A new view of an ancient but recently changed vampire sect - a Mephisto review

The Camarilla book is the first sourcebook for V5 and focuses on the great sect that claimed to be responsible for all vampires. Written from the perspective of the famous Toreador Victoria Ash as a guide for her childe, the book first deals with the Camarilla as an organization. It explains the structure of the inner circle, the justiciars, the archons and the princes. Later on, the various roles and posts within a city are also explained and illustrated using selected exemplary personalities.

Cults within the Camarilla are a new aspect, as the sect no longer denies the existence of the Antediluvians. Therefore, there are also cults worshiping Caine and his descendants. Of course, there are still various other cults, heresies, orders etc. A large part of the book is devoted to the objectives of the Camarilla and its most important tool, the Masquerade.

The dominance of the Camarilla is no longer unchallenged. Therefore, the Gehenna War and the Second Inquisition, as well as the Anarchs, are discussed. A number of the most important Camarilla cities are briefly presented to show their differences.

A large part of the book is also devoted to the presentation of the clans. The five clans of the Camarilla are presented in greater detail, while the two Anarch clans and the Caitiff receive a shorter - and much more critical - examination.

With the Banu Haqim (formerly known as Assamites) the book introduces another clan, which, as described within the metaplot, becomes a new member of the Camarilla. The Banu Haqim is an extremely divided clan between the blood cultists of Ur-Shulgi and the defectors to the Camarilla. The Banu Haqim face changes regarding the rules so that their former clan discipline is being replaced by Blood Sorcery.

The Camarilla book provides a broad but also fragmented view of the probably largest organization of vampires. The topics are presented in text fragments, chat recordings, monologues and other documents and show a Camarilla that has changed a lot. Even though the organization seems to have gained in power, it seems to be much more fragmented and local - and far less a global power factor. With the approach that the Banu Haqim are now part of the Camarilla, a new dynamic development is created. Other concepts of the new edition of Vampire - such as the Second Inquisition or the Gehenna War - are also being expanded, but never completely lose their mysteries. Because of the clan description of the Banu Haqim alone, Camarilla will be a must for many players. Even if some chapters are written somewhat theoretically, and you certainly cannot use all the material, the book complements V5 with background and, above all, many ideas. In particular, it presents a new Camarilla, which, although it seems to be much more self-confident and elitist, on the other hand, raises enough doubts to strengthen the Anarchs as a meaningful game option.

(Björn Lippold)