Best beginning clan

CaptainSparrow · Post by **CaptainSparrow** » Sun May 28, 2006 9:00 am

Hi, I've seen some really illuminating threads on what people think are the best clans. My question is that as a person who just bought the game, what is the best clan to play as the first time round?
Most recommend the Malkavian as the best clan, but does the funny dialogue stop you from understanding exactly what you're saying if you haven't been through the story before?

Anaximander · Post by **Anaximander** » Sun May 28, 2006 9:17 am

Malkavian is not a clan I recommend for beginners. Their insane dialogue options can be hysterical, but they are also difficult to understand. You may inadvertantly offend NPC's if you don't know exactly what you're saying. Even after playing the game a couple times as other clans, you may not be certain about which lines to choose when playing as Malkavian. Now, the first time I played a Malk, I found that if I paid close attention to what the NPC's said, and thought about my possible dialogue options I almost always knew exactly what I wanted to say.

Malks do get Obfuscate, which is very helpful for getting out of a bind. They can also use Dementation in dialogue to get their way. Stealth is great in this game, so if you spend xp on making your character - any character, any clan - more stealthy, things will be much easier for you.

Personally, I think one of the best clans to start with is Ventrue. They can start with a high persuasion feat, which is very useful in many dialogues. They are the only clan in the game that can use Domination in dialogue as well. Their combination of Fortitude and Presence makes them very powerful defensely, which I believe is good for beginning players. You'll stay alive longer and more easily, allowing you a little more room for error. Gangrels can also be very powerful defensely, but their warform (Protean 5) is a bit ungainly.

To sum up, if you really want to play Malkavian first, go for it. You may find yourself confused, but you'll have a good laugh. I do recommend playing through at least once as something else, though. You may want to hold off on playing Nosferatu as well. You won't have any difficulty knowing what you're saying, but certain quests can be completed much more easily by talking your way through them, and the Nosferatu's hideous appearance often makes it impossible for them to talk to mortals at all.

Lonelypilgrim · Post by **Lonelypilgrim** » Sun May 28, 2006 9:37 am

In my opinion-go with the clan you found most appealing right from the start.Read the manual,some clan threads and then it should be clear.

I did so aswell,picked Tremere for the blood magic skills and good looks(well compared to some others)and didn't get bored of it until the end came.

CaptainSparrow · Post by **CaptainSparrow** » Sun May 28, 2006 9:54 am

Thanks for the suggestions.
The ventrue do appeal to me. I was also thinking toreador as they're all-rounders and I could adapt my character to how I liked to play the game. Also the Brujah, but are they too limited to fighting?

ellipsis jones · Post by **ellipsis jones** » Sun May 28, 2006 11:52 am

I agree with everything Anaximander said.

Brujah are advertised as the 'fighting' clan, but there's no reason you can't customize your Brujah to be a talker if that's what you want. Toreador might start with more points in social skills than Brujah (been awhile since I looked at the initial point distribution), but even so, that doesn't mean a lot in the long run. It's a matter of one or two ability points in a game where you get enough experience to buy dozens of points. So, almost any clan can be customized to fit any play style. Except for nosferatu ugliness, there's no built-in restriction on how you can allocate your xp.

CaptainSparrow · Post by **CaptainSparrow** » Sun May 28, 2006 4:27 pm

So with characters that are quite easily customisable except for some limitations, its best to pick based on other factors?
So things like how cool your character looks? Or just the general politics of your clan?
Another question, does the dialogue in game change dramatically depending on your clan? So would ventrue dialogue be quite arrogant whilst the brujah would perhaps veer on the anarchic?

Lucita · Post by **Lucita** » Sun May 28, 2006 4:48 pm

First of all....it depends on how you like to play...

If you want to play a melee/fighter character get a Brujah.
If you want to play a fighter/sneaking character get a Gangrel
If you want the ultimate sneaking character get a Nosferatu
If you want to have a good shooter and good social character get a Toreador
If you want to have special dialogue option cause of Dominate, good social character that can get a pounding in a melee get a Ventrue.
If you want to have the ultimate in firepower ( cause of Thaumaturgy ) get a Tremere.
And if you want to have the most fun cause of dialoge and Dementation...get a Malkavian...( they can be badass tanks too ).

ellipsis jones · Post by **ellipsis jones** » Sun May 28, 2006 5:27 pm

I think disciplines are a big factor when choosing a character. Anyone can be persuasive, but only Tremere can make people puke blood. Likewise, anyone can sneak, but there are some stealth quests (or stealthy approaches to quests) that will be a huge pain in the ass if you don't have obfuscate.

So yeah, I'd say choose a character whose look you like, whose disciplines sound like fun, and whose general play style (see Lucita's list) matches your own. Other than malkavians and nosferatu, who have their own unique challenges, I'd say any of the clans makes an equally good starting character.

As far as I know, clan-based dialogue changes are minimal. Only malkavians get an entirely different dialogue set; the other clans all have basically the same lines. Your humanity is what really changes the dialogue. If you confront a drooling psychopath while you have high humanity, you'll get dialogue choices that express varying degrees of disgust. If you have low humanity, you'll have options to compliment him on his fine knifework instead.

DarkBlack · Post by **DarkBlack** » Mon May 29, 2006 3:14 am

Even chalanged by their "good looks" a nosferatu is quite fun to play with...
Sure... you have 0 appearance and 0 subfurge and so on... but you still can spend yout xp on persuasion and intimidate skills.
Forget about free blood in the clubs and dont even think about talking to the prostitutes... BUT...
In the sewers rats are your main meal... instead of 1 blood point that you gain from a rat you get 3,this will come in handy later in the game.
Picking a Ventrue you cant just stick your fangs in what you like...
Feeding on lowlife humans can cause your Ventrue to vommit...and you gain no blood points feeding on rats...when you get to the certain point in the game it will be quite hard for you to pass it because of this...
I dont know why...but for starters i would recomend a noss...you will finish the game more easily because of the obfuscate discipline...boost up your hacking,lockpiking and melee skills....and you have yourself a pretty damn good character....but that is just me thinking

yrthwyndandfyre · Post by **yrthwyndandfyre** » Mon May 29, 2006 7:53 pm

Short version? As a first-time player, I would answer the questionairre honestly, and take what it gave you. In my experience, it's quite good at matching you to a character that will work for your personality and playing style. I got Tremere, which is not exactly an easy clan to play, but it worked nicely for me, and fit my personality and play style perfectly.

pennypincher · Post by **pennypincher** » Tue May 30, 2006 8:02 am

Venture! Out and out Ventrue. Get 1 point of Dominate for use in conversations and then stack on your Fort and Presence. Get plenty of Stam and be sure to purcahse armour at each chance you get. This lets you:

Enjoy the ease of bypassing complicated plot areas in conversation by just demanding things you want with Dominate.

Live through brutal beatings as you learn how weapons work, which one is right for your style and so on.

Make mistakes without being turned into ash by bosses or even pleabs because you can't take the hits.

Stick with the blue bloods. They are the Princes and the Lords of the night for a reason. Once you've finished a game with them, you'll know the ins and outs pretty well and you'll be more then ready to try something more flat out speicalised like a Brujah, or something more thin spread and generalised like a Torrie.

yrthwyndandfyre · Post by **yrthwyndandfyre** » Tue May 30, 2006 5:35 pm

[QUOTE=pennypincher]Stick with the blue bloods. They are the Princes and the Lords of the night for a reason.[/QUOTE]
Perhaps, but there is also a reason even the Ventrue fear the Tremere

mr_sir · Post by **mr_sir** » Tue May 30, 2006 6:08 pm

My first game I played as a Tremere and loved it - never really found it all that hard once I got the hang of the game. Tremere can become very powerful if you pick the right skills/disciplines to advance and I think they are quite a fun caln to play, especially if you like mage-type characters in rpgs rather than fighter type ones

Gangrel is fun too. In fact, any clan is ok for first time through IMO except Malk (cos it can get confusing even after playing several times lol) and Nosferatu (as navigating the sewers can get a bit confusing and annoying til you learn the layout of them, at least in my experience).

cyberpaddy66 · Post by **cyberpaddy66** » Wed May 31, 2006 2:09 am

[QUOTE=mr_sir]My first game I played as a Tremere and loved it - never really found it all that hard once I got the hang of the game. Tremere can become very powerful if you pick the right skills/disciplines to advance and I think they are quite a fun caln to play, especially if you like mage-type characters in rpgs rather than fighter type ones

[/QUOTE]

I have to agree, my 1st vamp was a female Tremere and she kicked booty, those blood magic's are very powerful.

I'm now trying to play all the different clans (simultaniously) in both male and female to see if the story lines differ.

pennypincher · Post by **pennypincher** » Sat Jun 03, 2006 11:14 am

[QUOTE=yrthwyndandfyre]Perhaps, but there is also a reason even the Ventrue fear the Tremere

[/QUOTE]

All to true! Only a fool doesn't fear a man who can kill you without having to leave his own house. I spose it's just my years of Pen and Paper that make me say: "Newbies don't use Tremere"... It's like starting your gun training with a nuke, or your parents getting you your frist book and making it "The Prince".

I spose they are a lot easier to master in the game. No 10,000 rituals to memorise, no 30 different paths of thurmaturgey to chose. No elders in a society based on rules breathing down your neck and keeping you subserviant 24/7... Well.. 12/7 I spose.

Acleacius · Post by **Acleacius** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 3:13 pm

I would say avoid Nossies and Malks first time, but make the Malk as definalte second playthru, as they are the best clan, maybe the best Player Character ever.

I would say go with a Torrie (guns), Brujah (melee) first time, well if you are an experiened RPGer then possibly Tremere (Magic).