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The Ministry, also called the Ministry of Set, Followers of Set, or Setites, are a clan of vampires who believe their founder was the Egyptian god Set.

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Overview

Orthodox Setite belief dictates that Set will one day return to rule or consume the world, and devout Setites prepare the way for his resurrection. To this end, the clan remains independent of the sects of other Kindred, and practice with great skill the arts of corruption, deceit and ancient sorcery. They refer to themselves as the Mesu Bedshet, the "Children of Rebellion".

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History

Early History

In the First Nights, the Clan was fairly centered around its Antediluvian and, not surprisingly, Egypt.

Many different tales are told about his divinity and how he was cursed by Ra in his struggle against his rival Osiris, whom he eventually managed to kill, and his abandonment by his disciples and fellow Antediluvians.

In the manner of the Path of Typhon, all these accounts are taken for true, because limitation to just one version is just another sign of the influence of Ra and Osiris in this world.

It can be said that Set's get had a fairly great influence on Egypt as a whole during the days of pharaonic Egypt, although his efforts were always undermined by the Osirian League under the leadership of his eternal enemy Horus.

Set himself guided his Clan from his great temple in Ombos and sometimes got involved personally with dethroning pharaohs who were too entrenched by Ma'at and the schemes of the Aeons.

In this way, the Followers of Set established their hold on the lands of Egypt several times: First during the reign of the Hyksos (in an alliance with the Lasombra), then during the 19th dynasty under Ramesses and during the Hellenistic Age under Alexander the Great.

During the reign of Rome, the Setites flourished in countless cults among the children of Seth and of Caine, promising ancient secrets and shaping the mindset of their cultists to resist the snares of Ma'at.

All these efforts were delivered a serious blow when Set himself disappeared in 33 CE (the alleged year of Christ's crucifixion, as some Setites note).

After the departure of the founder, earthquakes shattered Egypt and many of the old temples sunk and became lost, often taking many of the slumbering methuselahs of the clan with them.

However, Nakhthorheb and the remaining Hierophants took the reins of the clan, ruling the progeny of Set in his absence.

 

DArk Ages

Setites were rare in Dark Medieval Europe, spending most of their time in Egypt. During this time, the first heresy appeared within the Clan, growing from Constantinople, where the rogue Hierophant Khay'tall had endorsed a philosophy of corruption for its own sake, rather than as a tool to break a person free from outside influences in the service of Set.

While these "Decadents" or "Typhonists" were originally fairly confined to the Eastern Roman Empire, the fall of Constantinople in 1204 spread them across the whole known world, where they taught their debased philosophies and sometimes even practiced demonolatry.

The Hierophants sought to bring the situation under control by banning these vampires from Egypt.

In doing so, they made it impossible for them to learn their true history, leaving them to spread across Europe unhindered.

Setites were known as Walid Set in the lands of Arabia and North Africa, and spent much of their time fighting to keep the influence of Europe out of their lands.

Although they claimed to dominate Egypt, they actually only had a few holdings that could rightfully be called theirs; the rest belonged to the other bay't and the Garou of the Sahara.

The clan they struggled against the most was the one with the greatest power over the Islamic regions and the Ashirra: the Banu Haqim.

A temporary treaty was reached, but relations remained uneasy between the two for years afterward.

The Clan had a deep enmity with the Ashirra, who viewed their idolatrous religion as blasphemy, while the Setites saw the faith that the Islamic vampires endorsed as a stifling of the natural order Set had sought to restore.

The advent of learning during the Renaissance only increased the Setites' possibilities to subvert the European vampires, gaining advantage from the trade with goods from the Orient and the New World, as well as the new "leisure class" that arose in the cities, the customers for Set's teachings.

The expansion of the Ottoman Empire also provided cover for them to travel into Europe and slave trade remained one of the most profitable businesses for the clan.

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Victorian Age

The Setites reveled in the Victorian Age: As ancient knowledge was demanded more and more in Kindred society, the Setites' clientele rose more and more, as many Kindred discovered the usefulness of their bargains.

The Setite presence in Camarilla cities during this time was increasingly high and some Princes allowed them even in their retinue.

And with the strict puritan taboos of society, the increasing interest in occultism and the rising opium trade, corrupting mortals to the service of Set was easier than ever.

Despite the occupation of their ancestral homeland, the Setites were able to maintain a great deal of their influence in Egypt and some, like Izzat al-Khunzir, were actively opposing the foreign princes that occupied their ancient cities.

Also, the clan expanded heavily into America in this time in order to corrupt and influence the young government of the States.

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Final Nights

In the Final Nights, many Setites saw the signs of Gehenna as portents that Set would soon arise, and indeed many Gehenna scenarios involve his return. They remained staunchly independent, but since they still had to acquire power and wealth to ease the return of their god, they ventured far from Egypt. Setites in this period frequently lived in Camarilla (or, less often, Sabbat) cities, seducing and corrupting other Kindred, staying outside sect politics except to serve their own ends. Few among the other clans trusted them, but they had many secrets and were often able to infiltrate a Prince's court by trading information or promising favors.

Such deals generally worked out in the Setite's favor.

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