:47
Duelling: One important part of Gangrel society is sparring. This roughhousing helps Gangrel not only hone their own combat skills, but also gauge thei clanmates, to see how strong they are. And it is a social event, too. Very rarely will they duel outsiders in the same way. They too afraid of hurting them, or of some secret treachery.
I think I could turn and live with animals. They are so placid and self-contained. They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins. They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God. Not one of them kneels to another or to his own kind that lived thousands of years ago. Not one of them is respectable or unhappy, all over the earth.-Lord Summerisle, The Wicker Man
Interpretation: The Gangrel represent innocence. They have turned their backs to the politics and infighting and jyhads of the other Kindred, and simply desire a peaceful, simple life. However, this is also something they cannot achieve. Vampires need cities; the Gangrel can't just live in the country. And the wilderness is too still scary for them. While some make inroads with the werewolves, more end up victim to the wolves' rage. So the Gangrel are forced to live in a world they don't love, because their arcadia is taboo to them.
And eventually that secret kills them.
Paul M. M. Jacobus (vampire@digex.net)