“Jersey? Fuggedaboutit, place is crawlin’ with ‘em Sabbat and Anarch licks, and between Guido the Guinea, Bishop Anguish and the mezzo-finookio “Prince of Newark” there ain’t no room for us out there. Never you mind what the damn tv shows says. Fuggin’ fugazi, if ya know what I mean paesan?”
- Joseph “Crazy Joe” Giovanni, Mobster and Italian-American Stereotype.
The lay of the land
Anarchs claim the George Washington Bridge, and more importantly hold the Lincoln Tunnel, holding that is what keeps the Anarchs in charge of their slice of New Jersey. Letting the Sabbat run roughshod through the Holland tunnel is what keeps their grasp on the northern part of New Jersey alive... that, and the number of disillusioned Camarilla vampires that have defected since the war ended, and they found themselves less in a siege mentality.
Sure, the Sabbat was still a threat, but several elders started calling for a return to praxis real quick.
Naturally, a large number of these are suspected Camarilla agents and spies, some argue it is a larger number than even the Anarchs themselves might suspect. This is also a part in the Anarch "success" of Hoboken.
Another part of it is of course the Baron.
The dividing line in Jersey is 18th street, separating Hoboken from Newport, Where Hoboken is the Anarch stronghold, Newport is clearly Sabbat turf, the Holland tunnel is theirs and anyone caught riding through it might end up mugged or disappearing. Croxton and Journal Square are disputed turf, which also means that is where both meetings and fights between the Anarchs and the Sabbat happen.
Newark technically has a Prince, but that Prince resides in Parsippany, and has no say in the goings on of the largest city in the state. In name it belongs to Bat Belfry, a moniker for a Malkavian who has claimed praxis and has outspoken prophetic visions of darkness to come, and has spoken out at length against the Prince of New York saying he is or will be responsible for the coming doom (the doom in question being very vague) Nobody takes the old fool seriously, and his failure to hold on to his city, much less his sanity has meant that he's disregarded. Parsippany is his fiefdom, though, and while insane he has enough power to hold that domain.
Newark itself is shared between Sabbat and Anarch, the Journal Square treaty of ‘05 holds that outside of Jersey City, there's to be no sectarian violence. This treaty was ratified by Prince Belfry in 07, a fact that neither the Anarchs or the Sabbat give a damn about.
The bridges are safer, but the tunnels... anything can happen underground. The George Washington bridge does have Anarch and Camarilla watching it, mostly to maintain the masquerade, while both side claims it, neither is quite in control of the bridge, and it's too public to lay claims to.
The Anarchs
“Let me tell you something: this ain’t ya hoity-toity New York, lick. We don’t bend over to you Cammie stooges and we ain’t bowin’ to no Prince. We’re free, motherfucker. Guido keeps it that way. That’s -Baron- Guido to you, Cammie, and don’t fuckin forget it”
- Dame Charlie, Anarch
The Sabbat*
"The Sabbat in Jersey aren't what the Sabbat of New York were... but we're still here, unlike those fuckers, so fuck 'em" - Bishop Anguish
Lo, how the mighty have fallen.
Bishop Anguish, Father of the Holy Sword of the Sabbat in Newport.
Little is known in truth about the vampire using the name Bishop Anguish, save for that he is the name heard mentioned as the leader of the Sabbat in New Jersey. Intelligence reports are few and far between when it comes to further details, but a mention of something called "The Secaucus Seven" springs up.
Known packs among the Sabbat are also the Croxton Crusaders and Bayonne Braves.
It is suspected that a few of the New York Sabbat survived the "Day of Blood and Ashes", as they refer to it. The Sabbat will seize any opportunity to make unlife hell for the Camarilla, though, and make sure that while it may look as if they're in control, New York was their city first.
The Camarilla
Prince Bat Belfry of Newark
Bat claimed Praxis over Newark when the Camarilla reclaimed New York. It is unclear where this Malkavian came from, though claims have been made he is an Ancilla, and that he was embraced in Dublin. Others say he is a nobody, others still that he’s a plot by the Inconnu. Most people who have met him says he’s stark-raving mad. However, nobody has challenged him in Parsippany and come out alive, so whoever this kindred really is, there is clearly more to him than meets the eye. He is still Prince in name alone, and whether he has supporters in Newark is unknown.