Converting Creatures from Other Campaign Settings

[Cleon]

We've done some other monsters (templates I think) with various stages or "levels" of vampires. I'm not sure I'd put that sort of aging in these other than perhaps as flavor text.

To keep the changes to the minimum, I think adding drider summoning for drow vampires above X HD to Children of the Spider Queen is easiest.


EDIT: Cleon and I cross-posted. Anyway, target CR for allowing drider summoning should be probably 8 to 10, whatever HD that corresponds to.

Okay, it sounds like we can all agree on something in that area.

Since I'd mucked up the EL estimates before, I'd accept just adding "1 drider" to the Children of the Spider Queen list.

Alternatively, I'd be fine with "A drow vampire with 8 or more hit dice can also call a single drider."

 

[Cleon]

Alternatively, I'd be fine with "A drow vampire with 8 or more hit dice can also call a single drider."

Come to think of it, the Create Spawn in the current writeup only produces standard vampires and vampire spawn - it doesn't create drow vampires!

We could kill two spiders with one stalagmite by adding a line that it creates drow vampires if the victim is a drow with 8 or more hit dice. That way drow vampires are always created with a higher CR than a drider. It'll also give them a minimum HD of 8, which is the same HD as a standard AD&D drow vampire (or a regular AD&D vampire, for that matter).

e.g.:

Children of the Spider Queen (Su): Drow vampires command the monstrous arachnids of the world and once per day can call forth 1 drider, 1d6+1 spider swarms, 1d4+1 Large Monstrous Spiders, 1d3 Large Monstrous Scorpions, or a pack of 3d6 Medium Monstrous Spiders as a standard action. (If the base creature is not terrestrial, this power might summon other creatures of similar power.) These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the vampire for up to 1 hour.

Create Spawn (Su): A drow slain by a drow vampire’s Con drain rises as a vampire spawn (see the Vampire Spawn entry) 1d4 days after burial.

If the vampire instead drains the victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or less HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD. If the victim is a drow elf with 8 or more HD they return as a drow vampire.

In all cases, the new vampire or spawn is under the command of the vampire that created it and remains enslaved until its master’s destruction. At any given time a vampire may have enslaved spawn totaling no more than twice its own Hit Dice; any spawn it creates that would exceed this limit are created as free-willed vampires or vampire spawn. A vampire that is enslaved may create and enslave spawn of its own, so a master vampire can control a number of lesser vampires in this fashion. A vampire may voluntarily free an enslaved spawn in order to enslave a new spawn, but once freed, a vampire or vampire spawn cannot be enslaved again.

 

[freyar]

I can go for that.

 

[Cleon]

I can go for that.

Updating Drow Vampire Revision Draft.

So what else do we have again - there were a few additional weaknesses, if I remember rightly.

 

[kevin_video]

Updating Drow Vampire Revision Draft.

So what else do we have again - there were a few additional weaknesses, if I remember rightly.

The running water thing is gone, unless they're specifically under a water fall.

Destroying a drow vampire: A vampire drow can be immobilized by impaling the monster through the heart with a stake made of rock salt, although this in itself will not permanently destroy the monster. Once the stake is removed, the monster will immediately begin to regenerate. Only exposing the creature to the rays of the sun, immersing it in the pounding torrent of a waterfall, or binding the corpse with cords woven of silver thread, smearing it with oil, and burning the body for at least twelve hours will ensure the vampire’s destruction.

Of all vampires, the drow are the most adversely affected by light. A vampire drow will almost never emerge onto the surface of Ravenloft as even one ray of sunlight will instantaneously destroy it. Even moonlight does damage to the monster, doing 2d4 points of damage per round. The 5th level priest spell moonbeam does similar damage to the vampire. Starlight does not damage the vampire, but the creature is incapable of regeneration while touched by starshine. Magical illumination, such as light or continual light, does 1d4 points of damage per round that the vampire is exposed to such illumination. The vampire cannot regenerate under these conditions and will do everything in its power to destroy the light source.

 

[kevin_video]

It should be noted that only drow can become vampires when drained. All other races drained by a drow vampire either dies or becomes a spawn. Usually it dies as a sacrifice to the drow deity.

 

[Cleon]

The running water thing is gone, unless they're specifically under a water fall.

I'm not keen on the immunity to holy water bit - it seems rather counterintuitive for something that can be killed by a waterfall. There's no mention of them recoiling from holy symbols or mirrors, so we may want to consider cutting those out f the Weaknesses.

We should probably also cut the "repulsed by garlic" bit out as well, since it's rock salt these vampires don't like.

Anyhow, it appears we've got.
* repulsed by rock salt (maybe have it recoil from "strongly presented salt" like a ordinary vampire flinches from garlic?)
* cannot cross a line of salt.
* injured by waterfall water - which can destroy them if immersed.
* can be destroyed by binding them with silver followed by cremation.
* highly vulnerable to light - including spells such as light. Stops regeneration, direct sunlight destroys immediately, moonlight damages like sunlight damages standard vampires.

 

[kevin_video]

Also vulnerable to moonlight. They take about the same amount of damage from that as a regular vampire does from standard sunlight.

 

[Cleon]

Also vulnerable to moonlight. They take about the same amount of damage from that as a regular vampire does from standard sunlight.

Oh yes, I'd noticed that but forget to list it under the the "highly vulnerable to light" bit.

Easy enough to edit in.

 

[kevin_video]

I wouldn't have them repulsed by "strongly presented" rock salt. That sounds like too much. How to you present it strongly? Bless it? Wouldn't you want to do that to the line of salt too so they wouldn't ever come close, let alone pass it? I wouldn't add it. Seems unnecessary.