The Lexicon is divided into 4 sections.

Common - This section is the common section. Most Kindred are likeley to be familiar with these terms.

Old Form - The elders typically use these turns of phrase, which have existed since long before the modern nights. One is advised to use these words carefully - in some company, their use may be seen as humorously anachronistic, while in the company anarchs, for example, they may be misconstrued as the elders' propaganda.

Vulgar Argot - These terms are slang, the modern equivalent of older turns of phrase, which have fallen out of favour due to their association with the elder ranks. These words carry great connotation, as they are associated with the younger Kindred, who seek to establish their own vampiric cultures.

Seattle Slang - Though the three above catagories are generally seperated by age, each domain has it's own unique slang for certain regions, events and other unique situations, and Seattle is no exception. The evolution of the slang in the Emerald Domain is never complete, and this information will be updated to reflect that continuous um... growth.

Anarch: A Kindred rebel who opposes the tyranny of elders. Anarchs wish to redistribute the wealth and resources of a city equitably among the vampires therein. Naturally, the elders oppose this, having cultivated their influence for centuries.

Antitribu: Literally "anti-tribe" or "anti-clan". The antitribu are vampires who have turned their backs on their "parent" clans and now follow the policies of the Sabbat instead. One exception to this rule is the Lasombra antitribu, who have abandoned the Sabbat in favour of independent or Camarilla unlives. Antitribu are generally held in extremely low regard by their parent clans, which is especially true in the case of the Lasombra.

Barrens, The: Areas of a city unfit for life, including graveyards, abandoned buildings, industrial wastelands and areas of irreversible urban blight.

Becoming, The: The moment one passes from being a fledgling into "full" vampire status within the Camarilla. One may not Become until her sire deems her ready and gains the prince's approval.

Beast, The: The drives and urges that threaten to turn a vampire into a mindless, ravening monster.

Book of Nod, The: A loose collection of Kindred legendry and history. The Book of Nod chronicles the origin of the Kindred, though it has never been published in its entirety. Fragments of the document and many partial transcriptions circulate in Kindred society. They are highly coveted, and exceedingly rare. Among the younger vampires many either do not know of it, or believes it to be myth.

Blood: A vampire's heritage; that which makes a vampire a vampire.

Blood Bond: A mystical power over another individual engendered by partaking of a particular vampire's blood thrice; accepting blood from a vampire is an acknowledgement of her mastery.

Cainite: A vampire. Sabbat vampires use this term in places where other vampires would use the term Kindred. Sabbat vampires accept and claim descent from Caine, while the Camarilla largely claims him to be a myth.

Caitiff: A vampire of unknown clan, or of no clan at all. Caitiffs are typically of high generation, where Caine's blood dilutes too greatly to pass any consistent characteristics.

Camarilla, The: A sect of vampires devoted primarily to maintaining the Traditions, particularly that of the Masquerade.

Childe: Term used for one of a vampire's fledglings. See Sire.

Clan: A group of vampires who share common characteristics passed on by the Blood. There are 13 known clans, all of which were supposedly founded by members of the Third Generation.

Convention of Thorns: The treaty that supposedly ended the Anarch Revolt and resulted in the formation of the Sabbat.

Coterie: A small group or "pack" of Kindred, united by the need for support and sometimes common interests.

Diablerie: The consuming of another Kindred's blood, to the point of the victim's Final Death, and then consuming the victims soul. Vampires of high generation may lower their generation, and gain mystical powers through this practice; particularly old Kindred have such rarefied tastes that mortal blood no longer sustains them, and they must consume vampire blood.

Domain: An area of a particular vampire's influence. Princes claim entire cities as their domains, sometimes allowing lesser vampires to claim domain within.

Elder: A vampire who has experienced three or more centuries of unlife. Elders are the most active participants in the Jyhad.

Elysium: A place where vampires may gather and interact without fear of harm. Elysium is commonly established in opera houses, theatres, museums and other locations of culture. A thing of the Camarilla.

Embrace, The: The act of transforming a mortal into a vampire. The Embrace requires the vampire to drain her victim and then replace that victim's blood with a bit of her own.

Fledgling: A newly created vampire, still under her sire's protection.

Generation: The number of "steps" between a vampire and the mythical Caine; how far descended from the First Vampire a given vampire is.

Gehenna: The imminent Armageddon when the Antediluvians will rise from their torpor and devour the race of Kindred and the world.

Ghoul: A mortal who has been fed the blood of a vampire, although not drained, thereby remaining mortal, but gaining the Blood Bond. Ghouls are very useful as servants, as they gain certain benfits from the blood, without losing their mortality, and ability to walk in the sun. With a steady supply of vampire vitae, Ghouls may live several centuries, maybe even forever. They may also develop Disciplines to a limited degree.

Great Jyhad: The war for supremacy in the New World, begun in the 17th century and arguably raging during the modern nights.

Haven: A vampire's "home"; where she finds sanctuary from the sun.

Inconnu: A sect of vampires who have removed themselves from Kindred concerns and, largely, the Jyhad. Many Methuselahs are rumoured to exist among the Inconnu.

Jyhad: The eternal Conflict with other vampires. A secret self-destructive war waged between the generations. Elder vampires manipulate their lessers, using them as pawns in a terrible game whose rules defy comprehension. Sabbat vampires use the term more loosely than other vampires, because almost all struggle is a holy war from the Sabbat point of view. In his mind, a Sabbat takes part in the Jyhad any time he fights.

Kindred: The race of vampires as a whole, or a single vampire. According to rumor, this term came about in the 15th or 16th century, after the great Anarch Revolt. Sabbat vampires use this term to signify non-Sabbat vampires. Most Sabbat use this term scornfully, considering Camarilla vampires to be their inferior and laughing at their "big, happy family" of vampires who cower from humankind. Many Sabbat also apply the term "Kindred" sarcastically to vampires of independent clans, whom they perceive as too selfish or foolish to take up the cause against the Antediluvians.

Kiss, The: To drink blood, especially from a mortal. The Kiss causes feeling of ecstasy in those who receive it.

Lupine: A werewolf, the natural and mortal enemy of the vampire race.

Lush: A vampire who typically feeds from drugged or drunk mortals in order to experience their intoxication.

Life, The: A euphemism for mortal blood. Many Kindred regard this term as affected and effete.

Man, The: The element of humanity that a vampire maintains; the spark of mortality that distinguishes him from the Beast.

Masquerade, The: The habit (or Tradition) of hiding the existence of vampires from humanity. Designed to protect the Kindred from destruction at the hands of mankind, the Masquerade was adopted after the Inquisition claimed many Kindred unlives. Upheld by the Sabbat to a lesser extent than the Camarilla, due to Sabbat beliefs (the only reason they even bother is because they recognise humanity as a threat to their existence, should they find out about it).

Monomacy: A ritual duel between vampires of the Sabbat, held under formal rules. This duel is a traditional Sabbat means of settling disputes, and it often results in the Final Death of one of the participants.

Path of Enlightenment: A belief system followed by the more alien members of the Kindred in place of Humanity. Paths of Enlightenment are moral codes that serve to anchor the Sabbat against her ravening Beast, though some paths encourage "riding" the Beast rather than controlling it.

Prince: A vampire who has claimed a given expanse of domain as her own, particularly a city, and supports that claim against all others. The term can refer to Kindred of either sex.

Rogue: A vampire who feeds upon the vitae of other Kindred, out of necessity or depravity.

Sabbat: 1. The vampiric sect that opposes the Camarilla and the machinations of the Antediluvians. 2. A vampire belonging to the sect. 3. A group of vampire belonging to the sect.

Sabbat, The: A sect of vampires that rejects humanity, embracing their monstrous natures. The Sabbat is bestial and violent, preferring to lord over mortals rather than hide from them.

Sire: A vampire's "parent"; the Kindred who created her.

Vessel: A source of vitae from substance or pleasure, primarily mortal.

Amaranth: The act of consuming another Kindred's blood (q.v. Diablerie).

Ancilla: A "proven" vampire; one who is no longer a neonate, but is also not an elder.

Angelis Ater: The "black angels" of the Sabbat, most often of Clan Lasombra, often young vampires who embrace the stereotypical shallow evils of the modern night in blatant attempts to become monsters.

Antediluvian: A member of the dreaded Third Generation, one of the eldest Kindred in existence.

Archon: A vampire in the service of a justicar. Archons are generally nomadic in nature, frequently pursuing the Kindred who have fled to avoid persecution at the hands of the Camarilla.

Autarkis: A Kindred who remains outside the larger vampire society of a given city and often refuses to acknowledge the claim of the prince.

Blood Oath: see blood bond (vide).

Canaille: The bovine masses of humanity, especially the uncultured and unsavoury. The Canaille are viewed primarily as a source of sustenance.

Cauchemar: A vampire who feeds exclusively on sleeping victims.

Consanguineous: Literally "of the same blood," especially with reference to linage. Usage: Christof is consanguineous of Ecaterina the Wise, her childe.

Cunctator: A vampire who avoids killing when delivering the Kiss; one who takes so little blood as to avoid brining about her prey's death.

Domitor: A ghoul's master; one who feeds her blood and issues her commands.

Footpad: One who feeds from derelicts and other chaff of society. Footpads are frequently debased and may not maintain permanent havens.

Gentry: A Kindred who preys at nightclubs, bars and other establishments of the "red-light district", where mortals engage in reverie.

Golconda: A fabled state of vampire transcendence; the true mastery of the Beast and balance of opposing the urges and principles. Rumoured to be similar to mortal Nirvana, Golconda is greatly touted but rarely achieved.

Humanitas: The extent to which a Kindred still maintains her humanity.

Kine: A term for mortals, largely contemptuous. The phrase Kindred and Kine refers to the world at large; everything.

Leech: A human who drinks vampire blood, yet acknowledges no master.

Lextalionis: The code of the Kindred and the system for punishing transgression. It suggests Hammurabian or Biblical justice - an eye for an eye, and punishment in keeping with the grievance.

Lineage: A vampire's bloodline; the Kindred's sire, sire's sire. Etc.

Methuselah: A vampire who has existed for a millennium or more; an elder who no longer exists among the greater whole of Kindred society. Methuselah are rumoured to hail from the Fourth and Fifth Generations.

Neonate: A young Kindred, recently Embraced.

Osiris: A vampire who builds a mortal cult around himself, in the interests of gaining sustenance. As the millennium approaches and passes, Osiris cults become increasingly common.

Papillon: The red-light district; the area of town punctuated by drinking establishments, brothels, gambling houses and other locals of ill repute. The prime hunting grounds of a city, where the disappearance of mortals goes hand in hand with the area's general seediness.

Progeny: All of a given vampire's childer, collectively. Less formal, and less flattering, is Get.

Praxis: The right of princes to govern; the prince's claim to domain. This term also refers to the prince's matters of policy and individual edicts and motions.

Primogen: The leaders in a given city; its ruling body of elders, typically composed of one member from each clan present in a city.

Regnant: A Kindred who holds blood bond over another.

Retainer: A human who serves a vampiric master. This term is almost archaic, referring to a time when vampires kept vast entourages of mortal servants as part of their estates.

Revenants: Individuals who are born as ghouls. Revenants are families of ghouls that have existed for so long with the blood of their undead masters in their veins that it now passes on to each of their descendants as well. The vampires of Clan Tzimisce seem to use revenants most often, and others who know of their natures often hold them in suspicion.

Shakari: The eldest vampires among the Assamite antitribu

Sword of Caine: The Sabbat.

Siren: A vampire who seduces mortals in order to drink from them, and then only takes a small quantity of blood, so as to avoid killing them.

Suspire: The rumoured epiphany experienced just prior to the attainment of Golconda.

Third Mortal: Caine, who was cast out and became the First Vampire.

Thrall: A vampire under the effects of a blood bond, having drunk another kindred's blood thrice.

Vitae: Blood.

Whelp: A derogatory term for a young Kindred, originally used with exclusive reference to one's own progeny. Wight: Human; man; a mortal.

Witch-hunter: A mortal who searches out and destroys vampires.

Whig: A contemptuous term for a vampire who possesses an interest in mortal trends and fashions.

Alleycat: A vampire who keeps no permanent haven, but sleeps in a different location each night. This term also refers to Kindred who feed exclusively from the homeless, vagrants and other elements of low society.

Banking: The practice of "withdrawing" blood from blood banks and hospital reserves. This blood has little taste, though it will sustain a vampire, and elder Kindred eschew this base indulgence. Kindred who engages in this practice is known as a Banker.

Blister: A vampire "Typhoid Mary" who contracts a mortal disease and spreads it to each vessel upon whom he feeds.

Bloodline: A vampire's heritage (q.v. Lineage).

Blood Doll: A mortal who freely gives her blood to a vampire. Most blood dolls gain a perverse satisfaction from the Kiss, and actively seek out vampires who will take their vitae.

Butterfly: One who mingles among the mortal high-society element and feeds exclusively from the famous and wealthy.

Casanova: See siren.

Change, The: The moment an individual ceases to a mortal and becomes one of the Kindred.

Damned, The: The race of Kindred; all vampires.

Dog: A Lupine. In certain circles, dog also means an infectious carrier of blood-borne diseases (short for plague dog). Is sometimes slang for a Gangrel.

Donor: A sarcastic term for a vessel, typically human.

Farmer: A term of mockery for vampires who refuse to feed on human blood, instead taking sustenance from animals.

Fief: A sarcastic term for a vampire's domain or claim thereof, most commonly used in reference to a prince.

Head: A Kindred who feeds upon those who have imbibed alcohol or drugs, so as to vicariously experience the same sensations. Those Kindred who prefer individual drugs have their "poison" prefixed to the term head (e.g., crackhead, dopehead, smackhead).

Headache: Accidentally killing while feeding. Usage: Eric gave that skinny girl a headache

Headhunter: A vampire who hunts and feeds from other Kindred. (q.v. Rogue).

Juice: Blood.

Juice bag: A contemptuous term for mortals, indication that their sole use is sustenance. Even more irreverent is the term Bag.

Lick: A vampire; one of the race of the Kindred.

Pipes: An exceptional failure, or an object of derision. Usage: That scouting run you guys did was the pipes.

Poet: A member of the goth subculture, especially one who "dresses like a vampire". Also known as Shelleys or Byrons.

Rack, The: The hunting ground of choice, including bars, nightclubs, drug dens, whorehouses and other bacchanalian locales, where mortals go missing all the time (q.v. Papillon).

Rake: A habitual visitor to the Rack, especially in the interest of feeding (q.v. Gentry).

Sandman: A vampire who feeds upon sleeping victims only.

Shovelhead: A Sabbat vampire created during a siege or other event that necessitated the "quick and dirty" mass Embrace. Also known as Thwack or Clang (after the sound a shovel makes, presumably), which is sometimes used as a verb.

Slumming: The practice of feeding from derelics, the homeless and other dregs of society; one who does this regularly is known as a Slummer.

Stalker: A mortal who hunts down and destroys Kindred (q.v. Which-Hunter).

Tease: A term for a female Casanova (vide).

Turf: A modern affectation used in reference to a domain; it may also refer to the area under a given gang's influence.

V: A vampire.

Vegetary: A term of contempt for one who drinks exclusively from animals (q.v. Farmer).

Witch: Irrelevant term for a Sabbat pack priest, best used out of earshot of the individual in question.

The Abandoned Warehouse District (SEE SODO)

The Aroma From Tacoma: The plume of pollution that historically emanated from Tacoma due to its pulp mills and the ASARCO copper smelter. Also a derogatory term for the Nosferatu domain, both under Seattle and during a period when they claimed control of the Tacoma area.

The Ave: University Way.

Ave Rats: Homeless youths in the University District. Called such by 'discerning' Kindred becase of thier notoriously slim amount of blood, which is often of low quality.

The Ban Roll-On Building: The Second and Seneca Building, a skyscraper downtown which once housed the Nosferatu Elysium under former Nosferatu Prince Calebros, across from the Washington Mutual Building, with a round translucent blue-green top that looks like the top of a Ban Roll-On deoderant. Sometimes also referred to as "The Radioactive Roll-On Building," due to the appearance of its iridescent lighted blue top at night.

The Bank: Puget Sound Blood Center. The largest blood supplier in the Northwestern United States.

Batcaver: Refers to the Batcave, which was a punk club in London where the English goth scene started. Goth and 'gothlike' denizens of Seattle, which are often prime hunting targets for Kindred in the Rack.

Battle of the Bands: A short-lived, but peculiarly Northwest phenomenon from the mid-60's put on by the local Brujah. The idea was to have two bands at an all-city dance, each with their own stage, and have them battle it out, alternating songs, rather than sets. The loudest band won. Also tended to break out into an all-out melee, sort of an all-city rumble, so, didn't last long, unfortunately. City authorities backed by local Ventrue banned the all-city dances (which were the only ones that could afford to both erect two stages and hire two feature bands).

The Battle in Seattle: A descriptive term for the WTO protest brouhaha at the start of December, 1999. For a running commentary and description of events on those days, see First-Hand Report on Events in Seattle. Rumored to have been an escalation caused by Brujah protesting the Ventrue domination of dockside trade in Seattle at the time.

Belltown: Was originally between Downtown proper and Denny Hill. The tract, as well as Bell Street, was named after William Bell, one of the original members of the Denny Party, and roughly encompasses the same ground that Bell owned as part of the original Seattle plat. Today, Belltown is home to many small music clubs, art bars, and other cool hip places. Recently, Belltown was named as the seventh "coolest" place in the U.S.

Bellvoid: A putdown of Bellevue, the suburban city across the Lake from Seattle, supposedly due to "its total lack of culture and charm," as the Toreador who contributed this put it. I don't personally go that far, but one has to admit that what culture and charm is there is getting more and more difficult to get to, or discover in the first place, due to the Eastside's almost round-the-clock traffic gridlock. Also; Blahvue, Hellvue, Swellvue and a bunch of other derogatory terms.

The Boeing Bust: Period at the start of the 70's when Boeing, the major employer for the Seattle area, laid off two-thirds of its workers as demand for airplanes collapsed, creating near-Depression conditions in Seattle. A famous billboard of the time read: "Will the last person to leave Seattle please turn off the lights." Some fear, but others pray for, the next bust. Part of what keeps the Seattle-area, with its quintessential boom-and-bust economy, what it is. Good for sluicing a good proportion of those expatriate Californians and their Anarch counterparts back down I-5, in other words.

The Borg: Microsoft. Also referred to as The Borg Collective. Because of it's high-profile existance and likely links to the Technocracy, most wise Kindred consider them off limits for the purposes of feeding.

The Bulge: A rather unusual feature of the original Mercer Island Floating Bridge, officially named the Lacy B. Murrow Floating Bridge (the floating bridge that sank in the early 90's). About mid-span, the two east and west traffic lanes split into a "bulge" -- sort of like this, ===O=== -- originally designed to make it easier to open the bridge to boat traffic, but which proved to be a real menace to less than aware drivers. At least one drunk, I recall, and there may have been others, met an untimely end when his car plunged into the waiting maw at the center of the Bulge and sank to the bottom of the lake. Strangeley, some of the remains that sunk to the bottom of the lake have never been recovered, and many Kindred from this era suspect something supernatural still dwells there.

Californication: What's happening on the Eastside, which has attracted an inordinate number of expatriate Californians (New Yorkers and other transplanted East Coasters, on the other hand, tend more to gravitate to Seattle, particularly to Capitol Hill and Queen Anne Hill).

Chief Sealth: A leading member of the Duwamish tribe, after whom Seattle was named. Sealth was a Lupine, and a powerful creature feared and respected by even the Kindred among Seattle's frontier nights. What his final fate was has never been known, as he disappeared somewhere in the Cascades in the mid 1900's.

Chopstick Hill: Beacon Hill, referring to its relatively large Asian population.

The Club: The Columbia Tower Club, an exclusive club which occupies the 75th floor of the tallest scraper in town, the Columbia Tower. Quite a view, to say the least. The women's john is renowned, supposedly, for its floor-to-ceiling windows. Different organizations hold events and meetings there, but otherwise you need to be a member or invited by a member to check it out. Rumored to be the favored feeding ground of a particular Ventrue Elder.

Coffee Slang - Due to the recent explosion of Starbucks in the Pacific Northwest, some Kindred have developed an entire sub-slang equating coffee drinking with blood drinking. Below are some of these Masquerade friendly terms:

• Americano: Drinking blood from a white american club-hopper or yuppie.
• Espresso: A short nip from a mortal, not drinking much.
• Café Au Lait: Drinking blood from a mortal of French descent.
• Caffè Amaretto: Drinking blood from a mortal of Latin descent.
• Caffè Macchiato: A feeding that did not go as planned. In Italian, "macchiato" can be translated as "marked," "stained," or "spotted".
• Caffè Mocha: or simply Mocha: Drinking blood from a mortal of African American descent.
• Cappuccino: Drinking blood from a mortal of Italian descent.
• Crema: The best blood of the night.
• Creme Frappuccino: Drinking blood from frat girls and or boys.
• Doubleshot: Feeding from two mortals at once.
• Rice Dream Latte: Feeding from a mortal of Asian descent.
• Soy Latte: Feeding from animals.
• Speed Ball: To feed from a mortal under the influence of drugs.
• Venti: A mortal with a lot of blood in them.

Copcycles: Cops on bikes. Seattle was the first major city in the United States to put policemen on bicycles. Among the vulgar Kindred of Seattle, Copsicles.

The Deadline: Back in Seattle's wide open days, referred to Yesler Street (the original "skid road"). The phrase, "south of the Deadline," referred to the Skid Road area, today's Pioneer Square, and its "everything goes" boxhouses, bordellos, gambling joints, and after-hours establishments. The notion was that if all of the "action" was restricted to Skid Road, then it could be kept out of the rest of town. The Deadline had another, obvious meaning to the Kindred of Seattle, especially after founder Henry Yesler was Embraced, as everything over the Deadline was considered the Rack, where open feeding was allowed.

The Denny Party: The original group of settlers who founded what was to become Seattle. Also became slang by Kindred of the time when Yesler, Denny and Doc Maynard, three founding Fathers of Seattle were brutally slaughtered by Prince Dawn O'Seanessy (who went by Lou Grahm in the mortal world) in the Gaslight Lounge over allegations of planning a Praxis Siesure of her domain.

The Duke of Tacoma: A former (missing, now presumed dead) Anarch named Clinton P. (C.P.) Ferry, who pioneered development of South Tacoma in the 1880's and 1890's.

The Eastside: Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, etc., but a term also used, primarily by TV weathermen, to refer to Eastern Washington.

The Emerald City: After J.M. Barrie's the Wizard of Oz, Seattle adopted the name because of it's year-round green trees. This was decided on by a poll held by one of the local papers and has since largely displaced Seattle's original sobriquet, the Queen City.

The Emerald Domain: Coined by the former Nosferatu Prince of Seattle Calebros, the emerald is a sign of wealth, jealosy and envy.

Everott: Everett. Everett doesn't smell anywhere near as bad as it used to, now that they've closed down the pulp mills, the name stuck however, most likeley owing to the fact that it is Giovanni Domain.

Frango: A mint confection that orginated at the Frederick & Nelson department store around the beginning of the 20th century and which was sold there until F&N closed in 1992. A Kindred term used to describe victims or blood dolls hunted in Seattle's many malls.

Fringie: A term predating "hippie" or 'alternative lifestyle' that referred to the denizens who populated and hung out on the Ave in the District in the 60's and became generally applied to anyone who was perceived as being a non-conformist. The term remained pretty much a local phenomenon, and was later largely superceded by a terms, "hippy," which was imported from San Francisco and "Goth."

Frosh Pond: The fountain pond in the southeast area of the UW campus. It originally got this name due a bunch of sophomores throwing some freshmen into the pool, and is rumored to have been a favored feeding ground for the Brujah. Feeding near the Frosh pond is known as 'Fishing'.

Galloping Gertie: The original Tacoma Narrows Bridge, that blew down. A phrase sometimes associated with the failure of a major plan by the Kindred establishment of Seattle.

Ghettodale: Meadowdale High School. See also Lynnhood and Weedway, other slingo references to Edmonds/North Seattle.

The Green River Killer: The most famous serial killer in a state known for its serial killers (Ted Bundy, the Hillside Strangler, etc.). The moniker came from the fact that most of his victims' remains were found dumped along the Green River. After many, many years, due to recently discovered DNA evidence, the authorities have finally arrested and charged a suspect, Gary Leon Ridgway. Few Kindred suspect Ridgeway was actually the killer, and suspect a vampire is behind most of the deaths. It's also possible that the deaths were caused by more than one Kindred.

The Great Fire: The Great Seattle Fire of 1889. June 6, 1889, according to mortal historians, an overflowing glue pot combusted a sawdust floor and virtually the whole of downtown Seattle, then almost entirely constructed out of wood, burned to the ground. In fact, the fire was begun by a Kinfolk on the eve of a the fiercest battle between the Lupines and Kindred Seattle has ever seen. The city was rapidly rebuilt, in brick.

The Hill: Capitol Hill.

Hoo-ville: Magnolia. Refers to the similarity between the local Magnolia landscaping, strong on the bonsais and other scuptured shrubs, and that of Hoo-ville, the oh-so-cute town in the Dr. Seuss book, Horton Hears a Hoo.

I-5: Interstate 5, which in Seattle is usually just referred to as "the Freeway."

The ID: The International District, which perhaps is home to too many other nationalities, including Japanese, Philipinos, Vietnamese, Cambodians, to accurately be called by its other namesake, Chinatown. The known territory of the Eastern Kindred, called Cathayans.

The Industrial Area: What the Sodo area was loosely referred to as prior to the building of the Kingdome. Now officially designated, with somewhat altered boundaries, excluding the sports stadiums and their immediate surroundings, as the Duwammish Industrial Area. Other "industrial areas" in Seattle include the South Lake Union area and the Interbay/Salmon Bay areas. Often referred to by Kindred as the 'Abandoned Warehouse District'. SEE ALSO: Sodo

The Jackson Street Scene: From the 20's through the 50's, was Seattle main jazz scene, with at one time some 34 clubs (and after-hours clubs) on or near Jackson between 1st and 14th Avenues. The former Prince of Seattle, Toreador Dawn O'Seanessy made sure that it was kept running, and poured plenty of influence into getting some top jazz talent to stay. As a result, Ernestine Anderson, Ray Charles, and Quincy Jones all cut their first musical teeth there. Ernestine Anderson's father actually decided to move to Seattle (in 1944) because he'd heard Seattle was a quiet town without any night-life (he obviously hadn't heard of the Jackson Street scene) and wanted to discourage the 12-year old Ernestine's desire for a singing career (she eventually made the cover of Time magazine, in 1958). Quincy Jones' parents settled in Seattle in 1947. Ray Charles arrived in 1948 on a Trailways bus from Tampa, Florida, when he was 17 years old. Another notable Seattle jazz figure who got his start in the Jackson Street scene was Floyd Standifer. Later, two other notable future Seattle jazz figures were to pick up and carry forward the dying embers of the scene -- Larry Coryell and Kenny Gorelick (a.k.a. Kenny G).

Jet City: Another term for Seattle, the city that Boeing built.

The Jungle: A homeless encampment in the Beacon Hill greenbelt, just down the hill from the Pacific Medical Center. The authorities keep clearing it out, twice with bulldozers, but it always gets resettled. Thick brush makes the Beacon Hill greenbelt ideal for surreptitious hideouts, and its proximity to downtown and the missions in Pioneer Square is another selling point.

The Kokusai: For many years, the main Japanese movie theater in Seattle, located down in the International District. They would occassionally show an Akira Kurosawa film or other quality Japanese cinematic work. The Kokusai Theater collapsed unexpectedly in February of 1997. The true cause of the collapse was never determined, but many believe the Nosferatu undermined the Cathayan stronghold from beneath the city streets.

Latteland: Seattle, of course.

Little Italy: An area at the north end of Rainier Valley that was primarily settled by Italian immigrants. The Italians have mostly moved on to Everette of late to be replaced by a newer wave of immigrants (primarily Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotions), so this term isn't used very much any more. Also referred to as Garlic Gulch. Everett is the current domain of the Giovanni.

The Market: The Pike Place Market. Probably one of Seattle's biggest tourist attractions, which is a shame in that the Market became what it is from serving the "locals." One of the three "must-see's" for any first-time visitor, the other two being The Space Needle and Pioneer Square. Still quite unique, and a good deal of its quirky charm has been preserved. Kindred often bring prey down to the Market from nearby Pioneer Square to feed. This is also sometimes called, 'shopping'.

Mercer's Maidens: Due to an extreme shortage of eligible females (who were outnumbered by males in Seattle by ten to one), Asa Mercer conceived the bright idea to go back to Boston and convince some of the "surplus" females there to come west, their passage to be paid for by subscribers in Seattle who hoped to become their husbands. He met with opposition in Boston, but found more willing pickings in Lowell, which is where many of Mercer's Maidens came from. After a journey that included crossing the Panama isthmus and a rest stop at San Francisco, they debarked on Seattle's waterfront on May 16, 1864. All of the girls, except one (who got sick and died), rapidly found husbands (although nowhere near all of the men who had subscribed to the venture in order to finance it managed to get wives). In fact, Mercer had accepted the Embrace, and most of the women were ghouls who maried prominent businessmen in frontier Seattle, giving Mercer control of much of Seattle's influence.

Metro: An agency formed to run both the transit and sewer treatment systems for King County, but is more generally used to refer to the transit system -- short for "Metro Transit," which took over the former local transit system, Seattle Transit. The omnibus Metro agency has actually now been absorbed back into the King County government.

Microsoftland: Can refer to the Redmond/Overlake area where Microsoft's main campus is located, the Eastside, or the Greater Seattle area. Also called Billville, after Bill Gates.

Nightmare Theater: A movie slot on KIRO-TV on Friday nights that featured horror films during the early 80's. It was hosted by a Caitiff called the Count who was made up to look like Dracula, emerging out of a creaking coffin at the start of the intro. It ended when the Caitiff that ran the show was destroyed for Masquerade violations. Because of the Masquerade 'Nightmare' this represented to the Kindred of Seattle, ever since, Kindred in Seattle who attempt to appear on television regularly are occasionally said to be 'performing in Nightmare Theater.'

Orange County: The Eastside, a lament.

The Pig War: Also called the San Juan Conflict, a boundary dispute over the ownership of San Juan Island in north Puget Sound, which is perhaps more accurate, since it never actually turned into a war. It started in 1859 when an American Kindred on San Juan Island brought Final Death to an archrival of many hundreds of years. During the epic battle between the two enemies, one of the Kindred's ghouls accidentally killed a British pig, thus the name. The British authorities, led by Prince Siegfried, who was determined to see justice done to the Kindred who had broken the tradition of Destruction, tried to arrest him, and the American mortal authorities, at the urging of the current Prince, sent troops to stop them. The British, under the Ventrue Anne Bowsley then sent some war ships. War was averted when the Americans and the British agreed to a joint occupation. Finally, in 1872 Kaiser Wilhelm I, under the direction of the German Kindred of Berlin and acting as arbiter, decided in favor of the American claim to the islands. Thus ended the last territorial dispute between the United States and Britain.

Queen Anne: Queen Anne Hill. Looks straight across Lake Union at Capitol Hill. Increasingly, the cool place to be, especially for young professionals (yuppie valhalla). Often sought after by Ventrue and Toreador alike.

Rat City: White Center in West Seattle. There was once a city dump located near White Center, which is where all the rats came from (or where they were going), apparently. The dump is long gone, but the name lives on. The Nosferatu held domain there for some time as well, increasing the likeleyhood that the name would stick.

The Regrade: The Denny Regrade, which is usually thought of as just to the north of, or overlapping and to the north of, Belltown. Denny Hill, considered one hill too many, and stunting the expansion of Downtown, was washed away with powerful water hoses (a technology developed during the Klondike gold rush), leaving behind the rather flat Regrade. Along with Belltown, home of Seattle's Grunge Scene.

ScaryYaki: A slang term for the dangerous practice of feeding in the International District, a place known to be controlled by the Cathayans.

A Seattle Tux: A flannel shirt and clean jeans. A running joke among harpies in other domains, and something that Seattle Harpies have fought against with little success for a long, long time.

A Seattleite: A resident of Seattle. Also sometimes spelled as "Seattlite."

Skid Road: Referred to the red-light, hurdy-gurdy district located south of Yesler, the original "skid road." Today's Pioneer Square. The original "skid road" was so-called because logs were skidded down it to Yesler's Mill. Not to be confused with "Skid Row," which is a corruption.

Sodo: The rather amorphous district that runs south of the Kingdome (or what was once the Kingdome). The original meaning of Sodo was "South of the Dome," with "South of Downtown" having been concocted by who knows who in City Hall, or at one of the local papers, once it became clear that the Dome was soon to be no more. SEE ALSO: Industrial Area

The Steam Plant: A building located on the east shore of Lake Union that served as a power plant for City Light providing cheap power to Seattle for many years. First built in 1908, it was finally decommissioned in 1987 (although it had only infrequently been used for some years). The Steam Plant had 14 boilers that were fired by bunker oil. The building is now home to the ZymoGenetics company, a fearful and dangerous genetic research organization to Kindred, with rumored ties to the Technocracy.

Tangletown: This is a designation, apparently still being used by some, for the area northwest of 50th Street and Stoneway Avenue, undoubtedly due to its tangled streets.

Tusko: An elephant at the Woodland Park Zoo that died in 1933 of unexplained blood loss. At seven and a half tons, Tusko was touted as the largest elephant in the world. Due to a local Gangrel that was suspected of feeding from the creature too much, for many years in the 30's Tusko became a derogatory term for any Kindred who fed from animals.

The U: The University of Washington.

U Dub: The University of Washington.

The Underground: The Seattle Underground. A whole neighborhood dating back to the 1890s, about 25 square blocks with it's epicenter in the Pioneer Square area, which was once street level, but which is now one story below ground, due to massive street regrading projects around the turn of the century. Since then the underground has been expanded by the Nosferatu, the undisputed rulers of the Underground, to unknown size.

The World's Fair: The 1962 Seattle World's Fair, also called the Century 21 Exposition. After the fair, the exposition grounds were converted into today's Seattle Center. The Space Needle, the Monorail, the Fun Forest, and the Science Center all date back to the World's Fair. In the Kindred world, a minor conclave of Archons representing the various Justicars of the time were have said to have met there to discuss the role Seattle would play in the future of Kindred events, and for the third time in the 20th century, a Toreador was denied the right to embrace Elvis.

Yakimaniac: A dyed-in-the-wool resident of Yakima. To the Kindred, the Sabbat, rumored to have taken up domain there.

Zero Dockus Mucho Crockus Halabaluzabub: A bastardization of a Tremere ritual pronounciation to pass a ward into the local chantry. As the story goes, a certain Tremere in Seattle's history offended a local Malkavian. To get even with the offender and to both teach him a lesson and humiliate him in front of his peers, the Malkavian suggested the phrase be the password from Stan Boreson's King's Klubhouse, the afternoon kid's show from the 50's through early 70's. King thought it was fantastic, and even worte a song to go with the phrase on his show. The whole refrain went:

Zero Dockus Mucho Crockus Halabaluzabub,
that's the secret password we use down at the club.
Zero Dockus Mucho Crockus Halabaluzaban,
means now you are a member of King TV's Club with Stan.

Needless to say the show was an instant success, and soon all the children of Seattle were chanting the phrase. The Tremere was punished by the Regent, a new incantation had to be researched for the chantry, and since the actual words used were only strikingly similar to the TV chant, the Malkavian suffered no ill effects. Of course, not soon after, many Kindred picked up on the joke and began to repeat it and eventually the Tremere in question sided with the Sabbat and was destroyed soon afterward.