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==General Knowledge of Vampires==

This overhaul includes 23 bloodlines (24 if you count the Purebloods). That seems like quite a lot for just one land mass doesn’t it? Just because one continent knows about a particular strain of vampire doesn’t mean they know about them all. A desert nation will surely have no knowledge of Volkihar vampires, or at the very least, they will never have encountered them. Perhaps a given region doesn’t know that there are multiple strains of vampirism. Some adventuring party may go prancing about, thinking they know what to expect from fighting a vampire, and encounter a vampire from a bloodline they have never even heard of. Suddenly, the vampire uses powers they didn’t know vampires had and now they are left dumbfounded and no longer know what to expect. Perhaps the would-be party went to a foreign land; perhaps the vampire is the foreigner in the party’s land. Whatever the case, DMs are encouraged to make good use of surprises.

Example encounter: 

Mr. Fighter, Mr. Thief, and Mr. Mage know all about Aundae vampires. This party knows that when they encounter a vampire they should expect to be hit with all manner of magicks. Of course, Aundae vampires aren’t so much physically stronger that they are a serious threat in close range combat. Surely the vampire will avoid close range combat all together. This party is traveling in a foreign region and one night, they encounter a vampire. They immediately begin using whatever means they have to protect themselves from magic and prepare to charge the vampire. For some strange reason, the vampire is heavily armored. It turns out this vampire is from the Quarra bloodline. To their surprise, the vampire charges THEM. With great ferocity, the vampire proves Mr. Fighter’s superior in close range combat. Moreover, it is definitely stronger then they thought it should be. Confused, the party is felled by the vampire because they were prepared to fight a mage, not a fighter.

I’m not suggesting you kill off the PCs in such a manner. It is just an example as to why it is important to know what you’re up against. Misinformation is more deadly than none at all. It goes without saying that even if the players know that there are many bloodlines, they won’t necessarily know the strengths and weaknesses of each or be able to tell most of them apart until the vampire attacks.