Getting Started

Getting Started: Your First Night as a Vampire

Welcome to V Rising, fledgling. This guide is designed to help you survive your first hour, avoid common pitfalls, and establish a solid foundation for your reign of darkness. We’ll cover character creation, controls on all platforms (PC keyboard/mouse and controller), the user interface, essential early objectives, what to avoid, resource priorities, and a day-one checklist.

First Hour Walkthrough: Survive the Tutorial & Claim Your Castle

1. Introduction Cutscene & Awakening:
- The game begins with a cinematic. You are a weakened vampire, recently awakened from a centuries-long slumber. You’ll appear in a crypt near the Farbane Woods region.
- Immediately, a ghostly narrator (Dracula’s spirit) guides you. Follow the glowing waypoint.

2. Character Creation (if any):
- V Rising has no character creation. Instead, you choose a Vampire Archetype from four presets: Rogue, Warrior, Spellcaster, or Dracula. These only affect starting gear (weapons and a couple of spells) and appearance (hair, face, outfit). All are viable; choose the look you like. Later you can unlock more appearance options via in-game items.
- After selection, you spawn with:
- A weapon (Sword, Axe, Mace, or Scythe depending on archetype)
- Two basic spells (e.g., Veil of Shadows for dodge, and a skill like Blood Strike)
- No armor (you’ll need to gather cloth and leather early)

3. The First Steps (0-10 minutes):
- Follow the Tutorial Waypoint: It will lead you to your first major objective: place your Castle Heart. This is the core of your base. You’ll find a designated spot with a glowing blue light. Press E (or interact button) to place it. Your castle is now anchored.
- Gather Bone and Stone: Around the starting area, you’ll see small piles of bones (white) and stones (grey). Hold RMB (or attack) to break them. Collect: 10 Bones, 10 Stone. Also, gather Blood Essence (red orbs) from killing small creatures like deer or wolves. You need 5 Blood Essence to activate your first Blood Altar.
- Craft Basic Stations: Open your build menu (B key / D-Pad Up) and place a Simple Workbench and a Simple Furnace. Craft: Copper Ingots (copper ore + stone), Simple Shelter Floor (for protection against sunlight).
- First Day-Night Cycle: It’s likely still daytime. Stay in shade or your castle interior! Sunlight deals massive damage. If caught, sprint to shade. The first day lasts about 20 minutes of real time. Use it to mine copper and stone near your base.

4. First Fight & Resource Run (10-30 minutes):
- Kill the Werewolf and the Bandits: Near your base are weak enemies like Wolves, Deer, and Bandits. Practice your dodge (spacebar / A button) and attack combos. Killing a creature gives Blood Essence and Raw Hide (from animals) or Coins (from bandits).
- Upgrade Weapons: At the Simple Workbench, craft a Copper Axe and Copper Sword. This drastically improves resource gathering and combat.
- Find V Blood Bosses: In your build menu, interact with the Blood Altar (placed in your castle). It shows boss locations. Your first target is Alpha Wolf (Level 10) or Errol the Stonecutter (Level 15). Track them, but don’t fight yet. Collect more resources.
- Gather Wood & Fiber: Use the axe on trees (oak, pine) and fiber from bushes. You need Wood Planks (from sawmill) and Coarse Thread (from loom).

5. Nighttime Emerges (30-60 minutes):
- Hunt V Blood Bosses: Once you have decent gear (Iron-tier recommended), hunt the first boss. Each boss drops a V Blood item that unlocks new recipes (e.g., Castle Heart upgrades, new structures). The first boss is often Goreswine the Ravager (Level 20) near the Farbane Woods.
- Expand Your Base: Use the Build Hammer to add walls, floors, storage chests, a Blood Altar, a Tomb (for servants later), and a Simple Bed (buff).
- Craft Armor: Unlock Iron Armor via the Tailoring bench. Craft a full set (chest, legs, boots) for survivability.
- Secure a Source of Blood: Build a Blood Press to extract blood from hearts (dropped by animals) for health potions.

Controls on All Platforms

V Rising is available on PC only. Controls differ for keyboard/mouse vs. controller (Xbox/PS4/PS5 support via Steam).

#### PC Keyboard & Mouse

#### Controller (Xbox Layout)

Note: Controller support works well, but precise aiming (for spells like Chaos Volley) is easier with mouse. Remap keys if needed in Settings > Controls.

User Interface (UI) Overview

• Top Left: Health bar (red), Blood meter (red diamonds), Blood Type (e.g., Creature, Brute). Blood type affects stats. Blood Essence (blue bar) is used for building and spells.


• Top Center: Time of day icon (sun/moon) and current weather. Sunlight icon appears when exposed – take cover immediately.


• Top Right: Mini-map (press M to expand). Shows your castle icon, nearby nodes, enemies (red dots).


• Bottom Left: Action bar with 8 slots for consumables (potions, blood vials, scrolls). Drag items from inventory.


• Bottom Center: Health, Energy (yellow for abilities), and weapon durability. Durability degrades with use – repair at workbench.


• Bottom Right: Weapon slots (primary + secondary), spells (2 active + ultimate), and a quick-craft button.


• ESC Menu: Pauses game in single-player; options for settings, leave game, etc.


• Journal (J): Your quest log. Shows current objectives, V Blood bosses tracked, and unlock progress.


• Blood Altar (O): Shows all V Blood bosses, their level, location, and rewards you’ve unlocked.




Essential Early Objectives



1. Place Your Castle Heart (within 5 minutes of spawning).
2. Build a Simple Workbench and craft a Copper Axe.
3. Gather 100 Stone, 100 Wood, 50 Copper Ore, 50 Animal Hide – these feed initial crafting.
4. Defeat your first V Blood boss (Alpha Wolf or Goreswine) to unlock Workbench II.
5. Craft Leather Armor (chest and legs) to survive enemy hits.
6. Build a Blood Press and create Blood Vials for healing.
7. Expand your castle to at least 2 rooms (crafting area, storage).
8. Unlock the Paper Press via Errol the Stonecutter (for parchment, needed for recipes).



What to Do First & What to Avoid



Do First:

• Immediately gather 20 bones + 20 stones + 5 Blood Essence to place your Castle Heart.


• Stay near your base during first daylight; explore up to 100m radius only.


• Kill only animals and weak bandits for first 30 minutes; avoid bears, wolves in packs, or high-level (20+) roaming mobs.


• Upgrade your weapon to Iron before fighting any Level 20+ boss.


• Build storage chests early – inventory fills fast.


Avoid:

• Do NOT venture into far regions (Dunanley Farmlands, Silverlight Hills) before Level 30 – enemies will one-shot you.


• Do NOT leave your castle at sunrise unless you have a roof. Sunlight deals 10% HP per second.


• Do NOT ignore blood types – Creature blood gives faster movement, Brute gives extra damage, Warrior gives armor. Switch blood by feeding on appropriate mobs.


• Do NOT hoard all materials – craft quickly; resources respawn daily.


• Do NOT fight multiple enemies at once – ranged enemies kite you; use dodge and corners.

Early Resource Priorities

Priority order: Stone > Bone > Wood > Copper Ore > Animal Hide > Blood Essence. Focus on stone and wood first for base expansion, then copper for weapons.

Common Beginner Mistakes

1. Placing Castle Heart in an open area – It must be under a roof or in natural shade. Morning sun will destroy it if exposed. Always place it inside a cave or under a tree canopy (but better to build walls quickly).
2. Ignoring durability – Weapons break mid-combat. Always carry a spare or repair at workbench. Check durability icon (bottom center) turning orange.
3. Fighting without blood – Your blood meter depletes as you use abilities. Feed on enemies to refill. If empty, you cannot use spells.
4. Not using the Blood Altar – Many new players don’t place it. It tracks bosses needed for progress. Place it early.
5. Overextending at night – Night is safe from sun, but powerful night creatures spawn. Stay near base until you have good armor.
6. Skipping the tutorial prompts – They teach crafting, building, and mounting. Pay attention.
7. Trying to build a palace immediately – Start with a 2x2 room with walls and roof. Large bases waste resources early.
8. Not using the quick-craft feature – Hold Left Alt and click an item in inventory to auto-craft missing components.

Day-One Checklist (First Real-Time Day – approx. 24 minutes)

• [ ] Awaken, choose archetype, and place Castle Heart.


• [ ] Gather 10 Bone, 10 Stone, 5 Blood Essence.


• [ ] Build Simple Workbench and craft Copper Axe and Copper Sword.


• [ ] Build Simple Furnace and smelt 8 Copper Ingots.


• [ ] Build a Simple Blood Altar and activate with 10 Blood Essence.


• [ ] Hunt down and kill Alpha Wolf (Level 10 – near the starting crypt) to unlock the next tier.


• [ ] Gather 50 Wood, 50 Stone, 20 Animal Hide.


• [ ] Craft Leather Armor (chest and legs) at Simple Tailoring Bench.


• [ ] Build a Blood Press and create 5 Blood Vials (healing).


• [ ] Build a Simple Bed for resting buff (increased health regeneration).


• [ ] Close your base with walls and a roof (stone walls + wooden roof).


• [ ] Spend the first night exploring the surrounding Farbane Woods, gathering more resources, and killing bandits for coins.


• [ ] Unlock the Paper Press (by defeating Errol the Stonecutter, Level 15) before day ends.

Note: If you complete this checklist within your first 24-minute day-night cycle, you’re ahead of the curve. The game is a marathon, not a sprint. Take your time, enjoy the atmosphere, and remember: the sun is your only enemy more dangerous than any vampire hunter.

Good luck, vampire. Build your castle, conquer the land, and claim your throne. The world of Vardoran awaits.