Liches and Vampires, Oh My!

[Tequila Sunrise]

As cool as liches and vampires are, I almost never use them. This is mostly because of the sheer number of extra goodies that they have, many of which do not contribute to their theme or have small chance of ever being used in a fight. For example, both templates grant resistance to cold and electricity which is nice but unnecessary. Maybe there's some real world myth about undead being immune to such energies or maybe it's just game tradition, but in any case I could make a case for undead being resistant to any energy type, so I just took the resistances out. Any ability or quality that doesn't significantly contribute to a monster's theme or is unlikely to be used in a fight doesn't belong in the stat block.

Also, I wanted to lower lich and vampire LA if I, or any other DM, ever wants to provide their players the opportunity to play such monsters. With standard LAs for liches and vampires being +4 and +8, it is effectively a ban on PC liches and vampires without actually coming out and saying "NO PC UNDEAD!!!" Anyway, here are TS's Lich and Vampire templates. Critique or yoink as you see fit:

Lich
Size and Type: As per MM.
Hit Dice: As per MM.
Special Attacks:
Fear Aura: Creatures within 30 feet with hit dice equal to or less than a lich’s must make a will save or be affected as though by a cause fear spell. The save is Charisma-based.
Spells: A lich can cast any spells it could cast in life.
Special Qualities:
Damage Reduction: 5/good
Fast Healing: A lich heals 5 hit points per round as long as it has 1 hit point.
Phylactery: Requires CL 6 and Craft Wondrous Items. 10,000 gp and 400 XP.
Turn Resistance: +4
Abilities: +2 Int, +2 Wis, +2 Cha, No Constitution.
Skills: +8 Intimidate and Sense Motive.
Challenge Rating: +1
Level Adjustment: +2

Vampire
Size and Type: As per MM.
Hit Dice: As per MM.
Special Attacks:
Blood Drain: As per MM.
Create Spawn: A vampire that kills a victim by blood drain can choose to inflict the curse of vampirism upon said victim. In such a case, the victim rises 1 day after its death as a vampire under the complete control of its creator. A vampire can control no more than twice its own hit dice in vampires.
Dominate: This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the vampire must use a standard action and those merely looking at it are not affected. Any humanoid which the vampire targets must make a will save or be affected as though by a dominate person spell (caster level equals base creature’s CR). This ability has a range of 30 feet. The save is Charisma-based.
Spells: A vampire can cast any spells it could cast in life.
Special Qualities:
Alternate Form: As a standard action, a vampire can assume the form of any animal or vermin of CR equal to or less than the vampire's CR (the base creature's CR that is) -8. Minimum CR 1/2. (I use a CR-based polymorph scheme. Using the standard Size-based polymorph scheme, the vampire can turn into Medium or smaller creatures).
Damage Reduction: 5/good
Fast Healing: A vampire heals 5 hit points per round as long as it has 1 hit point.
Phylactery: At the moment a vampire chooses to inflict the curse of vampirism upon a victim, it chooses the new vampire’s phylactery. Most often, the phylactery is an object of great personal value to the new vampire. A vampire who is “killed” reforms at the phylactery’s location in 1d10 days unless the phylactery is destroyed.
Turn Resistance: +4
Abilities: +4 Str, +4 Dex, +4 Int, +4 Wis, +4 Cha, No Constitution.
Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike and Improved Grapple.
Challenge Rating: +2
Level Adjustment: +4

 

[Nyeshet]

The idea of a vampire needing a phylactery just seems odd to me. I can understand the parallel you are making to the 'ghost form -> gravesite -> heal -> returns' and a lich reforming next to a phyllactery, but the legends a vampire is based upon have no precedent for a vampire actually being destroyed and then coming back on its own a few days later. The closest I can think of is the holliwood created idea that pouring fresh blood on the ashes of a destroyed or hibernating / starving vampire can somehow restore it to "life."

 

[Tonguez]

The idea of a vampire needing a phylactery just seems odd to me.

Word (although I can see the argument that Dracula coffin and gravedirt was his phylactery)

Personally I'd just make it a gaseous form ability with something like

Gaseous Form A vampire may become gaseous as a fullround action however in order to return to solid form the gaseous vampire must return to its phylactery before dawn. Most often, the phylactery is an object of great personal value to the new vampire. If the phylactery is destroyed then the vampire will perish in the light of the sun

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

I changed the vampire's grave dirt for the phylactery because well, what if the vampire never gets buried? Either because the victim's society doesn't bury their dead or simply because nobody knows where the body is to bury it. I know a DM could come up with a substitute for grave dirt in such an instance, but I'd just rather have a more constant substitute. Also, I like the idea of an evil creature being bound to an object rather than bound to a pile of dirt. It just seems more appropriate, given the nature of evil.