Florentine Shadows

The Italian states are wracked by conflict as two factions vie for dominance. The Guelphs support the Pope and his control in the region while the Ghibellines support the Holy Roman Emperor and his invasions. Florence's conflicts began when the Ghibelline noble Oddo Arrighi murdered the Guelph Buondelmonte de’ Buondelmonti over the latter reneging on an agreed upon marriage in recompense for wounding him. Since the city's Guelph control is continually tested by its strong Ghibelline faction. The city's prosperity has led to its population to boom and 30,000 mortals make their home in its walls and in the hinterlands beyond another 60,000 live. Such a feast enticed many Cainites to travel and make haven in the city. Soon even with such numbers overcrowding became an issue. Prince Alanus failed to rein in these issues and in 1164 was destroyed by Assamite assassins, yet none in the city would claim to their hiring. Now Florence's Cainites are as riven as its mortals as two Lasombra, Anicius the Golden and Panfilo the Cruel, have risen to try and claim Praxis. The city's elders swap loyalty and resources between the pair as they engage in their own plots taking advantage of the chaos. You may be one of these elders, or you may be an outsider drawn to the city by its wealth and populace. Your schemes will shape the future and may tip the scales in the favor of one of the two Princes, or perhaps both will fall and another will rise higher...