Rules reference
Equipment in Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition
Gear basics and how equipment impacts play. Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition is a modern gothic horror tabletop roleplaying game where you play as a Kindred, a vampire struggling to maintain their humanity while navigating the complex politics of the Camarilla. Set in a dark reflection of our world, VTM5e combines personal horror with political intrigue, as players balance their Beast against their fading Humanity.
Key points
Equipment changes what’s possible in the fiction: access, leverage, and risk management. This page focuses on the gear that matters most.
- 7 Camarilla clans: Brujah, Gangrel, Malkavian, Nosferatu, Toreador, Tremere, Ventrue
- 10 Predator Types: Alleycat, Bagger, Blood Leech, Cleaver, Consensualist, Farmer, Osiris, Sandman, Scene Queen, Siren
- Discipline system: In-clan Disciplines cost less XP than out-of-clan
- Hunger dice system: Replaces health, can cause messy criticals or bestial failures
- Humanity tracking: Starts at 7, decreases with immoral actions
- Blood Potency: Increases with age, affects feeding and Discipline power
VTM V5 uses d10 dice pools: roll Attribute + Skill, count successes on 6+, and watch for criticals on 10s. Hunger dice add personal-horror volatility (messy criticals and bestial failures).
- Build your pool (Attribute + Skill).
- Roll d10s and count successes (6+).
- Interpret 10s (critical) and Hunger outcomes (messy critical/bestial failure) as story-forward complications.
The best gear changes what’s possible: access, safety, speed, and options. Track what lets you do something you couldn’t do before.
If a roll is dangerous, gear can change position: better tools, better cover, better information.
- Mistake: Tracking too many tiny items. Fix: Track gear that changes options, safety, speed, or access.
- Mistake: Buying gear without a use case. Fix: Ask: what scene does this gear make easier or safer?