A new development blog from The Chinese Room provides fresh details about the factions in Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, with a spotlight on its vampire hunters. This faction, called the Information Awareness Bureau (IAB), functions with a covert budget despite having no official government backing. Its field agents pursue vampires, referred to as "Hollow Ones," while officially documenting their activities as "training exercises" and "counter-terrorism operations."
Agent Baker, the IAB's commanding officer in Seattle, is a disciplined and pragmatic leader wholly committed to the permanent eradication of vampires. She meticulously analyzes anomalous events and combs through historical records to trace their links to the secretive vampire society. Her unyielding command style has led her devoted subordinates to call her "The Hen."
These hunters are highly organized, securing their base with robust external and internal defenses. Confronting them directly is a serious challenge, as they operate in coordinated squads, deploy powerful spotlights, and maintain communication using handheld radios. In combat, they employ thermal batons that ignore defensive moves and phosphorus grenades to flush enemies from hiding. Their sniper crossbows launch explosive bolts capable of catastrophic damage if not removed swiftly.
Still, the hunters have vulnerabilities. Physically, they are weaker than ghouls and vampires, and certain abilities can be used against them. The "Fire" skill, for instance, allows players to catch thrown grenades or bolts in mid-air and send them back. Players can also leverage the Ventrue clan's power to temporarily dominate an enemy, turning them against their own squad.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 is slated for release in the first half of 2025 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
