Undead Origins

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Bastards & Bloodlines
3.0
Undead, Undead Creature: ?
Ghost: ?
Vampire, Full Vampire, True Vampire: ?

 

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Book of the Righteous
3.0
Undead, Undead Creature: To make matters worse, the mortal races had given rise to fiends who violated the sanctity of death by raising up the spirits of the departed and the bodies of the dead.
Wandering the world and meeting in hidden places – caves carved into temples, catacombs of lost cathedrals, dungeons from ancient kingdoms – these [Cult of the Icy Breath] cultists celebrate the horror and splendor of death. They pray to Mormekar, the only power that matters, calling for his might to enter into them. They raise the undead, and their mightiest members become liches. Why Mormekar grants them power is a mystery that none of his followers can comprehend, and most refuse to believe that he does.
Creature of Negative Energy: ?
Ghost of a Sailor: ?
Lich: ?
Mummy: ?
Shadow: ?
Skeleton: ?
Vampire: ?
Wight: ?

 

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Celtic Age
3.0
Undead, Undead Creature: ?
Wight: ?

 

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City of Tomorrow
3.0
Ghost, Transparent Bluish Figure: ?

 

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Dark Sun 3 3.0
3.0
Undead, Undead Creature: ?
Mindless Undead: ?
Free-Willed Undead: ?
Mindless Animated Undead: ?
Undead Body: ?
Intelligent Corporeal Undead: ?
Semi-Corporeal Undead: ?
Incorporeal Undead: ?
Thinking Undead: ?
Good Thinking Undead: ?
Thinking Undead: ?
Good Thinking Undead: ?
Skeleton, Undead Skeleton: Animate Dead spell.
Skeleton, Mindless Animated Undead: ?
Zombie, Undead Zombie: Animate Dead spell.
Open the Gray Portal spell.
Zombie, Mindless Animated Undead: ?
Dwarven Banshee: Dwarves that die while being unable to complete their focus return from the dead as banshees to haunt their unfinished work.
Fael, Intelligent Corporeal Undead: ?
Namech, Intelligent Corporeal Undead: ?
T'liz, Intelligent Corporeal Undead: ?
Thinking Skeleton: Unliving Identity spell.
Thinking Skeleton, Thinking Undead: ?
Thinking Zombie: Unliving Identity spell.
Thinking Zombie, Intelligent Corporeal Undead, Thinking Undead: ?
Gray Zombie: ?
Thinking Exoskeleton: Unliving Identity spell.
Thinking Exoskeleton, Thinking Undead: ?
Exoskeleton, Mindless Animated Undead: ?

Open the Gray Portal
Necromancy
Level: Dead Heart 5, Wiz 7
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 full round
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target: Summoned Gray Zombies or corpses
Duration: 1 minute/level (D)
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
This spell briefly opens a conduit to the Gray, allowing negative energy to slip through. This can either imbue nearby dead bodies with negative energy, making them undead or summon forth denizens of the Gray to serve him for the duration of the spell. If the latter option is chosen, these undead follow the caster’s orders unquestioningly, but demand some payment in return. Generally, this equates to a number of living creatures whose total HD equal the number of zombies summoned. If the caster cannot supply this, the zombies take him into the Gray instead. Bodies animated simply return to corpses when the spell expires. The caster can animate or summon a number of zombies up to his caster level. Summoned zombies become shadowy and melt back into the Gray is destroyed.
Material Components: The material components for this spell are a gray cloth and a piece of bone.

Unliving Identity
Necromancy
Level: Wiz 7, Clr 7, Dead Heart 5
Components: V, S, M, XP
Casting Time: 1 round
Range: Touch
Target: 1 exoskeleton, skeleton, or zombie
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates
Spell Resistance: Yes
This spell affects mindless animated undead, namely exoskeletons, skeletons, and zombies. Unliving identity restores personality, consciousness, alignment, memory, identity, skills, class, levels ... everything except free will or life. The creature is still undead, and if he was previously controlled, he continues to be controlled and bound to the tasks that his master assigns. The result is what Terrors of the Dead Lands describes as a thinking zombie, skeleton, or exoskeleton.
Note that spirits of the land and the elements (earth, air, fire and water) do not give their powers to the undead, so a thinking zombie who had been an elemental cleric in life does not regain his spells or his ability to affect undead. The paraelements and the gray are not as choosy, though; a thinking skeleton that had been a cleric of silt could continue to operate as a silt cleric.
Note that many creatures prefer not to return from the Gray to inhabit an undead body—if the creature is unwilling to return, it gets a Will saving throw to avoid this. If the thinking zombie is too powerful to be normally controlled by his master, he gets a Will saving throw every week to break free of his master’s control. What the thinking undead does then is anyone’s guess. Good thinking undead, once free, tend to put a quick end to their unnatural existence.
Material Components: Any article significant to the undead creature’s former life, such as an article of clothing or equipment, a favorite item, etc.
Focus: XP cost is 20 XP per level of the creature while it was alive.

 

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Denizens of Freeport
3.0
Powerful Undead Servant: Bonewrack is completely mad from centuries of living in shadow. He believes his sister is sleeping, and that he is obligated to find her a husband. He has created powerful undead servants to search for him.
Vampire: If the heroes get too close to the vampire, it will try to create a new vampire for the party to find and slay, and then disappear for a time.
Zombie, Belligerent Undead, Totally Silent Zombie: ?
Armored Zombie: ?
Foraging Zombie: ?

 

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Eldest Sons: the Essential Guide to Elves
3.0
Vengeance: The Vengeance were first created when the elven vampires (see eternal) first overwhelmed their foes with positive energy. Since then priests of Avahor have learned the technique for creating them directly. The Vengeance are typically created from the corpses of enemies in war and therefore often are the animated corpses of monstrous humanoids and of the green races. An elf would be aghast on discovering a Vengeance made from elven dead.
The Vengeance is nothing more than the shell of being that contains too much life force to die. The power that fills the undead animates it. The muscles of the creature it once was have withered away under the constant bath of positive energy.
If a creature affected by [an eternal's] Uncontrolled Growth gains enough temporary hit points so that his current hit point total plus temporary hit points equal twice his normal maximum hit points, he dies and becomes a Vengeance (pg ??) under the control of the eternal who last granted him temporary hit points via Uncontrolled Growth.
Create Vengeance spell.
Eternal, Elven Vampire: The elves loathe the undead. The foul creatures are an example of everything they stand against – decay, evil. The negative energy that fuels them is the antithesis of the elven dedication to life and growth. The undead’s eternal existence is a mockery of the natural longevity that the elves enjoy. For the undead, the feeling is mutual.
But in desperation, people will try anything to save themselves. Millennia ago the elves were being overwhelmed by dark hordes of undead. The abominations knew no rest. As each elf fell, he stood and picked up arms against his own people, often with hideous powers in addition to his elven talents. During one of the darkest days, the priests of Avahor the Inferno prayed for a blessing to combat the throngs of the dead. They asked for assistance, and said they would pay any price. Avahor heard their prayer and they paid the ultimate price becoming the first eternals – also known as the elven vampire.
Avahor refused to traffic with the powers of negative energy so he instilled his followers with positive energy until their fragile bodies were overwhelmed and they died. Their life departed, the conduit to the Positive Energy Plane was left open through their corpses and was directed by a memory of their mind. They became in effect a member of the undead themselves.
The priesthood expanded their number, asking the greatest warriors left to their people to make the sacrifice and transform themselves.
Though the first were elves, eternals of other races have been turned. The undead are not immune to the temptations of loneliness, and seek comfort in those races who do not find their existence so unnatural.
The eternal template can be applied to any humanoid, monstrous humanoid, or fey creature.
The eternal may, through continued use of his Steal Vitality attack, transform his partner into another eternal. When Steal Vitality reduces the target’ Constitution to 0 or below, she dies, becoming a new conduit for positive energy and gaining the eternal template.
Create Eternal spell.
Eternal Elf Warder 5: ?
Legionnaire of the Lost Plexan Armada, Legionnaire Ghoul: Humans gathered upon the docks, cheering the Seremasi victory. However they had done it, the Entarans had defeated a seemingly unstoppable enemy. A great celebration was held that night, with the whole of the city taking part. A solemn ceremony was performed in honor of Folgos and Kethiel, whose sacrifice had saved thousands, followed by a number of spontaneous revelries, which lasted well into the evening. Only Meliros and the child sat apart from the merriment. The Elder Coseali was greatly troubled from having sent his friends to their deaths, but it was more than that. The blood in the Elluwé could mean only one thing: Kurenthe. Such an oath was a grievous sin, for it destroyed the soul, Belisarda’s greatest gift. The two Elders had saved the city, but at what cost? The curse could hold the gravest of consequences. Worse, Kurenthe sworn by a High Elorii of great power was a dreadful thing indeed. Still, the party carried on into the night, the celebrants unaware of what was coming.
As the ash that was once the floating citadel sank, it settled on the rotting hulks of the Coryani Armada that lay on the estuary floor. In the depths, inside the decaying ships, eyesockets long empty were kindled with a hellish light.
"Duuty…and Honooor…." gurgled an unearthly voice.
"DUUUTYY… AND HOONOOOR!!" thousands replied.
An army of ghouls in rotted Coryani battle dress clambered from the sunken invasion fleet to fulfill their original mission.
Centurion of the Lost Plexan Armada: Humans gathered upon the docks, cheering the Seremasi victory. However they had done it, the Entarans had defeated a seemingly unstoppable enemy. A great celebration was held that night, with the whole of the city taking part. A solemn ceremony was performed in honor of Folgos and Kethiel, whose sacrifice had saved thousands, followed by a number of spontaneous revelries, which lasted well into the evening. Only Meliros and the child sat apart from the merriment. The Elder Coseali was greatly troubled from having sent his friends to their deaths, but it was more than that. The blood in the Elluwé could mean only one thing: Kurenthe. Such an oath was a grievous sin, for it destroyed the soul, Belisarda’s greatest gift. The two Elders had saved the city, but at what cost? The curse could hold the gravest of consequences. Worse, Kurenthe sworn by a High Elorii of great power was a dreadful thing indeed. Still, the party carried on into the night, the celebrants unaware of what was coming.
As the ash that was once the floating citadel sank, it settled on the rotting hulks of the Coryani Armada that lay on the estuary floor. In the depths, inside the decaying ships, eyesockets long empty were kindled with a hellish light.
"Duuty…and Honooor…." gurgled an unearthly voice.
"DUUUTYY… AND HOONOOOR!!" thousands replied.
An army of ghouls in rotted Coryani battle dress clambered from the sunken invasion fleet to fulfill their original mission.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Human: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Hobgoblin: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Elorii: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Elomedius val’Ossan, Lich Cleric 17, Skeletal Liche: Humans gathered upon the docks, cheering the Seremasi victory. However they had done it, the Entarans had defeated a seemingly unstoppable enemy. A great celebration was held that night, with the whole of the city taking part. A solemn ceremony was performed in honor of Folgos and Kethiel, whose sacrifice had saved thousands, followed by a number of spontaneous revelries, which lasted well into the evening. Only Meliros and the child sat apart from the merriment. The Elder Coseali was greatly troubled from having sent his friends to their deaths, but it was more than that. The blood in the Elluwé could mean only one thing: Kurenthe. Such an oath was a grievous sin, for it destroyed the soul, Belisarda’s greatest gift. The two Elders had saved the city, but at what cost? The curse could hold the gravest of consequences. Worse, Kurenthe sworn by a High Elorii of great power was a dreadful thing indeed. Still, the party carried on into the night, the celebrants unaware of what was coming.
As the ash that was once the floating citadel sank, it settled on the rotting hulks of the Coryani Armada that lay on the estuary floor. In the depths, inside the decaying ships, eyesockets long empty were kindled with a hellish light.
Vengeance, Shell of a Being That Contains Too Much Life Force to Die, Mindless Undead, Positive Energy Undead: ?
Vengeance, Undead Woman: ?
Vengeance, Animated Corpse of a Monstrous Humanoid: ?
Vengeance, Animated Corpse of a Green Race: ?
Vengeance, Guard: ?
Eternal, Thing That Burns Too Bright, Positive Energy Undead: ?
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Dark Kin: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Dwarf: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Gnome: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Orc: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Auxilia of the Lost Armada Val: The late Coryani army sends out "foraging and recruitment" parties to bolster their numbers. They sneak ashore, either to the docks of Seremas or nearby coastal areas and raid for food, basically killing people and eating them or for recruits, basically killing people and then not eating them.
Undead, Undead Creature: ?
More Baleful Undead: ?
Conventional Negative Energy Undead, Undead Powered By Negative Energy: ?
Foul Creature: ?
Ghast: ?
Ghastly Soldier: ?
Ghost: In the beginning of my compilation, I must confess I was misled as to the origins of the Gray Elves. I thought them ghosts, the souls of those failed immortals who, in having passed on, gained even greater knowledge.
Ghoul: In most cases, the legionaries of the Lost Plexan Armada devour those they kill. From time to time, however, the bodies of their humanoid victims lie where they fell, to rise as ghouls in 1d4 days. Casting protection from evil on a body before the end of that time averts the transformation. Elorii are not immune to this effect.
In most cases, centurions of the Lost Plexan Armada devour those they kill. From time to time, however, the bodies of their humanoid victims lie where they fell, to rise as ghouls in 1d4 days. Casting protection from evil on a body before the end of that time averts the transformation. Elorii are not immune to this effect.
In most cases, auxilia devour those they kill. From time to time, however, the bodies of their humanoid victims lie where they fell, to rise as ghouls in 1d4 days. Casting protection from evil on a body before the end of that time averts the transformation.
Lacedon, Sea-Ghoul, Sea Ghoul: Humans gathered upon the docks, cheering the Seremasi victory. However they had done it, the Entarans had defeated a seemingly unstoppable enemy. A great celebration was held that night, with the whole of the city taking part. A solemn ceremony was performed in honor of Folgos and Kethiel, whose sacrifice had saved thousands, followed by a number of spontaneous revelries, which lasted well into the evening. Only Meliros and the child sat apart from the merriment. The Elder Coseali was greatly troubled from having sent his friends to their deaths, but it was more than that. The blood in the Elluwé could mean only one thing: Kurenthe. Such an oath was a grievous sin, for it destroyed the soul, Belisarda’s greatest gift. The two Elders had saved the city, but at what cost? The curse could hold the gravest of consequences. Worse, Kurenthe sworn by a High Elorii of great power was a dreadful thing indeed. Still, the party carried on into the night, the celebrants unaware of what was coming.
As the ash that was once the floating citadel sank, it settled on the rotting hulks of the Coryani Armada that lay on the estuary floor. In the depths, inside the decaying ships, eyesockets long empty were kindled with a hellish light.
"Duuty…and Honooor…." gurgled an unearthly voice.
"DUUUTYY… AND HOONOOOR!!" thousands replied.
An army of ghouls in rotted Coryani battle dress clambered from the sunken invasion fleet to fulfill their original mission.
Zombie: Spawning magic weapon quality.

Create Eternal
Necromancy
Level: Cleric 8
Components: V, S, M, F, DF, XP
Casting Time: 1 hour
Range: Touch
Targets: Any creature eligible for the eternal template
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
Through the use of this spell and the expenditure of some of your own vital life force, you can create an eternal, the positive energy undead more commonly known as the elven vampire. The spell requires a complex ritual and must be performed in a ritual space that costs at least 5,000 gp to outfit. The ritual itself requires anointing oils and incense costing an additional 5,000 gp. While the ritual space can be used repeatedly, the oils and incense are consumed in the casting. When complete, you spend 1000 XP and transform the target, which may be you, into an eternal. The target gains the eternal template (described in chap. 6) and has full use of all powers immediately.
The target must be willing and alive during the casting. The spell cannot be cast on a creature who is under mental compulsion or is restrained in any way. If the target leaves during the ritual, or the ritual is interrupted, the oils and incense are wasted, but the caster spends no experience points.
This spell was first used by the priests of Avahor to create new allies for a great war against the undead. The knowledge of its use has spread to the rest of the elven pantheon since then, but those who cast it are still rare. The spell and the origin of the elven vampire are unknown to the priests of human gods.
Material Component:Oils and Incence costing 5000 GP.
Focus: Ritual Space costing 5000 GP to outfit.
XP Cost: 1000 XP

Create Vengeance
Necromancy
Level: Cleric 5
Components: V, S, M, DF, XP
Casting Time: 1 full round
Range: Touch
Targets: Any once living, non-animate creature.
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
This spell allows you to create the positive energy undead known as the Vengeance. Each casting of the spell animates a single vengeance, which follows your spoken commands. The resultant undead may be left in a location as a guard, or may accompany you on adventures, but they follow all normal rules for the command of created undead. You may control a total of 2HD of undead per caster level – whether they are positive or negative energy based. Any Vengeance you create remains under your control until they are destroyed or you release them; released Vengeance act as described in their monster description. If you attempt to create more undead than you are allowed to command, the new undead enter your service as normal, and any excess undead from previous castings become uncontrolled.
Even though they are positive energy based undead, most good societies frown on the animation of the dead. The source of their motive force makes little difference to the naïve. Creators of Vengeance should be wary of being lumped together with the creators of more baleful undead.
Material Component: 500 GP worth of incense sprinkled over the corpse to be animated.
XP Cost: 100 XP

Spawning
One of the most feared of the elves’ innovations is the dreaded spawning weapon. Elves who posses this weapon on the battlefield are soon surrounded by a self-made bodyguard created from the bodies of their foes, and archers who employ weapons with its powers cause havoc in enemy ranks.
Any creature slain by a spawning weapon rises as a zombie of the appropriate size with average hit points. The newly risen dead obey the verbal commands of the wielder for ten minutes or until slain again. Zombies created in this manner can be turned, destroyed, rebuked, or commanded as normal, but commanded undead become corpses again after the ten minute duration ends.
A creature is considered ‘slain’ by the weapon if a successful attack by it was the last external source of hit point damage to that creature. This includes, but is not limited to, the following situations. The weapon’s last hit reduces a creatures hit point total to less than –10. The weapon reduces a creatures hit point total to less than 0 and the creature dies from subsequent blood loss (does not stabilize). The creature’s Con is reduced and its new hit point total is less than –10 or 0 as above (as when a Barbarian’s rage expires) and the spawning weapon was the last thing to deal hit points damage. A spawning weapon will not raise the bodies of foes who are constructs or already undead.
Caster Level: 12; Prerequisites: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, animate dead; Market Price: +3 bonus.

 

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Explorer's Society (Swashbuckling Adventures)
3.0
Wrathful Ghost of the Drachen Slain by St. Gregor, Great Drachen's Ghost: ?
Ghost: ?
Powerful Ghost: ?
Ghoul: ?
Specter: ?
Zombie: ?
Spirit: Many claim that Gregorskorn is haunted and tormented by the spirits of those whom the Drachen slew in its bloody rampage, unaware that St. Gregor avenged their deaths.
Mad Spirit of a Domae: ?

 

[Voadam]

Explorers of Prime
3.0
Undead: Nodes can open anywhere, from underground caverns to lush meadows; a node welling up in a graveyard (or ancient battlefield) might produce a plague of undead, which is why being buried on sanctified ground is so important.
Created: These are pure constructs. They are manufactured entirely by magic and have no rational biology. Examples include golems, undead, and oozes.
Created, Pure Construct: ?
Mindless Undead: Most of these were created by necromancers who have died, lost control, or simply abandoned them. Some are naturally occurring, especially when tael is left on the ground after a large battle.
Intelligent Undead: ?
High-Ranking Undead: ?
Incorporeal Undead: ?
Allip: They may be the remains of ghosts who failed in their quest, wandering the world at random and babbling of their misery.
Ghast: ?
Ghost: ?
Ghoul: ?
Lich: ?
Lich King: ?
Lich King, Undead Lord, Powerful Undead: ?
Mummy: ?
Mummy Lord: Mummy Lords are rulers awakened again in this world instead of the next, but determined to make a kingdom of it anyway.
Mummy Lord, Undead Lord, Powerful Undead: ?
Shadow: ?
Skeleton Small: ?
Skeleton Medium: ?
Skeleton Large: ?
Skeleton Huge: ?
Skeleton, Unintelligent Undead: ?
Spectre: ?
Vampire: ?
Vampire King: ?
Vampire Lord, Undead Lord, Powerful Undead: ?
Wight: ?
Wraith: ?
Dread Wraith: ?
Zombie, Unintelligent Undead: ?
Zombie Small: ?
Zombie Medium: ?
Zombie Large: ?
Zombie Huge: ?

 

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Fang & Fury
3.0
Vampire Scion, Relatively Weak Vampire Scion: The humanoid or monstrous humanoid must be killed by a vampire’s blood drain attack, then fed blood by the same vampire to restore it to 0 hit points.
A vampire scion’s first few days of unlife are dark ones. In a process called the Change, the new vampire’s body passes through all the stages of death: Limbs stiffen, skin becomes pale, and eyes lose their color and shine. Finally the abdomen swells to grotesque size as internal organs putrefy, shriveling again as they turn to liquid and then rot away, leaving only a sluggishly beating heart and a labyrinth of black veins. While the body decays, the vampire’s characteristic fangs sprout from bloodless gums.
While going through this transformation, the vampire scion’s hit points remain at 0. (This is an exception to the normal rule that undead are destroyed on reaching 0 hit points.) He is unconscious and his condition is stable, but he is completely unaffected by curative spells (inflict spells in this case) or any other magical means of restoring health. He cannot benefit from use of the Heal skill to speed healing or halt the process, nor can he recover hit points from rest.
No known spell, magic item, or supernatural ability can reverse this change once it begins, though the vampire-to-be is vulnerable to turning and rebuking attempts by clerics, and he can be killed by all the traditional banes of vampires (sunlight, running water, and stakes; see Vampire Vulnerabilities below). In addition, dispel evil or remove curse cast on the body during this process slays the scion immediately.
Only at the end of this period (1d4+1 days) does the scion awake. He initially has 1d6 hit points and is weak and disoriented. This condition resembles exhaustion (move at half normal speed, effective decrease of –6 to Strength and Dexterity). After 1 hour of inactivity, the scion is more in control of his new body but is still afflicted by pain; this is similar to the fatigued condition (can’t run or charge, effective decrease of –2 to Strength and Dexterity). The new vampire can act normally after 8 hours of inactivity. At this point the scion first experiences what will come to define his undead existence—the terrible, overwhelming need for blood so strong it is simply called “the Thirst.”
Various real-world cultures and Hollywood movies treat vampirism very differently. You can easily change the origins of vampires to fit your campaign or simply to confuse your players. Here are some examples of alternative ways to become a vampire in your game.
• A black cat (or other traditionally unlucky animal) steps over an unburied body.
• A vampire feeds from a pregnant woman—the child is born a vampire.
• A vampire feeds from the same person on three consecutive nights.
• A vampire kills someone by any means.
• A witch or wizard dies violently.
• Moonlight falls on an unburied body.
• A suicide rises as a vampire at the next full moon (the rag man in Chapter Four: Prestige Classes is built on this traditional origin story).
The blood gift is also used to transform those killed by the vampire’s blood drain attack into new vampire scions.
Although vampires can come from any of the humanoid and monstrous humanoid races, once they go through the change to undeath their old allegiances, mannerisms, and cultures dissolve into the new realities of the Thirst. After only a few weeks, a dwarf scion has more in common with a halfling vampire than the clan he once called family. For this reason, vampire scions are described here as a player character race, although “vampire scion” is actually a template.
“Vampire scion” is a template that can be applied to any corporeal humanoid or monstrous humanoid.
If a vampire scion reduces a humanoid or monstrous humanoid to –10 hit points with its blood drain attack, the victim arises 1d4 days later as a vampire spawn. If that scion instead gives a blood gift to restore the victim to 0 hit points, it rises 1d4+1 days later as a vampire scion.
You transgressed against a deity or powerful outsider and were cursed with vampirism as punishment.
The origins of his cult are lost, but the origin of the Beast himself is widely known. He was the first vampire among the gods, exiled for preying on lesser deities. The greater gods of the pantheon sentenced him to an eternity of hunger and forbade him from fathering children. But his consort, the Goddess of the Night, took pity on him and gave him the gift of the Change, allowing him to create kin wherever he roamed. This gift led to the first cult of the Beast in the ancient cities of the world, and the first vampire scions were born from the ranks of his high priests.
The Beast has been described as the vampires’ collective savagery and bloodlust made real. He is behind the blood rage they experience when close to succumbing to the Thirst, and he was the first to create vampire scions from mortal subjects.
Many black abbots actually sought out their vampire progenitor and bargained for the blood gift, after learning of the power they could gain in unlife. Still others were granted vampirism by their dark gods, as a reward for years of service.
When an elf community is founded near the briarwoods of the Unseelie Court, Molkeegan, the demon queen of dark fey sometimes chooses an elf youth to serve her in undeath. These individuals are transformed into vampires by Molkeegan’s agents and spirited away to the deep woods when their change begins, often just before they are slain or exiled by their home village.
Rag men became vampires as the result of suicide and as a rule never received a proper burial. Instead their bodies lay broken in alleys or hung unclaimed in rented rooms while they underwent their change to undeath.
Vampire Blood Symbiote: ?
Psychic Vampire: ?
Cursed Vampire: In this alternative, new vampires are created by divine edict, not by other vampires. Whether only one deity hands out these curses, or they are standard punishments (or rewards) for those who violate the laws of Heaven, is up to you.
Diseased Vampire: This option presents vampires as the carriers of a magical disease, and their distinctive abilities as expressions of the syndrome. Scions “catch” the disease from other infected carriers and pass it along to those they feed upon.
The infectious nature of the vampiric disease carriers makes them much more prolific than normal ones once an outbreak occurs. Because every drop of her blood carries the infection, whenever a diseased vampire feeds she has a chance of creating a new scion. The percentage chance is equal to 5 + the total damage dealt by blood drain.
Vampirism disease.
Diseased Vampire, Bloodthirsty Undead Monster: ?
Vampiric Dragon: Not all dragons with dreams of eternal life turn to lichdom; some take the path of vampirism instead. These creatures are only tangentially related to standard vampires and vampire scions. A standard vampire cannot turn a dragon into a vampire scion or vampire spawn, and a vampiric dragon cannot create new scions from humanoids.
“Vampiric dragon” is a template that can be applied to any evil dragon.
A dragon or magical beast slain by a vampiric dragon’s energy drain attack rises as a vampiric thrall (see the Vampiric Thrall entry below) 1d4 days after death. If the vampiric dragon instead drains the victim’s Constitution
to 0 or less with its blood drain attack, the slain creature returns as a vampiric thrall if it had fewer than 10 HD or was a magical beast, and as a new vampiric dragon if it had 10 or more HD and was a dragon.
Green Jack, Vampiric Adult Green Dragon: In life, Green Jack ruled a stretch of lonely woods at the foot of a volcano but lived in fear of an older red female who laired at its peak. He scratched out a mean living by waylaying forest travelers and skulked in the deep shadows under the forest canopy, out of sight of his rival, hiding his few valuables in earthen pits and in the trunks of dead trees.
When he surprised a small copper raiding one of his stashes, he wasted no time in attacking the intruder. But this dragon that seemed so young and weak took Jack apart, draining his life force with a few blows and finally ordering him to lie still. The stranger, now visibly pale and shaking with desire, bit into his neck and drained his life’s blood in a torrent. Jack awoke to undeath at dusk, but it was days before he came to understand his new limitations and powers.
Dwarf Vampire Scion: ?
Halfling Vampire Scion: ?
Neutral Vampire Scion: ?
Evil Vampire Scion: ?
Lawful Neutral Vampire Scion: ?
Lawful Neutral Vampire Scion, Punisher: ?
Neutral Vampire Scion, Balancer: ?
Chaotic Neutral Vampire Scion: ?
Chaotic Neutral Vampire Scion, Opportunist: ?
Lawful Evil Vampire Scion: ?
Lawful Evil Vampire Scion, Predator: ?
Neutral Evil Vampire Scion: ?
Neutral Evil Vampire Scion, Parasite: ?
Chaotic Evil Vampire Scion: ?
Chaotic Evil Vampire Scion, Beast: ?
Skenyitil, Vampire Scion, Deathless Sahuagin Emperor: ?
Young Vampire Scion: ?
Jael, Vampire Scion: ?
Young Vampire Scion: ?
Human Vampire Scion: ?
Vampire Scion Adept: ?
Noble-Born Vampire Scion: ?
Aristocrat Vampire Scion: ?
Vampire Scion Barbarian: ?
Bard Vampire Scion: ?
Cleric Vampire Scion: ?
Commoner Vampire Scion: ?
Druid Vampire Scion: ?
Expert Vampire Scion: ?
Fighter Vampire Scion: ?
Warrior Vampire Scion: ?
Vampire Scion Paladin: ?
Ranger Vampire Scion: ?
Nonevil Ranger Vampire Scion: ?
Rogue Vampire Scion: ?
Sorcerer Vampire Scion: ?
Wizard Vampire Scion: ?
Bar Lucan, Vampire Scion Mountain Dwarf Cleric 5/Black Abbot 5: ?
Figrik the Only, Vampire Scion Wild Elf Ranger 7/Foundling 2: ?
Jurim Llor, Vampire Scion Gnome Bard 7/Masqued Player 2: ?
Hald, The Serpent, Vampire Scion Troglodyte Rogue 3/Nighthawk 2: ?
Katya Braithwaite, Vampire Scion Halfling 7/Ragman 4: The youngest daughter of the Braithwaite family, Katya was a vivacious student of medicine well-known for giving free medical help to the poor. This bright and lovely girl fell in love with her mentor, the dashing professor Riggs, who taught anatomy at the medical school. Within months their flirtation became a raging love affair, which ended abruptly when the professor’s wife discovered their liaisons. Riggs renounced Katya to save his position and even accused her of seducing him with witchcraft. She was dismissed from school in total disgrace just weeks before graduation. Devastated, she leaped from her balcony to the hard flagstones below and died instantly.
The intense emotional charge of this time, and the stress of her subsequent rebirth as a vampire scion, has combined to place Katya in a kind of fugue state.
Countess Mindera, Vampire Scion Merfolk Ex-Paladin 5/Fighter 5/Regent 2: ?
Jexle Fangcutter, Vampire Scion Kobold Sorcerer 2/Reveler 8, Little Mastermind: In life Jexle Fangcutter was a skilled trapmaker from a long line of kobold trappers. He was born with sorcery in his blood and in time rose to prominence within his tribe. This prominence was his undoing, since it made him the target of a cabal of vampires who sought control over his tribal lands.
They captured Jexle and put him through the Change, and when he awoke his captors told him what he had to do.
The Royston Crow, Vampire Scion Green Hag Scourge 5, Hideous Creature: The dye house fire resulted from a struggle between the owner (a vampire scion) and a local green hag he had put through the Change.
Nickenfoot, Vampire Scion Gbolin Wizard 7/Vampire Mage 3, Relentless Experimenter: ?
Tai Sang, Human Vampire Scion: ?
Summoned Vampire Scion: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 1: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 2: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 3: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 4: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 5: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 6: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 7: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 8: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 9: ?
Vampire Scion Human Aristocrat 10: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 1: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 2: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 3: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 4: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 5: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 6: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 7: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 8: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 9: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 10: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 11: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 12: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 13: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 14: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 15: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 16: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 17: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 18: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 19: ?
Vampire Scion Human Cleric 20: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 1: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 2: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 3: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 4: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 5: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 6: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 7: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 8: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 9: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 10: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 11: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 12: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 13: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 14: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 15: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 16: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 17: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 18: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 19: ?
Vampire Scion Human Fighter 20: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 1: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 2: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 3: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 4: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 5: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 6: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 7: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 8: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 9: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 10: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 11: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 12: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 13: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 14: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 15: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 16: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 17: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 18: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 19: ?
Vampire Scion Human Sorcerer 20: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 1: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 2: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 3: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 4: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 5: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 6: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 7: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 8: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 9: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 10: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 11: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 12: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 13: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 14: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 15: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 16: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 17: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 18: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 19: ?
Vampire Scion Human Rogue 20: ?
Blood Symbiote Vampire Blood: ?
Undead, Undead Creature: ?
Intelligent Undead, Intelligent Undead Creature: ?
Intelligent Undead, Powerful Creature: ?
Commanded Undead: ?
Undead Spawn: ?
Corporeal Undead: ?
Undead Creature Specifically Affected By Sunlight: ?
Fleshy Undead: ?
Incorporeal Undead: ?
Skeletal Undead: ?
Undead That Are Vulnerable to Sunlight: ?
Allip: ?
Ghast: ?
Ghast, Fleshy Undead: ?
Ghost: ?
Ghost, Incorporeal Undead: ?
Ghoul: Additionally, the bite of a vampire could create other creatures under different circumstances.
• A person drained completely by a vampire but not fed a blood gift arises 1d4 days later as a ghoul.
Ghoul, Fleshy Undead: ?
Lich, Intelligent Undead: ?
Lich: ?
Mummy: ?
Mummy, Powerful Servitor: ?
Shadow: ?
Skeleton Medium: ?
Skeleton Large: ?
Skeleton Huge: ?
Skeleton: Beginning at 3rd level, the black abbot gains the ability to animate dead once per day, as the spell with a caster level equal to the sum of his cleric and black abbot levels. At 5th level he gains an additional use per day. Unlike the usual form of the spell, this ability does not require the sacrifice of a black onyx gem for each zombie or skeleton created.
Skeleton, Subject: ?
Skeleton, Skeletal Undead: ?
Spectral Coachman, 10 HD Spectre: ?
Vampire, Standard Vampire, Conventional Vampire, Full-Blooded Vampire, Full-Fledged Vampire: The standard rules for vampires specify that a new vampire is created when a humanoid or monstrous humanoid with at least 5 HD is killed by a vampire’s blood drain attack.
The lore of the Great House teaches that the first vampires came into being at the very beginning of time.
Vampire, Bogeyman Who Drinks Blood in the Dead of Night, Creature of Both the Material World and the Negative Energy Plane, Creature Trapped Between Two Worlds, Undead Creature Specifically Affected by Sunlight, Fleshy Undead, Undead That Are Vulnerable to Sunlight: ?
Vampire, Savage Killer: ?
Vampire, Noble Tragic Figure: ?
Vampire Spawn: The humanoid or monstrous humanoid must be killed by a vampire’s blood drain attack, then fed blood (see Blood Gifts, below) by the same vampire to restore it to 0 hit points. Humanoids and monstrous humanoids killed by blood drain but not fed a blood gift arise 1d4 days later as vampire spawn.
Additionally, the bite of a vampire could create other creatures under different circumstances.
• A living person fed a blood gift transforms into a vampire spawn 1d4 days later.
Elder Vampire: ?
Sated Vampire: ?
Vampire in the Grip of the Thirst: ?
Vampiric Cannibal: ?
Mightier Vampire: ?
Helpless Vampire: ?
Standard Predatory Elitist Vampire: ?
Stupid Cursed Vampire: ?
Ignorant Cursed Vampire: ?
Naive Cursed Vampire: ?
Front-Line Vampire Combatant: ?
Vampire, One-Dimensional Bloodsucker: ?
Vampire, Ultra-Cool Nihilistic Goth Kid: ?
Hollywood-Style Vampire: ?
Typical Bloodsucker: ?
Hostile Cursed Vampire: ?
Hostile Standard Vampire: ?
Sleeping Vampire: ?
Powerful Vampire: ?
Vampire Soldier: ?
Tainted Vampire: A vampire who consumes other vampires acquires a distinctive spiritual taint that other vampires can sense.
A vampire who kills another vampire by blood drain acquires a distinctive spiritual taint that all vampires can sense.
Draining Vampire: ?
Vampire Progenitor: ?
Vampire Who Appears and Disappears as if by Magic: ?
Vampire With Unparalleled Stealth and Speed: ?
Vampire Noble: ?
Vampire Regent, Patriarch, Matriarch, Prince, Princess: ?
Younger Vampire: ?
Vampire Immeasurably Ancient Progenitor: ?
Lesser Vampire: ?
Commanded Vampire: ?
Vampire, Brave Individual, Scourge, Hero: ?
Vampire of Myth: ?
Vampire Parent: ?
Vampiric Spellcaster: ?
Deramged Vampire: ?
Lead Vampire: ?
Vampire Who Indulges in the Great Feast: ?
Helpless Vampire: ?
Aurilia, Vampire Mage: ?
Vampire Patriarch: ?
Vampire Lord: ?
Vampire Wielder: ?
Powerful Vampire of Great Age: ?
Wight: ?
Wraith, Loyal Advisor: ?
Wraith, Undead Creature Specifically Affected by Sunlight, Undead That Are Vulnerable to Sunlight: ?
Zombie: Additionally, the bite of a vampire could create other creatures under different circumstances.
• A person killed by a vampire but not fully drained of blood arises 1d4 days later as a zombie.
Beginning at 3rd level, the black abbot gains the ability to animate dead once per day, as the spell with a caster level equal to the sum of his cleric and black abbot levels. At 5th level he gains an additional use per day. Unlike the usual form of the spell, this ability does not require the sacrifice of a black onyx gem for each zombie or skeleton created.
Zombie Medium: ?
Zombie Large: ?
Zombie, Subject: ?
Zombie, Fleshy Undead: ?

Vampirism (Su): Supernatural disease; injury, Fortitude save (DC 20), incubation period 1d3 days. The disease deals no damage to its host but transforms her into a bloodthirsty undead monster at midnight on the night it takes effect.