The more 'generic' clans are probably your best bet. Don't play the Nosferatu either, because they can't move about freely or access a lot of sidequests. Don't play Malkavians first time through, you won't understand anything (your mad character will only make sense if you already know what's happening).Male or female really doesn't seem to matter, even with the seduction skill.I would go with Plus personally because they are not intrusive changes. Wesp's patch comes in Regular and Plus editions (selectable within the installer), the Regular version is just straight bugfixes while Plus tries to improve or balance the game as well. The Steam version is probably pre-patched to the latest official version 1.2, but if not the official patches include all official content. You want to install Wesp's unofficial patch.Also, consider noclipping the sewer dungeon if it drives you nuts. There are a few bugs you might need to use noclip to get past. You'll have a much easier time if you wait till the better guns I mentioned become available, or your character starts to become a powerhouse. The boss you'll eventually fight will be really tough if you take him on as soon as you can, especially if your combat skills aren't up to snuff. There's a quest dealing with a plague in the second section of the city.

Also, don't tattle on Mercuri - he's the source for the best guns in the game. Don't worry, the guns are MUCH more effective once you get to the third city section. Even if you plan on playing a gunfighter, it's never a waste to put some early points in Unarmed to get through the start, since you'll use Unarmed when trying to feed on enemies during combat. The revolver is pretty much worthless, even against human opponents, even if you have decent firearm skill.

Get it to 9 before then, or just leave it at 8. Similarly, Persuasion 9 is the highest necessary to make all the skill checks, and even then, you only need 9 for a minor sidequest in the Giovanni mansion.However, you don't need to get it up above 8-you'll always be able to use Blood Buff to get it to 10 and pick any lock in the game. Your life will be a lot easier with decent lockpicking skill.Even if you want to play a diplomatic or sneaky character, you still want to have at least one combat stat at 9-10 by the end of the game. Make sure you don't ignore your combat skills.

Vampire the masquerade plus patch