Top Clan Picks in Vampire: The Masquerade

Select Language:

Choosing your clan is a key part of playing Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2. Clans are like classes in other RPGs—they mainly determine which abilities you’ll unlock first. Each clan has its own section on the skill tree, and while you can learn skills from other branches, those are usually more expensive to acquire.

Every clan also has two or three “affinities” — specific skill types that you can learn more easily, regardless of your main clan. Clans influence your role-playing options and how other vampires perceive you as you explore Seattle’s dark underground in this game.

Perfect for Stealth

The Banu Haqim are the stealth-focused clan. They have skills that let them stay hidden, move quietly, and eliminate enemies quickly. They’re ideal if you prefer a calculated approach rather than direct combat.

Banu Haqim’s abilities include:

Bladed Hand: Slash in front of you, dealing extra damage and beheading weaker foes.
Split Second: Move so fast it looks like time is slowing down.
Mute: Silence enemy screams and gunfire.
Unseen Aura: Turn temporarily invisible.
Unseen Passage: Sprint while crouching without slowing down.

Their core passive, Silence of Death, makes all actions silent after feeding. This allows you to sneak in, do quick damage, and escape without alerting anyone.

Playing as a Banu Haqim requires a careful approach. You’ll want to sneak behind enemies, attack from above, and avoid large group battles. Instead, trick enemies into separating and then strike when they’re unsuspecting.

They have three affinities: Celerity, Blood Sorcery, and Obfuscate. These skills let them move faster, cast spells, or stay hidden more cheaply, often from the Brujah, Tremere, or Toreador skill trees.

The Banu Haqim are known for seeking justice, which shows in dialogue. They make good enforcers and investigators, but their swift, uncompromising nature can be intimidating.

Brujah: Rebels, Punks, Rabble

The Brujah excel in strength and speed. If sneaking isn’t your style, you might prefer their direct, aggressive combat approach. They focus on hitting hard and fast, using their reflexes and presence to dominate fights.

Brujah skills include:

Lightning Strike: A flurry of hits targeting multiple enemies.
Charge: Rush forward, grabbing an enemy to knock over others.
Taunt: Make enemies attack you, increasing the damage they take.
Earthshock: A ground-pound attack that sends enemies flying.
Spark of Rage: Still activates your clan passive even if you kill without feeding.

Their passive ability, Brutality, makes their melee attacks stronger after feeding or killing (once you unlock Spark of Rage). This clan is perfect if you enjoy action-packed gameplay.

Brujah are also good at using skills like Celerity, Presence, and Potence, and can access abilities from other clans’ skill trees, making them quite versatile despite their melee focus.

They have a reputation as fighters. In conversations, some will respect your combat skills, others will fear or resent them.

Tremere: Spellcasters

If magic and mysticism appeal to you, the Tremere are the right choice. They specialize in long-range damage using spells.

Tremere abilities include:

Blood Curse: Enchant an enemy so that, when they take damage, their body explodes and harms others nearby.
Recall: Set a teleport point and return there instantly.
Cauldron of Blood: Boil an enemy’s blood, making them scream and attracting nearby foes.
Blood Salvo: Launch blood daggers at distant enemies.
Blood of Potency: When you feed, charge a random ability point.

Their passive, Corrosive Touch, dissolves the bodies of those they feed on, making stealth easier because feeds leave no trace.

Tremere rely heavily on their abilities; if they can’t feed often, they might struggle. They’re great for crowd control. They grant affinity in Dominate and Blood Sorcery skills, which you can boost by taking abilities from the Ventrue, Lasombra, or Banu Haqim trees.

Tremere are known for their secretive, arcane knowledge. Despite their power structure falling apart before the game, they still command respect.

Ventrue: Nobles and Manipulators

Ventrue are considered the easiest clan to play. They come from high society and prefer manipulation over combat. They turn enemies against each other with their influence.

Ventrue skills include:

Terminal Decree: Force someone to kill themselves or make a vampire drop their weapons.
Possession: Control an enemy briefly to attack others.
Cloud Memory: Make an enemy forget seeing you.
Mass Manipulation: Subdue multiple enemies at once.
Resilience: Better HP recovery from feeding.

Their passive, Flesh of Marble, boosts their defense against all damage, making them durable without direct fighting. This makes Ventrue ideal for players who want to progress through the story smoothly.

They focus on Dominate and Presence skills, and can access abilities from the Brujah, Tremere, Toreador, or Lasombra trees, giving them flexible options for influence and control.

Role-play-wise, Ventrue are noble and aristocratic. Some players admire their superiority, while others resent it.

Toreador: Artists and Hedonists

If you want to highlight the vampiric charm and allure, Toreador is the clan for you. They excel at charming and entrancing enemies, often using their appeal to influence others.

Toreador skills include:

Entrancing Kiss: Make a target an ally temporarily.
Blink: Instantly teleport somewhere.
Beckon: Entrap a person to walk toward a specific spot.
Blurred Momentum: Reduce incoming damage temporarily.
Fleetness: Improve movement abilities over time, not just when feeding.

Their passive, Cat’s Grace, increases movement after feeding, plus Blink and Fleetness skills, making them highly mobile and capable of escaping danger.

They have affinity for Celerity and Presence skills, which can be boosted by abilities from the Banu Haqim, Brujah, or Ventrue trees.

Toreadors often see themselves as artists and creatives. Their charm gives them a cool aura, but some might see them as hedonistic or superficial.

Lasombra: Shadows, Turncoats, Traitors

Lasombra specialize in staying hidden, controlling shadows, and remaining unseen. Their focus is more on shadow manipulation than speed, which can be difficult if you’re new to the game.

Lasombra skills include:

Arms of Ahriman: Create shadow traps.
Shadow Step: Teleport into a shadow.
Glimpse of Oblivion: Frighten enemies to make them run.
Enter Oblivion: Use a pocket dimension to eliminate foes unseen.
Stygian Shroud: Make it so enemies can’t attack you while feeding.

Their passive, Shadow Cloak, makes them almost invisible after feeding. They favor abilities in Dominate, Potence, and Oblivion, with lower costs for abilities from Brujah, Tremere, and Ventrue.

Lasombra are often ambitious and prefer to manipulate mortals as tools. Their reputation can make others wary of trusting them.

Choose your clan wisely, as your decision affects your play style, role-playing options, and how you navigate the game world. Skills can be learned from other clans later, but your initial choice is permanent.