Hell, after years of living in the nightlife of major cities I know some maniacs who would probably do it for free.
Vampires? They've got a ton of guards and are probably nobles so you're looking at a real quick execution. Especially since their resting place is likely a stone coffin in a stone basement. It'll be dark by the time they emerge from a burning wreckage or definitely by the time the rubble is cleared away. Then they slaughter witnesses and appear a few days later from "out of town" and ask who torched their house.
Thieves guild? Likely own some politicians and have bolt holes in a dozen rooms to get out. Then every underworld person in the city has a fat bounty on your head.
But the big reason arson in a city is bad is that when you have a dense city of wooden buildings so crammed together, arson can quickly become a mass murder. The king probably isn't going to thank you for killing that vampire lord if you killed 400 people in the process.
Vampires? They’ve got a ton of guards
Oddly enough, I've been thinking today of how to make that exact meme.
Are you thinking D&D vampires or Masquerade/Requiem vampires? Because it sounds like you're thinking D&D.
Oops, yep I was. Didn't see the community I was in.
Elders? They've got a ton of ghouls and are probably primogen so you're looking at a real quick Blood Hunt. Especially since their resting place is fireproofed or likely not where you think it is. It'll be dark by the time they emerge from a burning wreckage or definitely by the time they emerge from their actual Haven. Then they interrogate witnesses/ the local Nosferatu and appear a few nights later outside your Haven and ask who torched their house.
Nosferatu? Likely own the homeless population and have bolt holes in a dozen rooms to get out. Then every underworld person in the city has a fat bounty on your head.
But the big reason arson in a city is bad is that when you have a dense city of buildings so crammed together, arson can quickly become a mass murder. The Prince probably isn't going to care if you killed 400 people in the process, just that you killed a vampire without his blessing. Your Humanity however...
Yeah. I don’t get it. Vampires are really easy to kill.
Not in masquerade/requiem, typically.