The world is full of what are most politely called "oddities." Anything that falls outside of humanity's normal scope of experience is labeled as such. Until relatively recently, such people and things have been forced to live in hiding for fear of being destroyed or hunted down. But in the 1950s a man by the name of Oliver Day suddenly changed the status quo for oddities everywhere. The Day family had long been a wealthy, land owning family. When Oliver inherited the entire fortune after his father's passing, he made a bold and completely unexpected move.
He openly acknowledged the existence of oddities, and invited any and all to the safe haven that his land now represented. And so was founded the Oliver Day District in Louisiana. Since then, a veritable city has risen from where cash crops once flourished, and the city has expanded as many of those nearby sold their property out of fear of the things that lived in the city.
This is modern day O.D.D.
I'd like for other people to contribute to the world of this, with their own creatures and factions and places. You should note, though, that none of them exist in a void. If someone else creates a faction, you should be thinking about how it would interact with yours, and you could discuss possible past and future dealings.
Old O.D.D.: The farmland that Oliver day originally donated, It's still farmland, but is now owned and run exclusively by Oddities, and more houses dot the area than any time in the land's history.
New O.D.D.: The urban sprawl that has slowly grown since the founding of the District. As Oddities have flocked to the city, the population has boomed and it's now an urban center on par with Chicago or New York City.
Aristocrat Towers: The tallest building in America, standing near two thousand feet and with a hundred and thirty floors. Every floor is wall to wall apartments, which are all for rent. But the price is so high, most go unoccupied, officially speaking. The building also acts as a headquarters for The Bloodline, almost all of whom live in the higher levels.
After the attack in '93, the whole building was re-tiled with intricate silver patterns.
The Bloodline: The self proclaimed voice of all vampires. The Bloodline has actually existed for millennia, for as long as vampires have existed, or so they say. Their collective net worth is greater than any other single entity in the world. A lot of New O.D.D. is owned, on paper, by one of their ranking members, and in practice by The Bloodline as a whole. It can be argued that without their involvement, O.D.D. would have fallen flat on its face in five years.
All vampires are tracked by The Bloodline, whether they consider themselves a part of the group or not. They keep a database of every known vampire, including the most recent picture possible(some vampires have been underground for so long that the most recent picture is a drawing from memory). One use of the record is to verify age. Rank in the Bloodline is determined by a combination of age and nepotism.
In 1961 the Red Cross suddenly and unexpected announced that it would be providing blood for the newly exposed vampires, so that they won't have to feed off of live humans. There was an immediate backlash, and Red Cross donations dropped nearly by half. But public acceptance of Oddities, and good PR people, have brought donations back up, keeping both hospitals and Vampires well stocked on life giving blood. In reality, The Bloodline has been running the Red Cross from the very beginning, claiming that the blood that vampires consumed was thrown away, and planned this move very carefully.
Thralls: Though the word originally meant slave, Thralls are consenting, well paid adult humans who allow vampires(and some other Oddities) to feed off of them, non-lethally. Almost all Thralls work for The Bloodline, who take a cut of the money that is paid to make use of them. Not all Thralls are equal, the more popular a Thrall is, the higher The Bloodline charges, and the more they are paid.
Though there are some exceptions, as a general rule, vampires value youth and beauty, so many Thralls are chosen specifically because they are easy on the eyes. In fact, The Bloodline actually sends out invitations through modelling and acting agencies.
In addition to their pay, all Bloodline Thralls are offered lodging at Aristocrat Towers, under the careful protection of the Silver Fangs.
Silver Fangs: In 1993, a pack of werewolves burst through the doors of Aristocrat Towers and went on a rampage before fleeing on foot. Three vampires died, along with fifteen Thralls. Twice as many survived injuries and were infected with Lyconthropy. Since that event, The Bloodline has put together a special defense force, called the Silver Fangs because of their silver dentures.
Fangs are recruited from human armed forces all over the world, specially chosen for their skill and track record, and then reconditioned by Bloodline specialists. Those that don't take to the training, or seem uncontrollable are cut loose from the program. But those who survive training, and are seen as good fits, are Sired, given the Dark Gift.
I know a lot of people will see this and think that vampire commandos seem bitchin, but let me explain why they aren't what you think. Vampires value age, and put a high cultural stress on survival. Historically, they have never fought their own battles. They get slaves or mercenaries to do it, or they avoid conflict altogether and work through subterfuge. The last fifty years have been a strange time, though, and The Bloodline has seen that they can't continue to operate this way. The Silver Fangs were their answer. They were intentionally designed, trained, and conditioned to be easily controlled, disposable soldiers. Vampires prefer to choose their sires carefully, as companions and proteges. They care about them because they "bring them up" in a way. The Silver Fangs are separate, and will never be a part of vampire society.
The real kicker? They have no idea. They think they'll serve their twenty years and then retire to eternal decadence, but The Bloodline has no intention of letting them join vampire society. As soon as they are no longer useful, they will be thrown away.
