Picture a group of stylish, ambitious vampires, each with a hunger for authority that matches their thirst for blood. That's Clan Ventrue for you - vampires with a taste for power, prestige, and opulence. Our team had a blast bringing their aristocratic grandeur and ambition to life in the game. Equally at home in the corridors of corporate power and the halls of high society, the Ventrue embody leadership, strategy, and a refined decadence. Whether they're making deals in the boardroom or dominating the nightlife scene, the Blue Bloods always maintain their iron grip on power.

Just like the Brujah[www.paradoxinteractive.com], the Ventrue are a foundational archetype both in Vampire: The Masquerade’s clan assembly as well as in wider vampire fiction. They represent the vampire as the aristocratic leader — classy, regal, and inhumanly majestic. Many silver screen depictions of Dracula would fit well in this clan, as would any number of his derivatives. Before Anne Rice, the Ventrue represented what most people would consider a classical vampire.

Taking the Blue Bloods into the fifth edition was therefore comparatively easy, as the clan has had a solid identity from its first appearance in 1991, never relying on gimmick powers or tangled setting elements. Their arsenal of Disciplines paint a clear picture of the kind of ruler they represent: Presence to incite awe, Dominate to enforce obedience, and — if the previous would fail — Fortitude to withstand retaliation. A true Ventrue commands from the front, but that is also their weakness.

While Ventrue vampires are no strangers to hierarchies, their tradition of Embracing mortals already used to being obeyed often creates brittle power structures with too many leaders and not enough followers. To many Blue Bloods the throne is more important than what it represents, and more than one Ventrue Prince has met final death because they would rather lead in defeat than triumph as a lackey.
– Karim Muammar, Designer of Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition and Brand Editor for the World of Darkness

“I have two rules: no sneakers, and if you must rip someone to pieces, do it outside. These are original floorboards, you understand.”

You’ll find Fletcher to be extremely polite and well-mannered - as ruthless sociopaths go. He owns several venues throughout Seattle, but you're most likely to run into him in the Makom Bar, tickling the ivories and rubbing shoulders with the other Blue-Bloods.

Educated, intelligent and congenial, you might enjoy Fletcher’s lively conversation, but you’d be wise not to let his affable veneer fool you. He's a Great White amongst lesser sharks, an old hand at vampire politics, and has survived more than one Prince of Seattle.

“Our design process for Fletcher was to start with the role we needed him to play in the story, in Seattle and in Kindred Society, and shape his personality accordingly. We already knew that the Ventrue would have a deep and long-running grasp on the city, and it takes more players than a Prince to achieve that - Fletcher is neither a king nor a pawn; he’s more of a rook. We always know he is being maneuvered by higher-ranking Kindred, but he also gives us opportunities to explore the history and lore of Seattle and the Camarilla– all wrapped up in a smarmy bastard who’s a hell of a lot of fun to write.”
– Cherish Goldstraw, Writer

For Ventrue’s approach to combat, we wanted to lean into a feeling of superiority and domination. It means nothing to always be superior, though, so you start off at a disadvantage. Ventrue's capabilities in combat aren’t as strong as some other clans, and so you’ll likely need to start out on the lower end of the food chain, staying out of sight and using spoken commands to keep your hands clean. As they feed, their fortitude strengthens- Ventrue's passive turns their skin to marble, so the more blood they have the more resistant to damage they become. This lets you take much nastier opponents head on and allows the use of Ventrue’s more devastating Dominate powers- where once you were skulking in the shadows, now you are an unstoppable god who can kill with words alone! This rise-and-fall fight mechanic is the main draw of the Ventrue’s playstyle, and should be well suited to players who want to keep things varied, or maybe just seek an absurd level of power...
– Max Bottomley, Senior Game Designer

In creating the Audio landscape for the Ventrue, our team did ponder for a while what sound would emit that power and domination that are central to this clan’s identity. So to sonically portray that commanding presence, we decided it'd be cool to incorporate the resonant, authoritative tones of steel and metal. The sharp, unsettling screeches of dragging metal, the entire spectrum of the available sounds there, they reflect the Ventrue’s manipulative prowess, control, and rule. The players can almost feel the weight of the Ventrue’s influence as they navigate the game.
– Marcus Bagshawe, Sound Designer

Commanding influence and timeless elegance – these were the key aspects to reflect in our visualisation of the Ventrue clan. The haunting presence of Hannibal Lecter – the entrapment of his eyes; the ethereal, almost unnatural grace of Tolkien’s Galadriel; characters and quiet luxury from HBO’s Succession – these all were hung on our mood boards for the clan.

The portrayal of Ventrue involved us merging influences from ancient nobility fused with modern high-end fashion. The Ventrue's attire features large, intricate overcoats and contemporary styles, all crafted from lush materials that reflect their elevated status, their longstanding heritage of command. These become more than just garments, but a real declaration – one must know who’s in charge here.
Their mere body language, the way they hold themselves – the player can sense their reputation of honour precedes them. What make Ventrue stand out from many other clans is their ability to rule by their voice and presence alone. You can affect singular or multiple people with one full command of your voice or a look.

The Ventrue's power wear is designed not only for impact, but for functionality, too, be it a corporate boardroom or a clandestine gathering. Emphasising their role as the aristocrats of the vampire society, our visual representations marry traditional high nobility with the cutthroat nature of corporate power structures. The Ventrue stand out as both a beacon of old-world aristocracy and modern-day leadership, dominating any room they enter, whether through the subtle art of persuasion or good ol’ physical power.
- Ben Matthews, Associate Art Director

The Clan of the Hunt, Assassins, Children of Haqim, Saracens, Mediators, Lawmen

Cursed with a thirst for the Blood of other vampires, the Banu Haqim stalk the night as judges and lawbringers. To this end, most Banu Haqim adhere to a strict code of conduct - derived from law, faith, or personal ethics - sating their Hunger on those that breach these convictions.

Banu Haqim takes the role of a strategic stalker, using shadows to their advantage. You are a predator on a hunt, and your discipline powers focus on stalking, assassination, and silently moving faster than your foes can track. These skills are great assets when stalking the city for prey.

When you choose your clan, you will start out with a passive ability unique to each clan. You are then able to unlock abilities from the Ability Tree, starting with your chosen clan. Each ability requires spending Ability Points (AP) to unlock which are earned from completing missions, combat and exploration. At the peak of the Ability Tree, you can unlock the clan Perk, a reward to those dedicated enough to unlock all of the abilities for a clan, giving a permanent passive upgrade.

Clan Passive: All your actions become entirely silent for a period after feeding.

Silence an enemy/civilian. Any sounds they produce, from screams to gunfire, are completely undetectable to others.
Move so fast that time appears to stop around you.
Slash swiftly in front of you, beheading mortal opponents.
Become temporarily invisible to enemies and civilians. Note: You can still be heard unless combined with Silence of Death.
Clan Perk: Can remain crouched whilst sprinting.

There are many different ways to play your character in Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. The clan Banu Haqim focus on a stalking based playstyle to take out your enemies one by one, and the clan abilities are built to empower that. As we want to make sure this is not a game where you are required to optimize your abilities to the extreme, we’ve focused on making the base playstyles easy and straightforward. But for the players who want their experience to be a bit deeper and more customizable, you will be able to do so. By visiting important vampires who are sworn to assist the Sheriff (you), you can unlock abilities from their clan by drinking a bit of their blood.

Abilities from other clans may cost more AP depending on how well they align with your clans Disciplines. The Banu Haqim Disciplines are Celerity (speed enhancing abilities), Blood Sorcery (the ability to control blood with your arcane knowledge) and Obfuscate (abilities to easily hide, move without being noticed, and cast illusions.). If a Banu Haqim wishes to unlock a Blood Sorcery ability from another clan, it would cost less AP to unlock than an ability for a Discipline Banu Haqim don’t have. Those who unlock all abilities from a clan and get the Clan Perk, are able to stack them and have the effects of them all, elevating your power.

The activated abilities and Clan Perk can be learned from the other clans, but the clan passive can not. Because of this, you combine the clan powers in hundreds of different ways, but a Banu Haqim playthrough will remain its own gameplay experience.

Ability tree for Banu Haqim with all clan abilities and the clan perk are unlocked. An ability from the Tremere tree has been equipped instead of Split Second.