Vampires: Gaseous Form at 0 hp

[KrazyHades]

At 0 hp, a vampire automatically assumes its gaseous form. However, does it still do so if it drops BELOW 0 hp?

I ask the question because my most memorable and vile villains, a vampire cleric/lifedrinker, got into a fight with the PCs. He was dropped it EXACTLY 0 hp, so he turned gaseous and escaped. But I couldn't help but worry about what would have happened if he got to less than 0.

 

[Rath the Brown]

The way I read it, yes.

Slaying a Vampire: Reducing a vampire’s hit points to 0 or lower incapacitates it but doesn’t always destroy it (see the note on fast healing).

 

[shilsen]

The way I read it, yes.

What he said.

 

[evilbob]

Yes: as I understand it, vampires are insanely hard to kill, because they have very little to fear from a direct assault that's away from their coffin: they can always just fly away (and relatively quickly, too). (Also, as a GM, don't forget that a vampire can fly away with more than zero HP and retain its fast healing the whole time.)

It is my understanding that there are very few ways to insta-kill a vampire. One is to use a Greater Turning (granted power of Sun domain), which instantly destroyes any undead it turns (although vampires are rather hard to turn). Another is get into a grapple with the thing and stake it (which is also quite dangerous, since you'll probably be taking Con damage all the while), and the rules are not really clear at all as to how this would work. You could also get it into direct sunlight for 12 seconds, or immerse it in running water for 18 seconds, or hit it with a weapon with the disruption property (DC 14 will save or undead is destroyed) and hope for a 1. I guess vorpal blades might work too, depending on the GM's call.