History VideoGame / VampireTheMasqueradeRedemption

* AllThereInTheManual: The manual contains a lot of information on Christof's backstory and the TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness that never actually comes up during the course of the game. The official strategy guide also contains a wealth of additional character details that aren't overly apparent in the game, among them exactly why Christof's faith faltered against Ecaterina, Wilhem's MysteriousPast, Serena's disdain for mortal "[[WeAreAsMayflies mayflies]]" (only alluded to in cut dialogue), Lily's bisexuality, and hints that Pink is a diablerist. Of particular note is its final word on certain supporting characters whose [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse fates weren't obvious]] in the main game, such as the corrupt Archbishop Geza, who's revealed to have died during Prague's uprising against Vysehrad while attempting to flee with the church's riches.

* AllThereInTheManual: The manual contains a lot of information on Christof's backstory and the TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness that never actually comes up during the course of the game.

** If Christof expresses his doubts about whether it's proper to ask for a witch's assistance in defeating vampires, the smith who advises it justifies it by saying that even [[Literature/TheBible King Saul sought assistance from a witch]] when he wasn't fighting them. Indeed he did, and [[spoiler:Saul was defeated and died shortly thereafter. Christof does not succeed in his initial quest and in fact does "die".]]

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Averted with most of the clans, including your enemies, most of whom [[ALighterShadeOfBlack come off looking better]] against Clan Tzimisce and produce at least one or two reasonable figures. Also averted with the Sabbat, whose ranks notably include [[spoiler:Ecaterina and Wilhem]] after the timeskip. Played straight with the Tzimisce, who from the lowest dreg to the highest Antediluvian-level threat are presented as nothing short of monstrous. By the end of the game, ''[[AxCrazy Libussa]]'' is probably the most sympathetic Tzimisce, and only then when her madness ebbs.

* PragmaticVillainy: The high lords of Clan Tzimisce lauded Vukodlak's evildoing, but chastened his ''blatant'' evildoing, and denounced his EvilPlan to usurp the Antediluvians. When he went ahead with it anyway, they cast him into torpor (deigning outright warfare too costly) and dispersed his holdings amongst themselves.

* BladeOnAStick: Virstania takes you on with a halberd, which also happens to be Wilhem's starting weapon.

* PragmaticVillainy: The high lords of Clan Tzimisce lauded Vukodlak's evildoing, but chastened his ''blatant'' evildoing, and denounced his EvilPlan to usurp the Antediluvians. When went ahead with it anyway, they cast him into torpor (deigning outright warfare too costly) and dispersed his holdings amongst themselves.

** Vukodlak turns out to be this [[spoiler: his plan is to kill all the antediluvians in their sleep and absorb their power before they can awaken and destroy the world. Christof points out that one superpowered antediluvian would be no better than 13 normal ones]]

* TheMagnificent: A few vampires are styled this way, notably Ecaterina the Wise and Orsi the, er, Magnificent, but Clan Tzimisce embraces the habit with a macabre bent. There's Ahzra the Unliving, Libussa the Defiled, [[TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard Viceroy and Voivode Urdo, Sculptor of the Flesh of Thousands, Master of the Hellhounds, Revenger of Wayward Voivodes]]; and the BigBad himself, Voivode Vukodlak, Scourge of the Carpathians, Smither of Lesser Clans, Slayer of Lupines.

* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Christof's challenge to Ecaterina during the cutscene in which he's sired ("I know thy ways, demon, and I have lore enough to kill thee"!) will still be made even if you'd decided not to consort with the gypsy woman, Unorna, the source of said lore.

* TheMagnificent: A few vampires are styled this way, notably Ecaterina the Wise and Orsi the, er, Magnificent, but Clan Tzimisce embraces the habit with a macabre bent. There's Ahzra the Unliving, Libussa the Defiled, [[TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard Viceroy and Voivode, Sculptor of the Flesh of Thousands, Master of the Hellhounds, Revenger of Wayward Voivodes]]; and the BigBad himself, Voivode Vukodlak, Scourge of the Carpathians, Smither of Lesser Clans, Slayer of Lupines.

* VendorTrash: Jewelry items. Technically, they have an in-game use, but it's of little ability (increasing your Appearance stat when worn.) In the single-player game, any items not usable by vampires (such as Holy Statuettes and Holy Crosses) also qualify.

* SpeciesLoyalty: Deadly averted. Allied clans are united as much by convenience as they are camaraderie, and even the closest of them will not shy from violence if treachery is suspected; the Brujah incursion into the lair of their Cappadocian allies is Christof's first taste of kindred politics. Ecaterina is also allied to the Ventrue and keeps to their rules, having sought the prince's permission before siring a new vampire, but privately detests the clan of kings and would revel in its downfall as surely as she would the Tzimisce. Prince Rudolf is allied with the much-maligned Tremere, as the two are hated enemies of the Tzimisce, but the mages' poor conduct during their war leads Rudolf to order their chantry sacked. And kindred politics are only bloodier and uglier from there. Kindred might see mortals as lesser beings, but as Unorna tells a yet-mortal Christof, vampires save their true hatred for other vampires.

* SuicidalOverconfidence: The genius Premysl revenants who identify Christof as a force to be reckoned with and throw their lives away against him anyway.

Can be bought from [[http://www.gog.com/game/vampire_the_masquerade_redemption Good Old Games]].

* NotSoHarmlessVillain: And Mercurio and especially Ardan, two snivelling weasels that can still prove frustrating boss fights. Justified in both cases though: for all his personality defects, Mercurio ''is'' a Cappadocian prodigy, and Ardan deliberately stalls for time to prepare a barrage of powerful spells.

* LetsYouAndHimFight: The Tremere lore Etrius pulls this by [[spoiler:converting Erik into a demonic gargoyle and loosing him the coterie]], although Etrius himself is a BackgroundBoss during this battle.

* KnightTemplar: Christof has the look and disposition down, especially if certain puritanical dialogue choices are made while he's still a human. His illicit love for Anezka, his [[OurVampiresAreDifferent unjust fate]], and some [[BrweakingSpeech scathing commentary]] from his sire all challenge Christof's faith, but as Wilhem tells him, the curse of Caine is not necessarily a bar to the slaying of wicked creatures. Archbishop Geza is a straighter, less sympathetic, and more hypocritical example.

* TheAtoner: Wilhelm is encouraged to become this after the TimeSkip. Anezka believes she has fallen so far from grace that personal atonement is impossible, [[spoiler:but she and Christof ultimately find redemption in their love for each other.]] Needless to say, the topic of redemption is also a theme of Christof's story.

* BladeOnAStick: Virstania takes you on with a halberd, which also happens to be Wilhelm's starting weapon.

* EnemyMine: Wilhelm, a Sabbat, agrees to work with Christof because a) they're old friends from when Christof was sired, and b) there's a greater evil at work. Also standard operating procedure for vampire politics, especially in the Dark Ages; feuding clans often set their grievances aside to deal with greater, more direct threats.
* EtTuBrute: {{Averted}}. No one seems particularly surprised or offended by [[spoiler:Pink's betrayal of the group. Christof dismisses the entire affair and, if anything, is jumping with joy at being reunited with his good friend Wilhelm in the aftermath.]]

* FreudianTrio: The coterie of Christof, Wilhelm, and Serena, in an understated way. Christof is the impassioned and disillusioned instigator, Wilhelm is the cool and dependable exemplar of their clan's tenets, and Serena both mourns her lost mortality and embraces her newfound powers.

* FrozenFashionSense: Averted by Christof, who upon awakening to the year 1999 quickly realises he needs to trade his moldering old crusader garments for something modern. Wilhelm and Orsi updated their wardrobes across the centuries too. Played straight by Orsi's childer and the Tzimisce villains, though.

* TrueCompanions: Christof manages to inspire the unflinching, unfailing loyalty of his coterie, even crossing thousands of years in the case of Wilhelm (and, in the Age of Redemption mod, Serena). These vampires will do anything to stay at Christof's side and help him reunite with his true love. [[spoiler:Except Pink.]]

* CoolestClubEver: London's Club Tenebrae, with its bloody aesthetic and blearing grunge. The nightclub's bartender is all too aware that his clientele encompasses more creatures of the night than partying goths.

* FriendlyNeighbourhoodVampires: On occasion... but mostly not. Clan Brujah professes to respect mortals and preaches coexistence, but their leader places little value in the current "breed" and is far more concerned with kindred affairs. The Tremere and Tzimisce both abduct mortals and craft them into monsters -- gargoyles and szlachta, respectively -- to bolster their soldiers in the war they wage against each other. Christof needs to receive special permission from the Ventrue prince to so much as rescue the captured mortals from Tremere imprisonment. [[TheGrotesque Josef the nosferatu]] is about the most empathetic of the lot, lamenting his inability to protect the mortals from Mercurio's rampaging golem, but even he freely admits to gorging upon Christian blood now and then.

* AerithAndBob: Anezka, Alexandra, Virstania, Samuel, Vukodlak, George... Mostly justified, what with the 800 TimeSkip halfway through the game, but several strikingly-named immortals endure into the new age too.