Am I the only one who doesn't like the D&D Vampire? (Pointless rant, I suppose)

[mmadsen]

My biggest gripe with the D&D vampire is that way too tough for low to mid-level play. Sure, you can add class levels to a vampire to toughen 'em up, but it's not as easy to water them down.

Even the Vampire class I tried to throw together yielded surprisingly scary 1st-level Vampire Spawn.

I'd be a lot happier with a monster that was scalable for all levels of play, rather than an uber-monster that even high level characters find nearly unkillable.

Taking away the level-draining slam might be just what you're looking for. Without that, the Vampire wants to catch his prey alone, so he can dominate and bite; he can't just stand and fight.

 

[Voadam]

The bonus combat feats, undeadness and turning to mist when down to 0 hit points makes them still pretty ready to physically fight, but removing the level drain makes people less hesitant to tangle with them hand to hand.

 

[The Serge]

I've been thinking about this "slam-thing."

In the old Hammer films dominated by Peter "Grand Moff Tarkin" Cushing and Christopher "Saruman" "Darth Tyranus' Lee, Dracula used to lift, throw, wrassle, and otherwise physically abuse his foes.

In Copolla's Brams Stoker's Dracula, Dracula slaps the TAR out of Quincy and someone else (can't remember). He also repeatedly slams Renfield into metal bars.

In the old Bela Lugosi Dracula, he strangles Renfield.

In the Frank Langella Dracula, he flings every around like rag dolls and effortlessly kills Van Helsing at the end (indirectly leading to his own death).

Now, granted, these are movies but these are also examples of the most "classic" of Vampires. In all of these examples, Dracula is flinging, throwing, slaming, smashing (he smashes from a heavy wooden coffin in one), and otherwise physically abusing mortals and lesser Vampires.

We've already noted as well that in your more "folklorish" stories, Vampires seem to suck the strength out of victims they touch or are physically close to before biting. And, in Anne Rice's stuff, there are many times when victims seem to be stunned before they are attacked (although as mmadsen suggested, this could also be a version of the dominate power).

With these examples in mind, I don't see a problem with the ability based upon classic, folk lorish, and "modern" concepts of Vampires.

 

[dagger]

Dont know if this is been mentioned or not, but the vampires in the Necroscope (by Brian Lumley) books are very cool.

 

[mmadsen]

In all of these examples, Dracula is flinging, throwing, slaming, smashing (he smashes from a heavy wooden coffin in one), and otherwise physically abusing mortals and lesser Vampires.

You've made the case that a Vampire can and will smack around mortals. I don't know what else an unarmed, super-strong, invulnerable Vampire would do against a large group in a melee. In a Victorian or modern setting, is he supposed to pull a gun?

At any rate, I don't see how this implies he's draining levels (or draining anything, for that matter). Van Helsing certainly doesn't cry out, "Don't let him touch you! His negative energy will eat your soul!"

 

[frankthedm]

I like customizing my vampires. Not all have the MM abilities but I try to make each formidable. TBH I was influenced by the LoK: Soul Reaver video game. Wounds from wooden piercing weapons won’t heal till the weapon is pulled out [staking myth] .



I usually replace the negative level slam with the vampire being so fast it gets an extra physical partial action each round. [attack or movement ] This keeps the vamp formidable in combat to where it can keep up with the tanks without the players whining bout their levels.

>many are horrid looking but use their deception based powers to look human [mirrors reveal this ruse and will make self conscious vamps recoil. Extreme Physical or mental stress may also case a lapse in this False Face

>A fair amount of these blood suckers can alter themselves physically similar to an alter self spell.. Wings for flight [base speed], quadrapedal for a speed boost [+10 to speed ]. They use their False face to make their wings look like long cloak or cape, while in quadruped form their false face makes them appear like a wolf. I like this better than a full polymorph self into a tiny bat[see below] or into a dire wolf.

If thier body gets staked or incapacitated their spirits may stick around their body, gaining in strength till their spirits become wraiths or specters. If the spirit gets back into its vampiric body after this then it gets the level drain

>At “death” some of them become a small creature or groups of them depending on strength of the vampire. My PC’s this year had to deal with firebats* that were birthed from burning vampire corpses which had heavily fed on fire dragon blood.

*Think small-size fire elemental stirges

 

[mmadsen]

Dont know if this is been mentioned or not, but the vampires in the Necroscope (by Brian Lumley) books are very cool.

I don't suppose you feel like telling us how they're cool...

 

[Dagredhel]

Free Goodies!!!

Has everyone grabbed their free web enhancement for Denizens of Darkness? It has the spawn for the variant vampire strains included in the book. Here is the link.

 

[SHARK]

Greetings!

Gotta love vampires! Ya know, it's kinda funny. I have developed a Vampire class that scales to level 20, and I also have a special Vampire Prestige Class. I'll have to post them up here shortly!

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK

 

[Voadam]

Please do, I'd love to see them.