'Beating the Ventrue at Their Own Game'

We all know that the Ventrue clan believes it is destined to rule by divine right of their bloodline, but the truth is that any clan can achieve status and greatness if they play their cards right. If this wasn't true, then every Prince of every city would be Ventrue, and we have more than ample proof that this is not so. It is obvious that the Ventrue have all the right tools to play the politics game, from her skills and predilections at the moment of her embrace to her disciplines themselves, all of the resources at your average Ventrue's disposal seem perfectly suited to let her triumph over representatives from other clans.
The Ventrue struggles of influence, intrigue, and political maneuvering are almost legendary in their subtlety and complexity. The Blue Bloods have played these games since before Kine had cities, and every Ventrue child is initiated into a vicious circle of rivals and enemies, cutting their political teeth on power struggles that make Kine political contests seem like country dances.
So how do other clans and clan-members compete with the Ventrue in the arena of politics and influence? How do other clans enable their members to ascend to the seat of power in a city?
It's all in how you use what you have.
What follows is a brief examination of ways that other clans can compete with the Blue Bloods in the political arena. Compete and win if the cards fall just right.

Assamite
Few would think of the Assamites as having political aspirations within the Camarilla, and the idea of an Assamite Prince of a city is patently ludicrous. Still, do not underestimate the Assassins' desire to control the power structure within a Camarilla enclave.
Assassination is a powerful tool for fear and control. It has been used successfully for thousands of years by Kindred and Kine alike. However, the Assamites would never be so obvious as to simply kill Camarilla members for their own purposes. The application of this powerful political weapon would be subtle and insidious. Everyone has enemies, and a word or two in the right ear at the right time would have the enemies of the current political favorites lining up to pay the Assassins to do the job they want to do anyway, thereby shifting responsibility away from the Assamite clan while allowing the Assassins to eliminate political hopefuls as they see fit. Carrying this process one step further and subtly fostering suspicion as to who was responsible for which disappearance can further narrow the field as the Camarilla begins to take revenge on its own.
Before long, the political arena will see but one prospect left standing - the one that suits the Assamites' purpose best.

Brujah
The largest mistake any Camarilla member can make is to dismiss the Brujah as a clan of thugs and punks, suitable for nothing more than muscle and cannon-fodder. Power and charm can be deadly tools even in a game of politics, even though they may be applied more in the fashion of a broadsword than a scalpel.
The Brujah are capable of exerting political pressure on two levels simultaneously.
The first is influence. With their ability to charm and enrapture the Brujah can dissuade and confuse support for the current political favorites, capturing the hearts and fancies of the jaded elders and distracting them with heroic icons to be admired and supported.
The second is pressure. Hunting grounds, Havens, Elysiums, and properly controlled Kine Agencies (Police, News Services, etc.) are all important bargaining chips when one is vying for political ascendancy. The Brujah can manipulate each one of these bargaining chips to their advantage, rendering the resources of their political rivals valueless. Riots can tie up the police force and distract the news services as well as making hunting grounds and Elysiums unpopular. Seemingly random muggings can eliminate key ghouls and pawns among the Kine populace, and vandalism can render Havens useless and abandoned. Top this off with the power to hold and control an area, keeping the peace through force and making it attractive as a place to establish new Elysiums and Havens, and you have a formidable political bargaining ability. Proper application of these simple tools can quickly bring a political enemy into disfavor as the rest of the Kindred population finds that promises are not kept and offers made turn out to be hollow.

Lasombra Antitribu
If the Ventrue were destined to be monarchs, the Lasombra carry the blood of tyrants. No-one is better suited to face off against the Blue Bloods on the political battlefield, something that every smart Ventrue knows deep in her heart. The smart Ventrue views the Lasombra not as a rival lion openly standing proud across the savanna ready to do battle for the pride, but rather as the stalking lion hidden in the grass - wisely waiting for the first sign of weakness to signal the time for the kill. No less a lion, but far less easily confronted, or beaten.
The ability to move within the shadows enables a savvy Lasombra to slip into the halls of power and learn their rivals' greatest secrets, ferreting out their weaknesses and learning the basis for their strengths. Once you have your enemies secrets, it is a simple matter to undermine their efforts until their political plans come crashing down like a house of cards.
Allies and supporters can be bought, threatened, discouraged, dominated, or confused into abandoning their favorite. Favored Kine servants and ghouls can be dominated or killed. Precious childer can be quietly kidnapped, with the ransom being politically advantageous to you. Egos can be fed or crushed, rivals can be discredited, lies can be revealed and failures can be exposed. The possibilities are endless once you possess the keys to your enemies' strengths and weaknesses.

Malkavian
Step back and take a look at the web of intrigue and power-mongering that supports any political structure, then ask yourself - is this sane?
Of course not.
Which makes politics the perfect arena for the adventurous and ambitious Malkavian.
The twin powers of Obfuscate and Auspex allow the Lunatics to go further and see more than almost any other clan, and proper application of these abilities make the Malkavians as adept information-gatherers as the Lasombra or the Nosferatu.
But never underestimate the political uses of properly applied Dementation. The simplest application would be to drive your rival right 'round the loop, rendering their political aspirations into a confused psycho-babble of mad ramblings. But there are even more subtle means of employing the gift of madness. Truths can be learned and exploited through this discipline. Paranoia, old animosities, forgotten hatreds, hidden fears, and buried derangements can be exposed and augmented through the Lunatics' gift, even to the point of setting allies at each others' throats and destabilizing the infrastructure of your opponents' power base. Perhaps your Ventrue rival s beyond the reach of your powers, but consider this - few Blue Bloods could keep their mind on the matters at hand when their entire precious herd has inexplicably gone completely insane.

Nosferatu
Praises be to the strength of information and the power it commands. No one knows the leverage that can be gained by staying informed better than the Nosferatu. The grip you can have on the political battlefield through truths, half-truths, rumors, and lies can be tremendous - and when properly applied it can mold a new Prince, squeeze out rivals, or crush reputations beyond redemption.
While the Nosferatu themselves may prefer the sewers to the throne, and back-alley shadows to Elysium Salons there is no question that they take an interest in and even play a large part in the power-play maneuverings that comprise a city's political landscape. More often than not it is taken for granted that the powers and potentials of the Nosferatu clan are put to work in someone else's crusade, but this does not need to be so. This clan is equally capable of acting in their own interests, even if it is a Ventrue puppet that finally assumes political control.
Information gained and given can be a mighty tool, but never underestimate the power of silence at opportune moments. A secret kept can be more valuable than one told, and selective omission can spell doom for those acting on the information you provide. Worse still, the Nosferatu are so deeply accepted as the bearers of secrets that you are virtually expected to know something about practically everything. So what if you don't really have an answer? Borrow a wise page from the Malkavian book and make something up, a plausible lie fabricated to suit your ends will be accepted from a Nosferatu long before anyone else, and by the time they learn the truth it may well be too late.

Toreador
Most Kindred that consider themselves 'serious' political players tend to dismiss the Artists out of hand, which is far from a wise move. There are few clans that can wield as much power over popular opinion as the Toreador, and none know better the strength and influence carried by reputation.
While many Kindred tend to think of their politics as being a matter involving vampires alone, this is far from true. Feeding grounds require Kine to frequent them, in the right quantities and of the right type depending on which clan holds sway in the territory. Further, political strength is often supported by influence in the Kine world of business, society, politics, and law. While many may think these arenas are safe from Toreador incursions, they are wrong. The Toreador control the single most wealthy and influential industry on the planet - entertainment.
Imagine the devastating effects of popular media or entertainment figures - Toreador ghouls of course - deciding to campaign against the corporate holdings of a Ventrue rival in the latest 'humanitarian' fad, or turning popular opinion towards a 'revitalization' of a slum area held by a Brujah opponent, thereby driving his gang either into the public eye or out of the area. No one single group has been able to sway public opinion easier or faster than celebrities, and the Toreador own the celebrities.
Add to this the Toreador ability to directly sway Kindred opinion, to fascinate and lure support, and their keen instincts for manipulating reputations - honed in the vicious arena of the Arts world, and you have a formidable opponent that is disregarded only at your own peril.

Tremere
No matter what they claim, most Kindred hold one truth deep in their hearts - a Tremere Prince would spell the beginning of the end for the rest of the clans, without question. Fortunately for the rest of the Camarilla, few Tremere aspire to political power - publicly at least.
Privately and behind the scenes is quite another matter, however. But since the Tremere rarely move in the open it is easy for other Kindred to overlook them as serious opposition or threat.
An often fatal mistake.
The arsenal at a Warlock's command is nearly infinite thanks to the fluid and limitless nature of Thaumaturgy, and few clans can match the discipline or ruthlessness that Chantries instill in every Tremere. A clan that can simply command an opponent to cease speaking ill of them - as just an example - with a simple ritual, is truly to be feared. When these tools are turned to winnowing the political field, cutting out undesirable hopefuls and supporting the candidate most useful to the Chantry, the results seem almost pre-ordained. Often merely the threat of the Chantry as an enemy is enough to weaken the resolve of even the most stalwart Kindred, and for those that choose bravery over wisdom - there are many ways to make an enemy your friend - or make them disappear.
Just ask a Warlock.
Carefully.