The Daennos are typically human characters who are essentially the wildcards of fate. They appear at important moments in history, becoming catalysts for change. They have close ties with many of the supernatural and are a good background for Ravnos vampires or Silent Strider werewolves.
Outcasts in the mortal world, they wander between cities and countries in their own world, only interacting with Gaje when there is something of benefit for them to gain. They are called the Daennos, or Daennosi in singular form. Historically they have ties with the Romani of the old world, having borrowed heavily from their languages and cultural practices, in part, however they are not an ethnicity per se, having descended from one common ancestor they have since spread out and permeated every race and ethnicity with their bloodline and they typically function as a "found" community, of sorts. As the Blood of their common ancestor dilutes over the milennia, it awakens less and less, but for those that it does - it is transformative. These people find themselves to be restless, yearning for the open road, repelled by large urban locales. In the old days, this aligned them with the Romani cultures of eastern Europe but since the 20th century they have become more comparable to the quinnessential vagabond homeless, wandering the world in their cars, jumping trains etc. moving from enclave to enclave of homeless communities both within and outside of typical urban centres. It is within these communities that the Daennos find one another, drawn as they are to the Blood of their own, with whom they share the oral history and magic of their ancestors.
The Daennos believe they have a destiny and are protected by fate itself and rarely if ever give up the secret workings of their ways to outsiders. They prefer to travel, despite pressures from the gaje to "get off the streets" and whilst some do, the Daennos tend to return to their travels sooner or later, especially the younger generations.
The Daennos came about with the exodus of Daenna from the Ivory City, thousands of years ago, when she was secreted away with the last remaining seeds of the Tree of Knowledge, which her husband had created - the fruit of which gave Daenna's blood and the blood of all Daennos descended from her, great power. The fruit was made to remove Daenna’s husband’s constant thirst for blood, for he was a Shilmulo. He believed it would also give him greater powers still. But they were betrayed and parted ever after. It is the blood of Daenna that makes the gaje distrust or hate the Daennos, as they are able to subconsciously sense a Daennosi’s unnatural otherness.
The Daennos come from every and any background, their Blood potentially awakening at any moment, pulling them out of an otherwise rooted existence. For this reason they have always found solace amongst the homeless, drawn into the vagabond lifestyle of the open road. Despite their myriad origins, and some are even born into the nomadic community, the Daennosi do have families of an adopted sort, which any newly "awoken" Daennosi may be invited to join.
Over the centuries the Daennosi families have fought more and more, but they always consider each other with respect unlike the gaje. In the end, Daennosi are all family, alone against the world. There has been no single leader of the Daennos since Daenna first brought them into the world but the head of each family within each community is called the daebaro (male) or daebara (female), and the many leaders within each family often stay in contact with each other. Whether born or adopted into one of the families, it is traditional to take their name, and marriage within the family is common, given the diaspora of their gene pool.
Much of the knowledge about the Daennos' true origins has been lost over the centuries with only a few of their people truly knowing much about their past, and the supernatural at large. In fact, the purer the bloodline, the more innately aware of their power they are and more accepting of the world of darkness..
There are many Daennosi families ranging in size from as little as twenty people to a few thousand. The families are resourceful, creative, brave and ingenious. They are not materialists by nature, scavenging, recycling or making what they need, living in the present and not worrying about tomorrow or holding onto wealth.
As well as the magic of Daenna’s blood, she also passed on the seeds of the Tree of Knowledge to her great-granddaughter Evania, Daenna said there would come a time when the guardians of these seeds would know how they were to be used. Many Daennos who know of the seeds believe this will happen in the coming Convergence, a changing of the ages, when the five seeds will be reunited and split open to form the second Tree of Knowledge and reunify the spirit and body of the world which were falsely split apart aeons ago.
Legends say that one seed each is held by each of the five great families, though by whom is unknown, if the stories are true at all. Though rumours persist that the Tsurara Family are hunting down all the guardians of the seeds so that they can reunite them themselves, and affect the outcome of the Convergence. And thereby control the destiny of the world.
Many Daennos believe the Tsurara family to be marhime (impure) due to their violent nature but the Tsurara believe the time has passed for the other families and that they are the sharp blade of the Daennos’ destiny.
In general, the Daennos families intermingle, within their enclaves or on the open road, but smaller communities tend to only host one or two permenant families within the communities. The Daennos are often simply mistaken for the typically homeless and treated thus.
It is believed some mages are aware of the seeds as are the Inconnu vampire clan. But it is said the seeds are too dangerous for anyone but a Daennosi to touch, for those without the Blood would be cursed..
The Daennos in particular, are about cleansing themselves, and to become forever contaminated is considered an awful curse. A Daennosi will always cleanse themselves ritually before returning to family from a time away. Meanwhile, the Gangrel vampires are said to watch over and sometimes protect the Daennos in their territories, due to an ancient agreement between their two peoples, after a Daennosi rescued one of their elders, selflessly.
When initiated into one of the families, an initiate is sometimes claimed by one of the elements in a "birth reading". If this happens they are thereafter trained in compatible skills. Some Daennos have their Blood awoken early in life, with the Phuri Dae only accepting such children into their family, where they are purposefully tested for magical attunement with the elements. The Daennos can have other powers such as telekinesis or astral travelling but these are not as a result of the Blood and thus they cannot be enhanced by a gathering of the Daennos.
Should a Daennosi ever be turned into a shilmulo, they will lose all connection to the Blood of Daenna. They will be stripped of their blood affinities, unless they become one of the Ravnos, in which case their powers will become dormant, awoken only by the consumption of Daennosi blood. Whilst other vampires may manifest these abilities, upon consuming the Blood, they would be uncontrollable, the Ravnos by comparison still have their memories, the knowledge of how to use the Blood of Daenna.
Becoming one of the Shilmulo is deeply traumatic for a Daennosi, as they lose their connection to the Blood, but it is especially so for any with magical abilities. For a Ravnos vampire, this is another reason they stay close to their family, to be able to retain that connection to the Blood by feeding. Other families will do everything in their power to prevent themselves from becoming part of a “Daennosi Herd”. They also protect them from the predation of Nosferatu and Gangrel vampires, as they pass through cities and the open road alike.
This family is intertwined with the Ravnos vampire clan, with Daennosi and vampire living and socialising frequently. New vampires are typically chosen from the Ravnos Daennos.
This family is intertwined with the Silent Striders lupine clan, with the Daennos and Garou living and socialising frequently. New Garou are typically chosen from the Silent Strider Daennos, who are very protective of them. The Silent Striders also keep themselves aloof from the other lupine clans due to this double loyalty. It is believed Daenna's brother, Sarrath, was one of the first in the clan.
A highly reclusive family intertwined with the Fae, they assist them whenever they can and often seek them out and are said to have interbred with the Fae. Urmen families often vanish for decades into the Dreaming only to reappear unaged.
Guardians of their history, this family are the unfailing knowledge keepers of the the Daennos past. They are the greatest seers, connecting with the world of the dead and know much about the supernatural and the Daennos destiny.
They are hunters of the supernatural as well as anything else that might threaten the Daennos. They are radical and violent, being one of the smallest families.
The Daennosi that guards this seed can perceive all truths, no lie can blind them. Any gaje that holds the seed though has the opposite perception. They become a paranoid schizophrenic believing only lies and fantasy.
The guardian of this seed, if they are of the Daennos, they can hold any knowledge they learn, which they will never forget. But a gaje will become obsessed with an endeavour and be unable to stop.
The guardian of this seed, if Daennosi, perceives all evils and injustices. But in the hand of a gaje, they become a homicidal maniac that will kill anyone that gets in the way of their own goals. It is said Daeanna gave this seed to her brother, Sarrath, who pursued all those who harmed Gaia.
The guardian of this seed, if Daennosi, can perceive their true selves, and limits of their capabilities. But a gaje who holds it will become self-obsessed with their own worth and pride, believing themselves a God.
The Daennosi guardian of this seed perceives the true value of all people and objects. But in the hands of a gaje they become obsessed with greed, ultimately abandoning all people for possessions.
An Element can only be chosen during character creation and costs seven freebie points, and they can only be claimed by one element. Daennos with an Element gain one point extra in Blood Affinity, even if the total is higher than their Blood Purity score.
Earth Daennos are good at manipulating devices and physical tasks. They are also good at recognising and manipulating patterns. They May choose from following Blood Affinities: Instinct or a Draba form of Daennosi magic. They may at any time spend two points of Willpower to heal or fix one level of damage whether living creatures or machines but it requires an entire turn.
Air Daennos are tend towards thievery, gambling and con-artistry by and large, slipping in and out of gaje cities with their spoils. They may choose from following Blood Affinities: Luck or Truth of the Daennos. They may also spend two points of Willpower to negate any success of an opponent (living or mechanical).
Fire Daennos are typically warriors and protectors. They have the affinity known as Dance of Knives and may at any time spend two points of Willpower to ignore two Wound levels, even if they should be incapacitated but they can still die. They can also still spend as much Willpower as they want, lasting the whole scene.
Water Daennos are often masters of words and body and are typically performers. They May choose from the following Affinities: Truth of the Daennos or Zapaderin. They may at any time spend two points of Willpower to decrease the effective Willpower of a gaje watching or listening to them by one point. This is a general effect, affecting all their rolls for the entire scene.
Spirit Daennos are the rarest kind with long memories and a talent for knowing things thanks to their strong Blood. They understand human nature and its consequences intimately. They may choose their special Affinity from any of the four types of Daennosi magic.
They may at any time spend two points of Willpower to temporarily increase their skill in any form of magic by one point, lasting the entire scene - even if above their Blood Purity level. The effect is not cumulative but they can use another two points of Willpower to increase another form of magic if they have one, during the scene.