New Vampire Tutorial - How to Play Reign Of Blood

Welcome to Reign Of Blood - a free text-based vampire game. This guide covers everything a new vampire needs to know - from your first battle to Ranking up, training, covens and beyond. No downloads, no installs, no sunscreen required (not that it would help you much now anyway) - just Blood, Blood and more Blood!

What is Reign Of Blood?

Reign Of Blood is a long-running free text-based vampire RPG played entirely in your browser. Launched in 2006 and still going strong, it drops you into a dark immersive world where you play as a vampire navigating rival covens, ancient cities, bloody combat and long-term progression. Grow in power, complete quests, battle rivals, and build your legend in an online community that has been thriving for over two decades.

If you are new to text-based games, first - where have you been? Second, it is beautifully simple: you play by reading and clicking. Every page describes what is happening, and the links are your actions - fight, quest, consume, or talk. You read the world, click to act, and let your imagination do the rest. Every link is a choice, every page a moment, and every late-night login another step deeper into the darkness as you build your vampire character into a high-ranked, powerful immortal.

Turns & The Hourly Reset

Turns are the primary resource you spend on activities throughout the game - battling other vampires, training your stats and more. Every hour at the 59th minute (known as the Top of Hour, or TOH), all battles pause for one minute while every vampire in the Dead City is revived and given 20 Turns. When the new hour begins at :00, the fighting resumes. Each vampire battle costs 1 Turn - simple enough to remember, even on your first night.

The TOH is the busiest moment of each hour. Every target is freshly revived and every vampire is competing for kills at the same time - fastest finger first. You can attack throughout the hour too, as vampires pop back up once their protection expires at various points, but attacking at the TOH gives you the most choice of targets all at once.

A Second Revive (RAHP) - At half past every hour, all inactive vampires (those who have not logged in for over two weeks) are revived again for an extra feeding session mid-hour. That is correct - we let the active vampires feed on the inactive ones twice an hour. A cautionary tale for those who go quiet.

~15-Minute Protection - As a new vampire you will only ever be attacked by other new vampires (under 60 days old), which stops the elder vampires from throwing their weight around on day one. On top of that, every time you are attacked you receive around 15-ish minutes of protection before you can be targeted again. Being defeated carries no real consequence - it simply prevents you from attacking others until you heal, either manually using the quick heal link at the top of the page or automatically at the next TOH. Either way, you get straight back on the horse - although we do not have horses here, as they frankly do not taste great.

• All vampires revive and receive 20 Turns at :59 past the hour
• Battles reopen at :00 - the best time to strike
• Inactive vampires revive again at :30 for a mid-hour bonus session
• New vampires are protected from veterans during their first 60 days
• Being defeated has no real consequence - pride heals quickly around here

Blood, Ranking Up & AP

Your primary goal is to fill your Blood bar by fighting and feeding on other vampires - though there are other ways to earn Blood too, which we will explain later. Each time you fill it completely your Rank increases by 1 and you are rewarded with 3 AP to spend on increasing your stats. The higher your Rank, the stronger you become - which means you can defeat stronger, higher-ranked vampires and earn even more Blood in return. Literally gallons of the stuff awaits you.

The blood reward from each battle is based on the enemy vampire's Rank relative to your own:

• Enemy Rank x3 - attack a higher ranked vampire. Example: you are Rank 5, enemy is Rank 10 - you earn 30 Blood (10x3)
• Enemy Rank x2 - attack the same rank. Example: you are Rank 5, enemy is Rank 5 - you earn 10 Blood (5x2)
• Enemy Rank x1 - attack a lower ranked vampire. Example: you are Rank 5, enemy is Rank 4 - you earn 4 Blood (4x1)

Targeting higher-ranked vampires pays the most Blood - but they tend to be stronger, so find the sweet spot of opponents just above your own Rank that you can still defeat. This strategy maximises your Blood return per Turn. Bear in mind that being attacked by a lower-ranked vampire may aggravate them - nobody enjoys being picked on by someone beneath their Rank - so aim higher wherever possible. The Weaker Vampires list helps find vampires who are higher Rank but have lower Power (stats).

Your Battle Stats

You have four core battle stats. Increasing these makes you stronger in combat, opening up more targets to defeat and feed on.

• Strength - mainly increases your damage output in battle
• Speed - determines how many hits you land and who strikes first
• Toughness - mainly increases your defence in battle
• Life - how much damage you can take before being knocked out

Your Life bar starts at 100/100 and you must have at least 1 Life remaining to attack another vampire. When defeated, use the green Heal Up link at the top of the page before your next battle. That feeling of being healed is like a double espresso - instant, necessary, and you will probably need another one within the hour.

Which stats to prioritise? Balance is key in the long run. Early on, spend your AP on Speed and Life Max first. More Speed means more hits per battle and striking first - a big advantage when starting out. Life Max can only be increased with AP and QP, not with Turns, so keep it growing as you rank up. Use your Turns at the Training Gym to build Strength and Speed with a bit of Toughness mixed in. When you join a coven - and you really should - they will have tried and tested stat strategies to help you find the build that suits you best.

Currencies & Resources

Hover over any currency name in the left sidebar inside the game for a quick reminder of what it does. Here is a summary of everything you will encounter:

• $ Money - the primary currency for purchases and trades. Banked at the Dead City bank for safe keeping and to earn interest. Earned through battling and quests.
• AP - Ability Points earned by ranking up. Spend them on your stats or sell them at the Auction Market (Rank 10+) for in-game money.
• QP - Quest Points earned from quests, achievements and missions. Works like AP but cannot be traded.
• Plasma - the most valuable currency. Can be converted into AP, VIP days and more.
• MP - claim up to 400 per day and spend them at the Power Potions shop to temporarily boost your stats for an hour, completely free.

Training at the Gym

As well as battling, you can spend your Turns at the Training Gym in Dead City to directly increase your Strength, Speed and Toughness. Training costs only Turns - no money required. The rate is approximately Turns spent x 0.01 to 0.03, so 100 Turns trained yields the equivalent of 1 to 3 AP worth of stat points.

A popular early strategy is the 50/50 method - split your Turns evenly between battling (to earn Blood and rank up) and training (to keep your Power growing at the same pace). If you rank up faster than you train, you may find yourself facing increasingly strong opponents while your own stats fall behind. However, if you prefer to use more Turns battling than training, that is fine too - daily quests and other activities can help supplement your stats as long as your Turns are used wisely. Some vampires do not want to burn all their Turns on training - they want to play! But there will be days when real life kicks you in the teeth and you do not have the time to battle, and on those days training is the best use of your Turns.

Equipment

Equipment makes a significant difference in battle and there is plenty of it to collect. You will start with access to weapons and armour, both of which can be purchased with in-game money at the equipment shops in Dead City or earned by completing achievement lists. As you progress and rank up, more equipment types unlock - including shields, Faith Stones, Throwing Daggers, Rage Stones, collectibles and seasonal event equipment. There is always something new to work towards.

Every piece of weapon, armour and shield has 3 slots available for Blood Rubies, which allow you to add critical% and block% bonuses to your weapons and armour. The Blood Ruby Store is located in Dead City and is well worth visiting once your wallet is well padded.

Further down the line, higher-ranked and wealthier vampires unlock the ability to dual wield weapons, dual wield shields and much more. It is a long road, but a well-equipped vampire at the end of it is a formidable one.

How Battling Works

Each battle costs 1 Turn. Go to the BATTLE tab in the top navigation and select Weakest Vampires to see attackable vampires whose combined Power is lower than yours. Click an attack link, view the outcome, then move on to your next target.

Ctrl + Click for speed - hold Ctrl (or Command on a Mac) while clicking attack links to open each battle in a new tab. Work down the list rapidly, then right-click your current tab and choose "Close all other tabs" if you do not need to review each result. If you are defeated mid-session and keep clicking, subsequent attacks will not go through - remember to heal first.

Saving good targets - when you find a higher-ranked vampire you can consistently defeat, add them to your Enemy List using the link shown after the battle. Return to them each hour for reliable Blood income. Access your Enemy List under BATTLE > Enemy Lists (PvP).

No targets? Head to BATTLE > NPC Werewolf Arena to battle NPC werewolves for Blood. This is also part of your daily quests so you will encounter it early on regardless.

Covens

Covens are clans or guilds where vampires work together for common goals. It is strongly recommended that new players join a coven as soon as possible - they are one of the most helpful features in the game for beginners.

• Free stat boosts - when a coven levels up, all members gain +1 Strength or +1 Toughness from relics
• Equipment loans - most covens lend weapons and armour to newer members
• Guides and strategy - coven forums are packed with tips from experienced players
• Coven quests - daily coven quests earn you extra money and experience on top of the standard daily quests

You are also valuable to a coven - you contribute experience through quests, wars and battles. Covens want new members just as much as new vampires need them.

Making Money

Money funds equipment upgrades and trading. Here are the main ways to build wealth early on.

• Battle winnings - every battle you win earns money as well as Blood. The amount is based on your own Rank, so income snowballs as you rank up.
• Auction Market - found in Dead City's Trading Quarter. Buy and sell Plasma, AP and other items for in-game money. Once you reach Rank 10 you can sell your AP there - a fast and reliable early income stream.
• Daily quests - at least 9 available every day, resetting at midnight. Completing them earns money and other rewards.
• Coven quests - coven daily quests pay out money on top of the standard daily quests.

A solid early strategy is to split your AP - spend half on your stats and sell the other half at the Auction Market. You will be reminded about this when you reach Rank 10.

World Locations

Beyond Dead City you can travel to several other locations via the Portal tab in the navigation. Each has its own resource system and rewards.

• Dead City - your home base. The Training Gym, Auction Market, Bank, Blood Ruby Store and most core game features are here.
• Spring Valley - human hunting grounds. Earn Stamina every 5 minutes while located here. Leave your character here overnight to build up Stamina to hunt with the next day.
• Vadenhill - a human storage warehouse. Healthy humans captured in Spring Valley can be stored here for feeding. Requires Rank 10 to enter.
• Greenwood - a forest full of lootable money. Earn Energy every 5 minutes here (even while dead). Leave your character here overnight to build Energy. Great for newer vampires building wealth.
• Mt. Tilia - battle vampire pets against other players for QP rewards. Pets reset monthly. The cheapest pet starts at $5,000 in-game money.
• Petrik's Shack - purchase a Minion to fight alongside you in PvP battles. Requires Rank 30. Minions have their own Attack, Defence and Attack Chance stats.

Social Features

Reign Of Blood has a thriving social side that goes well beyond the battlefield. Click the SOCIAL tab in the top navigation to access your Social Panel - the central hub for all public activity across the game, including status updates, blogs, profile comments, and everything happening within and outside your social circles.

Every vampire has a fully customisable public profile - click your name in the left sidebar to view yours. You can personalise it to your heart's desire and use it to show off your creativity, your story, and your standing in the Dead City. To add another vampire to your friends or family list, visit their profile and use the links in the "Links and Spells" section.

Houses - social groups outside of covens for vampires who want to connect beyond their coven circle. You are automatically added to the new player House when you register, so you already have a community waiting for you.

Blood Letters (BLs) - the in-game private messaging system, because even vampires need their privacy. Send a Blood Letter to any vampire by visiting their profile and clicking "Send Blood Letter". Access your inbox via BL's in the top navigation. New messages appear as a green notification in the left sidebar - do try to respond, ghosting is considered poor form even in our dark world.

Roleplay

Reign Of Blood has a dedicated and passionate roleplay community with a full set of features built specifically for it. If you enjoy writing, storytelling and collaborative fiction, you will feel very much at home here - and if you have never tried roleplay before, this is a rather good place to start.

You can create separate RP characters that exist independently of your main vampire, each with their own identity, backstory and personality. From there, the tools available include a scribble wall for quick musings and in-character thoughts, RP and story blogs for longer narratives, dedicated RP chats, an RP forum and even RP-only vanity stats for those who like to track their characters' development outside of the main game mechanics.

Roleplay is also woven into some of the game's core features. The Work Place is a good example - each day you are presented with a scenario, and you respond in character using one of your RP characters for QP rewards. It is one of those features that manages to be both creatively satisfying and mechanically useful at the same time, which is a rare thing.

Whether you want to write sprawling vampire lore, get involved in community storylines, or simply add a bit of character flavour to your time in the Dead City, the roleplay side of Reign Of Blood is there whenever you want it - and completely optional if you do not.