Claudius

Claudius Macellarius Vopiscus was the Prince of Portsmouth and a member in good standing of the Prima Invicta.

Born as Claudius Sulpicius Galba, Claudius was active as a mortal man during the Crisis of the Third Century. As a patrician living in the province of Britannia, he enjoyed a military career. Famed for his hedonism even in life, Claudius' favourite slave was the young Stheno. His good breeding and passion for sensuality eventually earned him the attention of Vopiscus Macellarius Encolpius, third of the four Childer sired by Encolpius Macellarius Antonius, the founder of the Macellari bloodline. After a brief period of testing, Vopiscus embraced Claudius, bringing him into the fold of the Ventrue clan and his peculiar bloodline.

Soon after, Claudius achieved some renown as a politician of the night, but ultimately fell into torpor during the 5th Century. He awoke to a much changed world in the 15th Century, but his appetite was unabated. Aided by his prodigious political acumen and prestigious pedigree, he managed to secure a place in the Prima Invicta for himself, eventually elevating himself to the rank of Prince in the area of Portsmouth. He sired a Childe, Lodovicus, who in time gained his own princedom in the neighbouring Southampton.

Claudius' reign was characterized by an excess of eccentricity and decadence. Reuniting with his former slave, Stheno, Claudius set out to create a world of personalized entertainment. This included the creation of an elaborately decorated labyrinth underneath his estate, a testament to his mania. Yet, this flamboyance was ultimately to be his doom, as he chose to ally with the Krewe in the period of 1873-1874. Assailed by his own fragile mind and the lies of Alexander Green, Claudius chose to wage battle against his apparently traitorous allies. Yet, when the Krewe finally stormed his sanctum, Olivia Smith managed to convince the moribund and jaded monarch to give up his life willingly, promising him fresh entertainment in Carcosa. Moved by such sweet words, Claudius ended himself, offering his soul to William Astley, who then delivered it to the King in Gold.

In the aftermath of his demise, a brief civil war erupted between Maria and Green, one which the former ultimately won, settling for peace between Sin-Eaters and vampires.