Taking the blood appears to be the more useful choice in Ambrus’ Blood Cellars because you can collect Blood Vials and still destroy the remaining blood afterward.
Choosing to destroy the blood immediately does not give you those extra Blood Vials.
So if you mainly care about the gameplay reward, Take the Blood is the more practical option.
What Happens If You Take the Blood?
If you choose to take the blood, Coen collects Blood Vials from Ambrus’ cellar.
These vials can be consumed later and are particularly useful for players developing Coen’s Vampirism abilities, since drinking blood contributes to Corruption.
Importantly, taking some of the blood does not mean leaving Ambrus’ operation intact.
Coen still destroys the remaining blood in the cellar after taking what he needs.
What Happens If You Destroy the Blood?
Choosing to destroy the blood gets rid of Ambrus’ supply without taking any for yourself.
This may feel like the more morally consistent choice considering where the blood came from, but you give up the opportunity to collect the extra Blood Vials.
From a purely gameplay-focused perspective, that makes Destroy the Blood less rewarding immediately.
Does Taking the Blood Affect Corruption?
Drinking the Blood Vials you collect can increase Corruption.
Corruption is tied to Coen’s Vampirism progression and is used to unlock parts of the Vampirism skill tree.
So collecting the blood can be particularly useful if you are developing a Vampirism-focused build and want additional sources of blood available later.
Does Taking the Blood Have Consequences Later?
So far, there does not appear to be a clearly documented major consequence specifically for taking the blood instead of destroying it immediately.
The Blood of Dawnwalker contains many choices with consequences, so that does not necessarily mean the decision has no effect anywhere in the game.
However, with the game still newly released, a distinct long-term story consequence for this particular choice has not yet been clearly established. One launch guide likewise notes that it had not encountered a later consequence from taking the blood.
For that reason, it is safer not to treat either option as a confirmed story-changing decision yet.
Should You Take or Destroy Ambrus’ Blood?
Take the Blood is the more useful choice if you want the additional Blood Vials.
You get to keep some blood for later while still destroying the rest of the cellar, so you do not have to choose between getting the resource and sabotaging Ambrus’ operation.
Choose Destroy the Blood instead if you prefer the role-playing decision of refusing to take blood obtained from Ambrus’ victims.
How Much Time Do Ambrus’ Blood Cellars Take?
Clearing one of Ambrus’ Blood Cellars costs 3 Time Segments.
Because time is limited in The Blood of Dawnwalker, this is worth considering before starting the activity, especially if you have other quests or objectives you want to complete during the same day.
Quick Answer
Take the Blood if you want the more useful gameplay reward from Ambrus’ Blood Cellars.
Coen collects Blood Vials that you can use later, and the remaining blood is still destroyed afterward.
There is currently no clearly documented major long-term consequence for taking the blood, although the game is still new and not every possible consequence has been fully documented.
