Alternative to a Malkavian (possibly spoilers)

ekr · Post by **ekr** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 2:32 pm

Hello,

I'm currently playing a male Malkavian, and like him a lot (going after the DMP right now

).

I tried other classes as well (I like to play several characters at the same time, in some games), but the others didn't appeal so much during the first half hour of gameplay. They also seemed to all have about the same dialog lines, kind of bland - but that may be just me prejudiced by the Malkavian.

Do the other classes start to turn out in a specific way as "deep" as the Malkavian, later on, or are they all just "sane" characters with slightly different skill paths? Which class would you suggest me to keep playing additionally for a bit? It will only be worth it if the new class really adds something to the Malkavian playing experience, for me.

Do male/female characters wildly differ later on, or are they basically the same?

Thanks in advance,
ekr

kams · Post by **kams** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 4:10 am

Malks are the best.

From the other "sane" clans Nosferatu have a slighly different gameplay. People are starting to scream if they see you. And some quests have different solutions.
Remember LaCroix e-mail quest to get a bad review on some restaurant. All the others have to persuade/dominate/whatever, but Nosf can just show his ugly face to that guy - bad review will be assured.

Male / Female do not really differ. Except some seduction lines and one new possibility to solve Romero's quest for female char.

Johnny · Post by **Johnny** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 4:46 am

Your disciplines can really affect how you approach battles. Malks are pretty weak in combat, which is why I only played it once. Try playing a Tremere, Gangrel or Brujah. They have some fun powers.

Melchiah · Post by **Melchiah** » Mon Jul 11, 2005 12:25 pm

I just started again as a nosferatu after finishing the game as malkavian and so far i'm pretty satisfied, it can be pretty funny to see how people react to your horrible apearance especially the girls at the nightclubs.

And looking the way you do really makes you feel like a badass, I did the ocean house level yesterday and saw the guy with the axe for the first time and I thought ''what, you think you look scary with your bloodstained shirt, take a look at my face and bow before the master of horror''

The only thing that gets a little bothersome is that you can't get close to people on the streets and can't exactly rely on the social route to complete quests, but that only helps the whole nosferatuvibe.

Faust · Post by **Faust** » Mon Jul 11, 2005 6:44 pm

Nosferatu offer a different game play experience than any other clan. It's not as bizarre as the Malkavian in terms of dialogue, but it is distinctive (you have to lurk in the shadows, take different routes around some quests, get one unique quest, and an original haven which is rather pitiful). However, the power and strategy for combat you make is going to be very similar to the Malkavian.

For the most part all of the "sane" clans have the same basic dialogue choices. There are a few dialogue easter eggs for pretty much every clan. The Tremere probably have the third most (outside of Malkavian and Nosferatu), and also receive a unique haven. Their power combinations are fairly different from Malkavian as well. So you may enjoy playing that clan.

Gender plays only a minor role in the game. There are a few gender variations in dialogue. For the most part, it doesn't affect the game play in any substanial ways. Still, if you've not done it yet, you might chose the opposite gender of what you normally play for your next run through. It does add a bit of spice.

What I'd probably recommend is either going the Nosferatu route, or trying a Tremere of the opposite gender you normally play. I'd also encourage you to focus on a different social skill than you normally do (i.e. if you focused on persuasion, work on seduction or intimidation this time around). Things like that can add a lot of variety to the game. If you really enjoy combat, you might also try playing a clan with a totally new set of powers (i.e. one of the celerity based clans, etc.).

EvilBelgian · Post by **EvilBelgian** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 3:17 am

[QUOTE=Faust] I'd also encourage you to focus on a different social skill than you normally do (i.e. if you focused on persuasion, work on seduction or intimidation this time around). Things like that can add a lot of variety to the game.[/QUOTE]

If you don't focus on persuasion (and research) however you can miss out on a lot of "free" xp. example(s): 15 xp saved on brawling, 6 on dodge, 6 on firearms, 1 xp for making a bum keep his mouth shut, etc...

Faust · Post by **Faust** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 11:01 am

[QUOTE=EvilBelgian]If you don't focus on persuasion (and research) however you can miss out on a lot of "free" xp. example(s): 15 xp saved on brawling, 6 on dodge, 6 on firearms, 1 xp for making a bum keep his mouth shut, etc...[/QUOTE]

Persuasion is, in terms of experience, the best social skill. However, my point was, that to optimize fun, you might try focusing on intimidation or seduction instead. The player seemed more interested in spicing up their gaming experience, than min/maxing.

Tenser · Post by **Tenser** » Wed Jul 13, 2005 3:14 am

Well, without Persuade 4, I fail to reunite the two sisters and my Toreador wouldn't get the romance that at least my walkthrough promised me if I wouldn't give Jeanette the amulet.

I don't like that. Seduction at 6 and wanting to put it even higher, but no romance ? Hmpf.

So no, having only Seduction is honestly not truely fun for me.

Melchiah · Post by **Melchiah** » Wed Jul 13, 2005 8:29 am

Well the main reason you have seduction is to make sure you have one or two beautiful little bloodbanks at every club.

And if you are refering to the few seconds where the screen goes black and you hear Jeanette having an orgasm when you say "romance" then you don't need to "reunite" the two sisters, as long as Jeanette is stil allive you can get some "romance" from her if your seduction is high enough and you've been nice to her (but I think you're expecting more than you're going to get)

I have personally found that intimidate (although not as useful) can be a lot of fun especially when you're playing a clan that fits intimidation more than persuasion or seduction (I.E: Brujah, Nosferatu, Gangrel)

Lestat · Post by **Lestat** » Wed Jul 13, 2005 8:51 am

So no, having only Seduction is honestly not truely fun for me.

If you're only playing once or twice, you should be concentrating on persuasion, that's the most useful social skill. Personally, I belief that "Variety is the spice of Life", and it can be fun/challenging to try to play the different bloodlines with the autolevel scheme and only minimal tweaking. You'll get substantial differences even between Brujah and Gangrel in terms of gameplay, though both are essentially fighter types.

e.g. the Traffik quest, which I did in both cases fairly soon after arriving in downtown LA.
Brujah: killed of first level, then mainly used ventilation shafts (and the occasional killing) to get to the briefcase and relied on celerity to get the hell out of there after getting the briefcase.
Gangrel: on each level quietly stealth killed the thugs, until noticed, and then activated fortitude and killed the rest. By the time I got to the briefcase there was not a living soul left.

The advantage of fortitude compared to celerity/potence is that as a defensive attribute it works against a whole lot of enemies at the same time, while offensive attributes work only against one enemy at a time.

Tenser · Post by **Tenser** » Mon Jul 18, 2005 5:01 am

HEY DONT SPOIL !!!!

I want to find out whats going on myself !!!

You get additional 2 XP for getting the briefcase without killing anyone. After that, you can however kill them all.