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Wise men look at the world around them and all that exists therein and ask themselves, "why?" Brilliant men see the world around them and imagine all that could exist and ask themselves "why not?"

Vander Villanova Corvus

The greatest and noblest pleasure which men can have in this world is to discover new truths; and the next is to shake off old prejudices.

Fredrick the Great

Childer

• Adam Corvus
  

Vander Villanova Corvus

History

Mortal Life

1918 - Born in Terrytown, New York, the Bastard child of 17 year old Rebeca Corvus and some sailor his mother claims died during the war. Rumors about the true nature of his father were common and the subject of much talk among the haughty upper crust Corvus family. Some claimed it really was just a sailor, other suggested that he was the product of an incestuous relationship, and still others claim he was the son of a Rockefeller. This last one seemed to hold a fair amount of weight as neither Vander nor his mother ever found themselves wanting for money, no matter how bad economic times were. Despite his ignoble origins it soon became clear that the young boy was a bit of a prodigy. He possessed a knack for mathematics and pattern recognition, often reading more into things then some of his adult contemporaries thought was even possible. Many times he would be scolded for "making stuff up." or "telling lies about things he couldn't possibly know." but to Vander it was as plain as listening to the notes of a song and picking out the pattern. His scholastic career was set on the path to greatness by age 5 attending Eidith Baliey Preschool.. the Gateway to the Ivy Leagues. The Corvus Family is a blend of Italian, English and god knows what else, pure bred American mutts. Members of the family could (and on occasion did so loudly) trace their genealogy back to the Italian city states of Machiavelli's era. Some even claimed to have descended from roman senators. The truth of this was unverifiable and incidentally did not matter much to the empirically minded Vander.

1937 –Vander leaves to Attend Dartmouth College in Delaware. His Mother then accompanies her Uncle, Alonzo Corvus to handle some "family business" in the small East Coast town of Carcosa, Virgina.

1939 - Rebeca Corvus gets married to the vice president and heir to a small agricultural chemical company, Jacob Wellington.

1942- Vander Graduates from Dartmouth undergraduate program with a degree in Philosophy and a Minor in mathematics. At his mother's urging, he applies to several MBA graduate studies programs. Caught up in the rush of the Pearl Harbor attacks, Vanders signs up for officer training in the United States Army, Much to his mother’s horror.

1943 – Lt. Vander Corvus of the 273rd Regiment, U.S. Army’s II corps under the command of Major General Loyd Fredendall, ships out to Tunisia to battle the Nazi forces under the Command of Rommel. Vander arrives in time for the Battle of the Kasserine Pass. Losing over half his unit in two weeks, Vander sustains minor injuries and is hospitalized. He is assigned a fresh squad in time for Operation Husky. Under the Command of General Montgomery, Vander’s unit participates in the invasion of mainland Italy and the pressing of the southern offensive against the axis forces.

1944 – Lt. Corvus leads a platoon of men in the Anzio Beach landing, the second great debacle he is led into during his military career. He and his men spend 4 months under constant artillery fire and counter attacks. By the End of the year, he is promoted to 2nd Lt. and leads his men into Raveena, Italy but only a handful of his platoon survive.

1945 – As the War draws to a Close Vander Corvus is promoted to Captain, after three major battles and innumerable skirmishes, he and his surviving men are allowed to take up stations in Crete, providing ground support for the air men. Victory in Europe was the end of the line for Vander. He had served his country well, despite some how constantly ending up in the middle of the worst situations the European theater could throw at them and despite the massive casualties suffered at Anzio, his platoon had weathered better then most, partially due to Vander's meticulous attention to detail, and partially due to some pact he made with the devil. At least, that's what some of his men claimed. By the time he returned home to Carcosa, his patriotism has been used up, and he opted to spend a few months getting drunk and laid.

1946 – Vander enters Yale, Business school. Half heartedly Pursuing his MBA. His military record serves him in good stead. He becomes a member of several Elite fraternities, including the Masons, Kappa Sigma Phi, and The Iunctio Fortuna, a group of ceremonial sorcerers of relatively minor power. Of his experiences in Yale, he sites his time with the Iunctio as "The most educational," time in the university. Vander becomes learned in both the occult and minor mundane illusions (stage magic) as the Iuncito is as much about show as it is about substance. He takes to formalistic and hermetic practices of the Iuncito remarkably well. Within a year he begins an attempt to mathematically define the mystical forces of probability, however, he find science has not even remotely caught up to such efforts lacking any sort of meaningful symbolic analogs for his thoughts he reluctantly shelves the theory for a later time.

1948 – The Economic Boom in Carcosa Begins, Several members of the Corvus family have immigrated to Carcosa at this point. Uncle Alonzo's business ventures are panning out remarkably well. Vander takes a job working for his step father’s company, his passion remains his "patterns" and he continues to attend school in his off hours, studying physics, economics, psychology, anything that can help him make sense of the patterns. Despite his constant distraction with books, his punctual nature and attention to detail actually allow him to succeed at his job. He even gains some measure of popularity despite the obvious nepotism of his position, though many coworkers continue to insinuate they would be doing as well if their mommies were blowing the CEO. Vander finds himself sorely tempted to use his minor occult powers to fling some curses, but the concept of Karma and backlash convince him to stay his mystical hand. Instead he turns his rituals towards increasing his own prosperity.

1952 – Rebecca and Joseph Wellington are both killed in a tragic airplane accident. Vander, much to his surprise, inherits a small fortune as well at the controlling shares of the burgeoning research company. Unable to get a full grip of the delicacies of pure business, he turns to his grand uncle, Alonzo Corvus. Alonzo quickly sinks his claws into the company, for two years Vander is incredibly grateful for the help, that is, until he discovers that his shares are being eroded steadily. Alonzo was trying to screw him and for the first time since learning the trick, Vander Conjured magic out of anger, the curse was one of simple ill-fortune, typically it would, at most, wreck Alonzo's schemes to take control of the company and perhaps cause a few stubbed toes. This time, Vader poured every bit of focus into the spell he could muster. For the first time in his life, he laid a true curse, the moment he completed the casting he realized, it would be the end of them both.

1953 – Sofia Corvus had never paid a great deal of attention to Vander, preferring to leave the management of Corvus affairs in Carcosa to her ghoul, Alonzo. The death of Rebecca Wellington, however had not been an accident. Alonzo had engineered the "accident" though apparently it was only Jacaob he had been trying to kill. Rebeca Corvus's presence on the flight was an unexpected stroke of bad luck. Corvus do not kill other Corvus, Sofia had been very clear with Alonzo about that. On a typical night, her rage would have been tempered by her fondness for Alonzo, admiration for the smooth execution of his scheme and, of course, how well it would benefit her own personal interests. But the stars just didn't line up for Alonzo Corvus that night. If her mood hadn't been soured by the flooding of her laboratory when a pipe burst destroying weeks of careful work, if the reporter hadn't dug into Wellington's death on a hunch, if she hadn't read the dossier moments before Alonzo arrived, if he'd not been late due to a flat tire, if she'd just managed to keep her beast under control. A minute earlier or a minute later and it would have been fine, but a thousand little things built up over a year and came crashing together in perfect sync that September night. There wasn't enough of Alonzo left to Embrace.

1954 - "The Wyrms tail goes two ways." Sofia explained to her pupil and distant cousin, Vander. "There's the result and the source, and we track things both ways." She hadn't spent much time agonizing over Alonzo's death. Certainly she could sense with "the sight" that there was some mystical connection she wasn't seeing but she was well versed enough in the ways of the world to know that the odds of her discovering that connection were infinitesimal at best. Until that connection walked into her home, that is. She'd called him there seeking to replace Alonzo. Initially she had merely planned to ghoul the young bastard. Sofia had little love for the trollop Vander called a mother, and did little to disguise her disgust at his illegitimate origins. A few moments with him under her Revelation changed all that in a blink. The boy had "it." not that fancy other worldly crap the mage's threw around. But "it" the blend of Reason and Intuition, of science and occultism's, of fact and belief, that she recognized, valued, even to a point, envied. The boy could have the world, and of course, so then, could she. But a Blood Bond addled brain wasn't what she needed. The Great Work is ultimately one of self interest, he had to think of himself first if he were to succeed at breaking the bonds of the Curse. It was, naturally, Vander's own good fortune that Sofia had thought to put him under Revelation to begin with, his own good fortune that she'd called him at his prime, his own good fortune that let him take over Alonzo's holdings in the up and coming "security interests" in Carcosa, and of course, his own good fortune that got him killed.

It was, sadly, the last use of the ritual he would ever benefit from directly. The balance was paid, Alonzo's Death paid with Vanders.

1954 Jun 30th 12:32 PM Zulu Carcosa and the surrounding area are covered in a total solar eclipse. Vander emerges from his first "eclipse" liberated from mortality and burdened with the curse of undeath.

Kindred Life

1955 – Much to Sofia's dismay, upon his embrace Vander losses his minor mystical talents. She has him train a mortal girl in the arts of the Iuncito Fortuna with some measurable success however upon the girl becoming a ghoul, again the mystical talent is lost. Sofia is far more upset then Vander, who theorizes that there is some universal template of power, where by perception must compartmentalize magic or semi magical forces. He believes his previous state to have been a weakened one, despite the obvious advantages of being able to turn lead into gold. At Sofia's behest, He spends the first year of his embrace attempting to recreate the effects of his ceremonial magic via the blood, to absolutely no effect whatsoever. Despite her furry the Elder Ordo is determined to make good on that loss, which is minor compared to the Great Work anyway, and begins training her childer in the ways of the Order of Dracula and the legacy of the Corvus Ventrue.

1957 - Upon his release, Vander returns to Carcosa, his business has declined steadily in his absence and without his magic he finds himself continuously frustrated in his attempts to revive it. His mortal financial interest limp along and eventually Vander takes a crash course in Macro Economics. Vander finds the combination of mass psychology and mathematics surprisingly entertaining and introduces a few radical overhauls of the company's financial practices and managerial techniques. Then he opens the pesticide labs to doing Research for Running Creek. The government, never one to stop at half measures quickly presses Wellington Chemicals into becoming more entrenched in the military industrial complex. Vander attempts to balk at being pressed into what he knows is something his Stepfather would have seriously disliked. However, threats of investigating him for communist connections, (in the midst of the McCarthy era) finally convince him. Not that the investigation would have revealed anything even remotely communist, the exact opposite in fact, but with his recent embrace, Vander was terrified what would be revealed should such an inquest take place. Wellington Chemicals begins running in the black again. His secular concerns stabilized for now, he turns back to his mystic studies, given his lowly station within the Ordo this is relatively slow.

1960-1973 – Vander enters the fray of Carcosa Kindred politics, conducting himself with a quiet certainty and self assurance that does little to raise any eyebrows one way or another. He attends midnight mass and keeps a rather respectful if slightly patronizing attitude towards the Lancea’s Praxis. Within the Ordo Dracul, Vander takes to the role of "slave" like a duck to concrete. Initially, he is insufferable in his constant distractions. He always does what he is asked/told by superior Dragons with little complaint but his almost ADD lack of focus drives his would be instructors to madness and petition. One moment he will be discussing the theoretical aspects of "the Hedge" and the next moment he will turn the topic to the Minima nuclear properties of Iron as if the connection flowed naturally. He absorbs every book on any topic he can get his hand on, though in some cases he stops a few pages into it and puts the book away never to give it another glance. Advances in quantum mechanics become more commonly known in academic circles and Vander uses the information to revive his old mortal theory of quantitative systemic analysis of magik, or "Quantum Mystics" as he calls it with a chuckle. (He thinks it's funny and that's what counts)

His first measurable success in charting the vampiric state is the analysis of the amount of "mystic energy" contained within his blood. After feeding to full, he begins to "burn" his blood an simply count the number of effects that can be generated. The course of the experiment lasts for 4 months, during which he descends into torpor for a week on 3 separate occasions. He creates, his first paper in the Ordo in 1969 detailing the discrete mystical power contained within vampiric vitae.

1976 - Vander is pulled back into secular matters when he notices a pattern of economic decline within the Carcosa economy. He attempts to engage the local politicians, warning that their continued growth requires a disproportionate amount of incoming business, and that the workers needed to be kept busy lest they end up costing the city more then they produce. His efforts are, for the most part, futile and he begins to batten down hatches, giving his employees raises, health care, maternity leave, company housing and anything else he can think of to keep them from A: Rebelling and B: Unionizing. The Ploy is successful and Wellington Chemicals employees and the construction crews become increasingly, even fanatically loyal as economic crisis begins to reach disastrous levels. Vander’s personal fortune does not survive this gambit. The gamble being that when the smoke clears, he’ll be in a position to recoup.

1977 – One of the other members of the Corvus family native to Carcosa, Adam Corvus, Graduates from Yale Law School. The now heavily leveraged Vander finds himself basically homeless. His studies in the Ordo are leaving no time for dealing with this economic crap.

Impressed with Adam's Business acumen and personable nature, Vander feels it is in both Adam's and his own best interest to protect the boy from the plague ravaging Carcosa. Unwilling to crush such a valuable mind beneath the weight of ghouldom, Vander opts instead to continue the legacy of the Corvus Ventrue. Adam agrees and is embraced into line quickly becoming and indispensable asset to Vander's minor machinations.

1978 - Still merely a slave within the Ordo Dracul, Vander is privy to several hushed conversations involving the Morbus. His initial disgust overrides his academic curiosity, a mark against him in his mentor’s eyes. His progress in the coils is delayed therefore and Vander is assigned the menial task of helping compile information on the Morbus in lieu of progressing in his own studies.

Vander uses Wellington Chemical’s tax shelters to begin subsidizing “Free clinics” in the poorer areas of the Barrens. Other kindred either ignore this or find it laughable. Vander begins using the clinics to statistically chart the outbreaks of diseases, compiling data and narrowing the search on the plague dogs.

Attempts to make academic contact with some of the other supernatural elements, partially out of standard curiosity but also wishing to pointedly collect some inteligence on the beings that share the night. The results do not progress well. The Mages at this time rebuff him, answering none of his cryptic messages left in Occult books stores. The only mage he has a pleasure of a "Face to Face" with is is one of the Interfectors. Whether or not the black robbed figure was actually attacking or simply gesturing when it waved in his direction, Vander didn't stop to find out.

1979 - Vander’s dislike of the Consilum grows as his friend and minor rival Quintin Tallon is slain(?) by a “black robed” mage. Vander’s studies for the Ordo eclipse his mortal concerns and Wellington Chemicals profits begin to suffer. His series of free clinics combined with the official health services statistics throughout the city begin to yield results and he is able to statistically narrow down search areas for the Morbus. The same health data begins to reveal a pattern of altered mental health, not related to the Morbus plague. Vander begins to chart these areas and discovers that they tend to appear in Avenue's or Lines.

Later that year the Interfectors come close to killing his prized Childer. Unnerved, Vander redoubles his efforts to end the plague and bring a halt to the Interfector attacks.

1980 – Adam Corvus is released, though without any prince to release him too, this is more, symbolic then official.

1981 – Vander learns his first coil, finally gaining standing within the Ordo Dracul. Adam is Introduced to Jurgens thus officially “releasing” him. In celebration of gaining some status, and the release of his childer, he allows himself to relax for the first time in nearly three decades. He becomes romantically involved with an Invictus Daeva, Josephine Blackwell-Finch. The affair is torrid and highly romantic against the backdrop of tragedy, burning brightly in the midst of the conflict occurring in the city. The two of them begin concocting plans to launch dynasties after the dust settles. However, a little over a year into it, by some unspoken accord, they simply drift apart.

1983 - Attempts to find some contact within the werewolf community, to see if they too are being bossed around by mages or suffering from plagues. His hope that the charitable clinics within Little Italy and Cabbagetown would earn him some measure of good will. He learns differently. The actual details of the encounter is never revealed but it is obvious that he loses at least one retainer, his car is totaled, and his temperament is not particularly cheery.

1984 - The second to last of the “free clinics” shuts down. Leaving only the highly understaffed one in Old town to watch for further epidemics. The Death of Jurgens does not affect Vander or Corvus interests one way or another. He happily keeps his childe out of harms way and busies himself with his attempts to chart the ley lines of the city.

1987 – The Demands by the Consilium again do not directly impact Corvus interests, having already moved into Ecclesia. The gall of being forced into “Warsaw Ghettoes” by a bunch of “Goose stepping, finger wigglers” Irritates Vander greatly. Fortunately, everyone is too busy freaking out to pay attention to his little rant.

1990 – Achieves his most "successful" contact with another supernatural element. The Arcadians do not attempt to kill him, or eat him. They just avoid him like the plague. Eventually one of them, (or an agent working on their behalf Vander can't tell) approaches him long enough explain they weren't interested and he should leave them alone. The agent then left without threat or allowing offer of rebuttal. Since they are the only group to not directly threaten him, Vander marks them down as the least "bad" of the "others."

1993 - Unable to put forth the effort to disguise his “condition” from his employee’s any longer, Vander retires as CEO of Wellington Chemicals. In his farewell he outlays a plan of bringing the company into the new century as more then a simple cog in the military industrial complex. He names Gerrard Kepler as his successor, and promptly ghouls the man. Wellington Chemicals having absorbs two other nearly defunct companies companies, including a pharmaceutical enterprise, and a small “legitimate” security firm, changes it’s name to The Advent Corporation With appropriate delegation put into place, Vander turns his attention fully towards the pursuit of his next coil. Under Kepler's management The Advent Corporation stabilizes breaking even.

1995 – Having charted a number of theoretical ley line cross sections, Vander put forth the theory that ley lines, wyrms nests (some of them at least) and ghosts are all related to a ether like substance which is impressionable to human (or other) emotions. In theory, when a human dies the electro magnetic pattern of their emotions imprints on the surroundings and if the area has this "energy" the spirit can become trapped by it's own emotional power. He sites that the ley lines are flows of emotionally sensitive force which can be tapped into and perhaps even controlled. Now firmly ensconced in the psudo-science methodology, the more "hard science" Ordo take him even less seriously. To prove his point, Undertakes an experiment to design a Geomantic structure capable of both creating, harnessing and controlling human emotional energy. With the help of Adam Corvus, Vander procures one of the ley line intersections in Ecclesia and with the artistic help of Ivy begins construction of Eden by the end of the year.

Recent History

1998 – Vander remains helpfully neutral to all sides during the infighting. Finding little of importance in the political maneuvering unless they threaten his studies or his family. The Eden Club is declared “safe ground” by his personal decree and backed up by his childe. As such the location is used as neutral meeting ground for rival factions. Only one kindred violates this decree purposefully, An Unaligned nomad named Casey Rice.

2000 – After overfeeding occurs in Hanover Wards, Vander hits on an idea and has Kepler approach the city and offer to contract out to investigate health and environmental concerns. Some still remember the outcry of the epidemic in the 70’s and the Council agrees to a trial period. The privately contracted firm sets about concocting an entire media spin of contaminated shell fish, complete with falsified research reports, data, affidavits and even producing one of the contaminated “shipments.” The effects of the overfeeding wear off.

2001 - Completes more coil work and begins to strengthen the Geomantic potential of his pet project. The Ordo Dracul, having often derided Vander for his secular leanings and his concern with money distracting him from "The Great Work" all get to munch a little crow as financial times become strained yet again. Fearing they will once again lose their chapter house, Vander uses his oft derided business skills to ensure they have an accessible and safe Academy.

2004 - Today– A generalist and dilettante, there is little in the way of technology, psudo science, mysticism, business, physics and even psychology, Vander hasn't stuck his nose into at one point or another. A true technocrat at heart he has embraced the concept of the "Digital Dragon" and run with it screaming (figuratively). He continues to shift between various projects including The Advent Corporation, his Coil work, alchemy, the Eden Club, carefully and diligently pushing it all forward. In 2004 he, enters and Agreement with Kien Zhao and is Granted the domain of Oceanfront.

Rumors at Game Start

(True or False? You decide.)

• Vander has apparently little to no prejudice against any particular group of Kindred save the Lancea Sanctum. He's been in Bed with an Invictus, in Business with a Crone and has a Carthian for a Childe.

• Vander occasionally sallies into other territories with his survey equipment, crystals, dodads, fake-O-Meters and other ubran safari gear. He doesn't always return with it in one piece, sometimes he doesn't return in one piece

• Vander once blew the side off his own chapter house while experimenting with "explosive enhancing effects of Vitae"

• Someone once violated his personal little "Elysium" thing and ended up staked, dismembered and mailed to AbuDahbi.

• Vander has Morbus captured by his little fake evil corporation and is working with the government weapons developers at Running Creek to weaponize the bastards.

• Vander Swore a blood-oath to the Invictus for the ruler-ship of Oceanfront.

• Vander has an "agreement" with Sunshine Adams and it's really Sunshine that runs Oceanfront.

• Vander is a Dragon's Dragon, never being direct where a riddle will work better, and often employing puns and figures of speech to disguise literal truths. Despite that, for those that take the time to actually listen and think, he can be a surprisingly forth coming source of information.

Images

Cape Haven	Formal Court Mask	Social Court Mask	Dragon Tree Plant
Replica? of Merovingian Gold, Cerca 620 AD.