More than one Prince of London banned them from entering Elysium. Where the Toreador were ascendant, the Nosferatu were relegated to the slums and ghettos of Europe. In a time when physical beauty was supposed to reflect spiritual beauty, the Nosferatu experienced one of the greatest periods of exile in their long and lonely history. The Nosferatu were very (some would say suspiciously so) quiet during the Victorian Era. The manitou were largely wiped out or assimilated by the European Nosferatu. These 'manitou' as they called themselves lived as solitary hunters in the night, accepting sacrifices from human clans to forestall their wrath, and were strong practitioners of Animalism. With the start of European colonization of the Americas, the 1600s brought the revelation that many Nosferatu had been living in North America alongside the indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The Renaissance also saw an increase in Embraces that had only spite and hatred as reasons, as many Nosferatu grew to resent the new arts and philosophies that began to develop. Many ghettos and tenements housed large populations of Nosferatu that lived hidden from the views of the Toreador and Ventrue who had instituted themselves into mortal society. Nosferatu tend to place a higher emphasis on clan unity and mutual survival, and are consequently fairly cordial with each other even though technically enemies.Дuring this period the Nosferatu began to construct their urban lairs, using the urbanization as a means to disappear from the mortal world to ensure the protection of the Masquerade. The Nosferatu did effectively split during the formation of the Sabbat however, Nosferatu antitribu are largely identical to their Camarilla kin. Many Nosferatu chose to dwell among the beggars and outcasts of society, feeding from the muck of society and hiding their disfigurements as illnesses like leprosy. They were, however, not without power, as they had discovered the connection between human waste and plagues and used it to defile the water sources of a village if a local Cainite lord became too arrogant. In the middle age, Nosferatu were one of the Low Clans, and notable in particular for their embrace of Christianity and redemption (flagellation in particular).

Rumors, however, tell of the dyulamansa, the Hidden Kings, who ruled Nosferatu Kingdoms in sub-Saharan Africa. The development of the catacombs in ancient Rome connected the Clan with mortal society, although they were regarded as low-blooded by the ruling Ventrue and Malkavians. Many Nosferatu hid in the great rivers like the Tigris or the Nile to prey on farmers at night. Most hid from the sun in subterranean caves or in the grounds of rivers and lakes. In the beginning, most Nosferatu resorted to hunt humans as prey, as they were unable to coexist with them in their cities, as the mortals either ran away in fear or resorted to fire and violence to drive them out. Through his loyal Nictuku, Absimiliard hopes to exterminate all of the Matriarch's childer in atonement for his crimes against the laws of Caine вЂ“ or in bitter vengeance, some would say. The maiden came to be known as the Matriarch for according to legends, she gave birth to the entire modern incarnation of the Nosferatu clan. Since that time, Absimiliard's eldest descendants, the Nictuku, have chased her. When Caine returned in judgment, he cursed Nosferatu with hideousness, a curse passed to all his descendants, including the hidden maid. His childer, hunters all, remained loyal to him except for one woman who fled further than he could chase. His wounded pride, coupled with his ego, led him to resent, then hate, then kill his sire, precipitating the revolt by the Antediluvians.ДЄs with his brethren, Absimiliard had sired a small clique of childer by the time of the Second City. The Embrace was quick, but left him with a tiny facial scar that inflamed his vanity. Powerful and vain, Absimiliard was a hunter of great skill and beauty who attracted the attention of one of the second generation, who stalked him down as prey. They are also the masters of the underground, living in the sewers for protection.ДЄs with all of the Antediluvians, the Nosferatu Antediluvian (referred to as Absimiliard) was Embraced in the shadow of Enoch. The Nosferatu are the spymasters of the dead, collecting information and selling it for a dear price. The archetypal Nosferatu resembles Max Shreck's Count Orlok, though the curse has any number of variations.

World of darkness nosferatu