City Politics
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The View From Without: Reputation
St. John's, Newfoundland, is a hub of transatlantic communication and travel between the New World and the Old, serving as a stopping-off point within red-eye distance of London airports. It is, perhaps, unsurprising that, due to this, many Kindred - particularly Elders - who are forced to travel, do so by permission of and in agreement with its long-standing Camarilla Prince, the Nosferatu Gideon. Its ideal location for travel is also credited for the established (if ever-fluctuating) communities of Gangrel and Ravnos.
Surrounded by unsettled wilds sure to hide scores of vicious Lupines, just north by land route of some of the largest concentrations of Sabbat outside New York City, rubbing shoulders with a dying Ventrue Domain at St. Pierre, and surrounded by sprawling suburbs claimed by Anarch packs (including the notorious Shea Heights) the relative peacefulness of the Domain of St. John's demonstrates the firm stability of Gideon's Praxis. Even the tense détente between the Ravnos and Gangrel Clans, prone to spark over any slight, holds (more often than not) under his watchful eye. Still, the feeling of barely-concealed mayhem ripples under the iron façade, and skirmishes between sects or with other supernatural entities flare from time to time.
The View From Above: The Patricians
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the Plebeian nature of its Prince, Patrician Clans do not hold their accustomed lofty position in St. John's. The Ventrue seem to prefer struggling in their St. Pierre fortress than to live under a Nosferatu Prince, and as a result, the unfortunate few who cannot avoid the city find themselves something of a political afterthought. The Toreador, too, struggle in the very homely, down-to-earth atmosphere of this harbour-town, eking out what artistic merit they can among the night clubs of George Street. Still, these tribulations pale in comparison to the final clan of the Patrician Triumvirate; the Tremere, even when they achieve some political recognition (such as the case of Keeper of Elysium Madalena Vaaz, they are rarely seen, and seem to consider a posting to the St. John's Chantry a punishment).
The Seneschal of St. John's, a Ventrue by the name of Magnus Ulvstrom, who is almost as rarely seen as his Prince. While these two maintain an uneasy, businesslike relationship, it is a secret to no one that Ulvstrom appears to be tolerating his subservient position only until he can contrive to wrest Praxis from the Nosferatu and claim St. John's for his own. It is to his credit that he has managed to continue to hope after all these many decades.
The View From Below: The Plebians
The Plebian Clans, on the other hand, enjoy freedoms and privileges unheard-of in the Old World, and unusual even in the New. Easily the majority clans, they enjoy equal (if not preferential) feeding rights, wield larger influence in the council, and even attain the heights of status and hierarchy positions: such as Sheriff Kaylee Freeman. The Brujah in fact often wield incredible social influence, controlling businesses among the George Street clubs, and dominating the Council. Malkavians, less socially-inclined, flock to St. John's, and thrive in its accepting atmosphere, as do the Nosferatu, who, perhaps due to the ruling Prince being of their number, are allowed remarkable access to social events normally reserved for the glamorous and beautiful. Traveling Gangrel and Ravnos do indeed (as mentioned above) contribute to the populace, though the individual faces may change from night to night; they even seem able to set aside their personal conflicts within the borders of the Domain.
By and large, it is a very free and open environment for the plebians, which no doubt contributes a great deal toward their constant influx. St. John's reputation for honesty and equality may be somewhat self-perpetuating, drawing, as it does, so many of the plebeians, and repelling the patricians. Of course, this only tips the balance of political and social power, influence, and status more firmly into the hands of the common clans...
