Players who get into Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt for the first time will realize that their vampire - or Kindred - is thrust into a terrifying battle royale as they fight not just for their own survival but against vampire hunters of the Second Inquisition. And while Bloodhunt seems like a simple Vampire: The Masquerade battle royale, the title does carry the spirit of the TTRPG with it. In fact, it seems there are elements of Bloodhunt that add to the mystery and glamour of the roleplaying game.
For fans who want to sink their teeth into Bloodhunt as their first World of Darkness game, they might delight in the fact that looking deep into the premise and gameplay of Bloodhunt can give a lot of insights into the deeper lore of the franchise. Just what should players be on the lookout for?
8 Everyone’s Sense The Unseen
One of the most noticeable gameplay elements in Bloodhunt is the Sense The Unseen ability, which allows vampires to “see” the auras of special items such as equipment, the Blood Resonances of other humans, as well as other vampires. However, this is a surprising change to the lore, considering that only users of the Discipline Auspex can tap into Sense the Unseen.
This is curious, as only the Toreador can naturally access Auspex as a Discipline. While it’s perfectly possible for other vampires to “learn” Auspex through education, this means the Discipline may have been taught to the characters among the existing Archetypes.
7 The Second Convention Of Prague
In the game’s current lore, it’s the First Convention of Prague of 2012 that changed the course of Kindred history. During its events, the Camarilla has begun blaming the Anarchs for the revelation of Kindred society to the Second Inquisition due to their usage of modern technology. However, the Anarchs countered that it was the Camarilla and their meddling in human affairs that led to the discovery.
Regardless, the Convention ended in violence that resulted in the Brujah defection. Interestingly, Bloodhunt is set just after the Second Convention of Prague, with the implication that it happened only a few years after. The lack of information regarding its happenings is intriguing in itself, which if left unrevealed could encourage players who also play the TTRPG to invent their personal narratives.
6 Enter The Entity
While the First Inquisition eventually “ended,” the Catholic Church’s persistence in finding and hunting vampires never really stopped. Although the lore refers to the Society of Leopold as the forefront “secret society” dedicated to eliminating the vampire threat, it’s Bloodhunt that formally introduced the secret agency within the Vatican - the Entity.
In the game, Prince Markus of Prague explained that the Entity “formally” started moving against the Kindred when they began sharing notes with other intelligence agencies. This resulted in the destruction of the Tremere’s Vienna chantry, as well as the death of Queen Anne in the “Fall of London” storyline. In Bloodhunt, the Entity takes the form of soldiers that can detect vampires and eliminate them quickly, serving as elite threats.
5 The Red Gas
Most battle royale games ensure that players eventually confront and fight each other through a map-shrinking mechanic, be it through a heat zone (Apex Legends) or an outright “poisonous land” mechanic. In Bloodhunt, this comes from the Red Gas, and it also has a canonical explanation in its existence. According to the decree of Prince Markus prior to the Second Convention, the Red Gas - known to the Church as Velum Sanctuarii - is a weaponized gas deployed by the Second Inquisition specifically to target Kindred.
However, the lack of information adds a lot of weird angles when speculating about its origins. While it doesn’t lack mortals, Kindred exposed to the Red Gas not only smell myrrh (similar to gasoline) and sandalwood but even experience a sensation similar to the fright or Keening they experience when near churches. What’s known, however, is that it seems the Red Gas was already being experimented with by the Church as early as a decade ago.
4 Nosferatu, The Original Settlers
Among the new characters introduced in Bloodhunt was Omnis, the Primogen and head representative of the Nosferatu in Prince Markus’s court. However, unlike other Primogens and similar to other Nosferatu, Omnis carries the same enigmatic aura that adds to the mystery surrounding their Clan and Prague.
According to Omnis, the Nosferatu were the original Kindred denizens of Prague, albeit from their “city under the city” in its underground. Moreover, the Nosferatu - known as Rats - are often stated as one of the reasons a Prince maintains control over Prague, particularly due to their intelligence-gathering skills. Since the Nosferatu settled in Prague first, Prince Markus wonders whether the Nosferatu still think of it as such.
3 Anticipating The Nosferatu Anarchs
Interestingly enough, despite Prince Markus’s trust and belief in the loyalty among his Primogens, he demonstrates enough wisdom to not necessarily trust any of them. This is particular within his notes, as he mentioned that Nosferatu are still maintaining contact with other Nosferatu Anarchs with their “blood first” policy.
However, in the event of the Nosferatu Anarchs being a threat, Prince Markus does take note of two particular threats all need to be wary of - both being Archetypes in the game. First, the Nosferatu Prowlers are trained hunters that use their knowledge of the city to hunt prey. Secondly, the Saboteurs use technology and weapons such as gases and bombs to eliminate their foes.
2 Wary Of The Toreador Roses
Prior to Prince Markus’s rule in Prague came the Toreadors, often called Roses among the Kindred. Equipped with their natural charm, the Toreador arrived in Prague around the 17th century, with the arrival of the 20th century marking their attempts to “charm” their way into ruling the city. And while the Toreador Prince Vasily was ousted by Markus’s predecessor Carlak, the Toreador persisted as charmers within the Camarilla.
One Toreador of note was Maia, the Toreador Primogen. Throughout Prince Markus’s notes, he regards Maia as a praised and practiced socialite and even a secret confidante of presidents in Czechoslovakia. Prince Markus considers her disloyal and prone to betrayal, which is why he keeps her on his side as Toreador Primogen.
1 Enter Sherriff Kirill
Known notably as philosopher-kings, rebels, and visionaries, the Brujah Clan is almost always associated with development and change. As such it makes sense that Brujah have become a member of the Anarchs, especially after Theo Bell - formerly an Archon or a high-ranking Camarilla member - led a revolt and defection of the Clan from the Camarilla.
While players of the games can technically play a Brujah still loyal to the Camarilla, Bloodhunt introduces its first formal example of one such Brujah - that in the form of Kirill, the Sherriff of Prince Markus’s Prague Camarilla. According to the Prince, Kirill developed a deep hatred towards the Anarchs after horrific events during the October Revolution and the Great War.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt is currently available on PC and PS5.