what is the true purpose of Ankaran sarcophagus?

[G The Glamorous]

so, what is the TRUE purpose of it? it seems Messerach is just a normal corpse (could be a ghoul for queen Lamastu) rather than an Antediluvian, or at least that's how Jack treated him in the ending.
what bothered me is that when you investigated the sarcophagus on the Dane, it had been opened and there was a massacre. Jack probably had opened it to switch the corpse to the C4, but I doubt he would have anything to do with the massacre even though he is a powerful vampire.
I wonder if this has something do with the cab driver too, whether he is Cain or not... I'm sure we had enough debate. but it's possible that Messerach is actually an Antediluvian and the driver was there to diableried him, he could be Cain himself, consider the background between him and Lamastu is very similar to Cain and Lilith. is it possible that Cain has the ability to switch body and the driver was a new body for him?

[Wesp5]

In my opinion Messarach was indeed just a ghoul of queen Lamastu and both the cabbie and Jack used the sarcophagus to mess up LA. I cite some of the last lines of Jack at the ending: "Hey, it happened just like you said. They never even knew what hit 'em. Threw that sarcophagus out there and they just tore each other up tryin' to get to it." Whether the cabbie is Caine or not is still open to discussion. In my opinion Caine's spirit was inside the cabbie to check how his children would behave in a situation like he created with Jack. Also I think that Jack would have no problems slaughtering some ship crewmen for that.

[G The Glamorous]

hi there wesp, thank you for your amazing work on the unofficial patch! :)
that "Caine's spirit" part makes sense for me too, but I'm still believe there is an unexplainable connection between the sarcophagus and Cain. before the Final Nights, no one knows where Cain is hiding/sleeping, it's possible that Cain did something to exist through time in spirit form (for safety purpose I guess), the sarcophagus contained his spirit, so when Jack opened it, he got the chance to play prophet for Gehenna. ("Hey, it happened just like you said")
however, according to some sources, when the sarcophagus was on the Dane, the blood on it indicates that it was opened from the inside, which makes the whole thing even more bizzare if those sources are corrected.

it's sad that Troika Games is gone, I believe the plot was there for a more sinister plot in the sequel, or a deeper game should Activision didn't put the impossible deadline.

[Wesp5]

Originally posted by Lonewolf:

I'm still believe there is an unexplainable connection between the sarcophagus and Cain.

I think the Gehenna novel states that Caine was in a cave somewhere during the time the Bloodlines story happened, but the cave might have been in the same area where the sarcophagus was from, so Caine might have known about it and thus used it as a ruse.

however, according to some sources, when the sarcophagus was on the Dane, the blood on it indicates that it was opened from the inside, which makes the whole thing even more bizzare if those sources are corrected.

I think this is just Jack's doing to make the whole Dane thing more mysterious.

[G The Glamorous]

Originally posted by wesp5:

Originally posted by Lonewolf:

I'm still believe there is an unexplainable connection between the sarcophagus and Cain.

I think the Gehenna novel states that Caine was in a cave somewhere during the time the Bloodlines story happened, but the cave might have been in the same area where the sarcophagus was from, so Caine might have known about it and thus used it as a ruse.

hmm, if my memories served me right, there is a part where it mentions Cain was spotted as a mortal in L.A during Bloodlines event.

[CrackeR]

Why would you post this thread without, at the very least, letting people know its a spoiler??????

[G The Glamorous]

Originally posted by Cracker:

Why would you post this thread without, at the very least, letting people know its a spoiler??????

because it's an old game?
the title itself is obviously a spoiler alert.

[Anvos]

The answer is we really don't know as while we know what was originally in the box wouldn't be an immediate danger directly when the box was opened and it was likely Jack that massacred the crew and set the scene, the game never answers who or what Messerach is/was.

Also I don't think it even truely rulled out the thing being an antedeluvian or other old vampire who was in the later stages of a blood starved comma.

Plus I believe that one diagram you can find in the Society of Leopold base does imply they found another highly powerful vampire locked in a similar sacrophagus.

[Wesp5]

Originally posted by Anvos:

... the game never answers who or what Messerach is/was.

I think listening to Johansen makes it very clear that Messerach was only a ghoul of vampire queen Lamastu.

[Vita, Mortis, Careo]

Within the framework of the game the sarcophagus fills the role of MacGuffin. That is, the object that is sought after or desired by both the antagonist and protagonist. The game ending makes the MacGuffin status all the more humorous.

[Magic Tofu Cat]

It was too make everyones life ambitions Grilled Cheese sandwitches.. and then go and eat them

[Meteor]

Originally posted by wesp5:

In my opinion Messarach was indeed just a ghoul of queen Lamastu and both the cabbie and Jack used the sarcophagus to mess up LA. I cite some of the last lines of Jack at the ending: "Hey, it happened just like you said. They never even knew what hit 'em. Threw that sarcophagus out there and they just tore each other up tryin' to get to it." Whether the cabbie is Caine or not is still open to discussion. In my opinion Caine's spirit was inside the cabbie to check how his children would behave in a situation like he created with Jack. Also I think that Jack would have no problems slaughtering some ship crewmen for that.

I always thought that it was the cabbie that slaughtered everyone on the ship.

[Raveneye]

I had always assumed that the slaughter on the Ship was Caine's doing due to a need for blood after so long (I find the Doc's answer of who and what Messerarch was to be simply what a person would assume the case to be if they had no knowledge of the World of Darkness), and that the body is simply the remains of Caine, who has gone Nirvanna-like and walks the Earth as a shade now, possessing people whenever he feels the need to communicate, but ultimately he is still "The Wanderer" for all eternity.

The cabbie is clearly different then normal when you meet him during the end, which I assumed was Caine possessing him to comunicate with you (the Malk PC even freaks out calling him Caine when before he was just another mortal). Since Diable requires a soul to preform, the body is pointless, even more so due to the body not having blood in it to act as a medium for the soul to be absorbed through, which is why Jack was just chillin with it after switching it out with the explosives instead of hiding it away so nobody could get to it ever again. You will also notice the eye color of the possessed Cabbie and the remaining eye of the mummy are both the same color, which, being blood red, I assume is the color that Caine would have, being the first Vampire and all.

[G The Glamorous]

the plot thickens

[Wesp5]

Originally posted by Raveneye:

I had always assumed that the slaughter on the Ship was Caine's doing due to a need for blood after so long

The slaughter might have been the cabbie's doing, but the end we know little about him compared to the fact that we know Jack is ruthless ;).

the body is simply the remains of Caine, who has gone Nirvanna-like and walks the Earth as a shade now, possessing people whenever he feels the need to communicate

I don't think so. In the Gehenna novel Caine still has his original body and we never hear that he lost an eye. Also the head ornaments of the mummy fits better to Messarach.

[Morfium]

Originally posted by Raveneye:

The cabbie is clearly different then normal when you meet him during the end, which I assumed was Caine possessing him to comunicate with you (the Malk PC even freaks out calling him Caine when before he was just another mortal).

I always thought Caine just used some kind of blood magic/"mask of a thousand faces" to hide his nature. He would easily be strong enough to fool a newly born malk. In the end he just doesn't care anymore since his plot ends as he wished.

The game storyline also breaks with the gehenna novel in some ways. It's been quite some time since I read it, but didn't his arrival started the whole weakening of all elder vampires? And Jack... Well I don't wanna spoil the book. But it would be problematic for him to do what he does by the end of the novel? Also Beckett would have a different part in the plot. Although he is a little oblivious during the novel and might still be running around clueless during the game's events. :)

The thing I never understood was, why would Caine do such a thing? Out of boredom?
He clearly has no need to get rid of the Camarilla, nor the Sabbat.
--Conspiracy incoming-- ^^
Maybe he seeks vampires who are able to start a new Ubar/Enoch and the whole "drowning the world in blood" part is his version of the great flood. Cleansing the world of his unworthy children who betrayed his ideals. Since they did not stop their actions even after he cursed them with their clan weaknesses. In a way he relives the same problems god had to face with his creation (the humans), which might be god's plan after all. Like a final way for him to redeem himself. iirc god offered him forgiveness a few times but Caine was the one refusing... Not sure though, been some time.

Buuuut, in the end it's the storyteller's choice. :D (And a lot of guessing on my part)