The Distant Mirror
-T.S. Eliot
Crime is on the rise across the nation. Public riots make the news on a nightly basis.
Claiming they want to ensure the safety of the people, Congress has passed stricter gun control laws. Vowing to restore order and public confidence, politicians have promised to increase the police presence in American cities, only to cut funding instead. Overseas, war, poverty, hunger and the testing of nuclear and biological weapons have added to the tension. Natural disasters have been plaguing the world and in some cases the death tolls have reached the hundreds of thousands. A combination of local unrest and global instability have pushed many cities to the breaking point. Boston is no exception. Once a city rich with culture, wealth, and heritage, it is now a pale reflections of its past. Due to a slowing economy; poverty and homelessness are increasing. Crime rates are mounting with alarming speed, leaving a police force taxed to its limit. Community tensions have produced riots that could only be put down by the National Guard. As usual, the politicians are pointing fingers at each other and laying blame somewhere else. The truth is, from Beacon Hill, across the Freedom Trail, to the slums of the South Bay; a secret war is being fought. Fought in a world the lucky man never sees. A war of supernaturals, fearful that these nights are truly the Final Nights. The city of Boston has been a city isolated from the other great cities of the east coast, at least for the Kindred. For hundreds of years it remained a Camarilla city, albeit one with a strong Giovanni population. Nevertheless, a few short years ago the Sabbat, as part of their sweep of the east coast, took the city for themselves. Since then all of the inhabitants of the city have suffered and the Masquerade is dangerously close to falling. The curtain lowered in front of mortal eyes is shredding. The tabloids and local commentaries make outrageous claims that “monsters walk among us”. The Garou have fallen victim to the “Big Dig”, and only a scattered few remain in the city. The Fae wage their own war in Boston, which sometimes spills into the sect war of the Kindred. The mages have disappeared entirely. The supernatural world was turned upside down as clan Ravnos ripped itself apart, some doubt that any survived. The Giovanni kept a “depository of souls” in Boston, but it was all but destroyed when the souls were freed by the same maelstrom that devastated the Ravnos. Whatever the cause of the devastation, its effects were felt across the realm of the supernaturals. Now, new threats have surfaced, groups of mortals seeking to destroy the supernatural. These “Hunters” have unusual powers and are a danger to all. Meanwhile, rumors run rampant that the ancient foe known as the Inquisition is once again marching forth on its modern “Holy Crusade”. The Camarilla has taken it upon themselves to restore order to the chaos that is now our world. They are launching a campaign to re-take Boston from the Sabbat. The reports of the demise of the antitribue Tremere, the weakening of the Garou and the disappearance of the mages mean now is the time to strike! As most of the elder vampires were destroyed when the Sabbat originally took the city, this is a grand opportunity for any ambitious neonate to establish influence and attain prestige. The Camarilla blame the Sabbat and the thin-blooded Caitiff for almost exposing the dark secrets of Kindred society. Once the city is retaken, order and the Masquerade will be restored and these threats destroyed. This is your world. Are you truly just a pawn of the Elders? Are the Elders just pawns of an Ancient Evil? Or perhaps, as the Camarilla claims, these are all “tall tales” told to scare fledging Sabbat. Do you have the power to control your own fate? The ability to guide your own destiny? Is this the true knowledge feared by the elders? Is keeping it hidden from you the true Masquerade? All this you face, this and the nightly battle to keep from losing yourself to the Beast. Welcome to Distant Mirror.Most of the material referenced here relates to the games and books produced by White Wolf Publishing Inc. White Wolf, and Vampire the Masquerade are registered trademarks of White Wolf Publishing. These pages are not a challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned.
