D&D 5E Vampire Transformation Benefits and Drawbacks

[ManBagel]

So in the MM the benefits from becoming a vampire are stupidly good for the downsides since you can fix two off the bat. Sunlight and Running Water. Now I don’t know why this isn’t what vampires wear, but why wouldn’t they steal waterproof clothes + Full body cover? I don’t know if I’m wrong about this, but couldn’t just wearing those clothes stopping those problems?

Rant is over about the strange reason why vampires don’t wear clothes like that.
But the reason before I got sidetracked was my question on how to fix transforming into a vampire. The Monster Manual made it far too powerful. So basing it off point buy I think they should get a +1 to +3 to there strength, Dexterity, and Constitution. And one of the vampire traits. Like transforming into a bat or always being affected by spider climb.
Your thoughts?

 

[DammitVictor]

Clothes won't help. The water doesn't have to touch you-- to cross running water in a boat, a vampire needs to rest in their coffin with a handful of their gravedirt.

Full clothing helps with sunlight until something or someone knocks your hat off. Then you're going to have a bad day.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I don't think wearing what would amount to basically a diving suit is actually necessarily going to solve your problems there, because they're supernatural problems, not physics problems.

I think a DM would be within their rights to suggest both simply ignore "what you're wearing" and inflict the damage as long as you continue to be subject to the circumstances. Which would explain why vampires don't dress like deep sea divers - because there's no actual benefit.

Re other "benefits" - I wouldn't apply them instantly. They might take centuries to kick in.

 

[Fanaelialae]

Clothes won't help. The water doesn't have to touch you-- to cross running water in a boat, a vampire needs to rest in their coffin with a handful of their gravedirt.

Full clothing helps with sunlight until something or someone knocks your hat off. Then you're going to have a bad day.

While that is the traditional lore, I think you're technically mistaken about the water. The MM says that the vampire takes damage if it ends its turn in running water. Meaning that it needs to be submerged.

That said, I agree that clothing wouldn't help. I don't think the water needs to touch the vampire's skin. A vampire is an unclean thing and running water is a symbol of purity. Hence, vampires are harmed by running water. It's more spiritual than physical IMO.

Although I have to wonder where one would even think to find waterproof clothing in a typical D&D setting? An oiled cloak is one thing, but it won't prevent you from getting wet if you get dunked in a river.

As to clothing to keep sunlight off, I agree. While we normally don't track damage to clothing in a typical D&D game, because it doesn't matter, it would matter for a vampire. Uh oh, fireball burned some holes in your clothing while you were standing in sunlight and now you're dead.

 

[Inanity]

The ability score adjustments are seemingly high and a +2 (to split the difference) seems good just as well and if one wants to lower those adjustments then +2 seems good...

Concerning spider climb and turning into a bat: neither of those are game breaking nor even out of the reach of a party of level 3 adventurers (in fact it should be easy enough to climb or turn into a bat at a fairly low level, depending on class/feat choice, etc. of course)...

I imagine a player character WONT BE getting the legendary actions (so lets bar that I guess)...

Children of the night is useful at lower levels but really 3d6 wolves at higher level play is moot (most likely, especially considering we are talking about a case where a player character is a vamp)... And one can stagger the abilities to become more powerful at higher levels...

The charm move is iconic and powerful. At-will charm... all in all a low level party shold FUNCTIONALLY have something like at will charm since there most likely is a spellcaster that has prepared or can cast enough charm persons to get by (of course charming a whole village is hard to accomplish so maybe just limit the number of possible thralls to like 1/2HD or something; so a level 20 can have 10 craetures charmed; really charm isnt the most powerful affect but most likely the potential for abuse is more so concerning annoying others during the session by atemtpting to go around charming everyone around (so maybe RP-wise temper the ability without augmenting ts mechanics)...

Maybe stagger the necrotic damage across level (+1d6 1-5...+3d6 at level 15+ etc.)...

All in all I dont know as a DM I would allow the vamp mostly unaugmented (legendary actions aside)... the only problem I would see is envy from other playes so I would attempt to integrate a similar boon for the other charatcers/players... That being said, if EVERY player was a vamp that would solve the problem of envy potentially vbut that may be an altogether different kind of game...

I mean it is a HUGE boon to become a vamp (at least in a game where players have a large amount of control over what and where their characters go)... and a player shouldnt receive such a boon without the other players receiving a similar boon; even if augmented as you suggest it is a substantial increase to powerful (+2 to str, dex, etc. is GREAT!) and it would seemingly be unfair to give one player such an increase without providing a similar opportunity to other players... Maybe thing about making it a race lke human with those traits and NOT an ADDON if you want an envy free vamp...Or if you want a weakened vampire use the vampire spawn as a template...

This is

 

[Ruin Explorer]

While that is the traditional lore, I think you're technically mistaken about the water. The MM says that the vampire takes damage if it ends its turn in running water. Meaning that it needs to be submerged.

That said, I agree that clothing wouldn't help. I don't think the water needs to touch the vampire's skin. A vampire is an unclean thing and running water is a symbol of purity. Hence, vampires are harmed by running water. It's more spiritual than physical IMO.

Although I have to wonder where one would even think to find waterproof clothing in a typical D&D setting? An oiled cloak is one thing, but it won't prevent you from getting wet if you get dunked in a river.

As to clothing to keep sunlight off, I agree. While we normally don't track damage to clothing in a typical D&D game, because it doesn't matter, it would matter for a vampire. Uh oh, fireball burned some holes in your clothing while you were standing in sunlight and now you're dead.

It doesn't need to be submerged - the exact wording is:

Harmed by Running Water. The vampire takes 20 acid damage if it ends its turn in running water.

If it meant "submerged in", it would say "submerged in", not "in". So if a vampire is stand ankle-deep in a stream, or waist-deep in a river, they take damage. I would say that being on a boat isn't "in" the water by any sane use of English, it's "on" the water, so they don't take damage there, but if they fall out they'd be dead in under a minute.

Re: sunlight, I think a vampire of this level of power shouldn't be protected by clothing. Lower-end vampires, recently-turned vampires, weaker vampires - I could see them being protected by clothing, but the full-on vampire statblock is a real lord of the undead, and he's clearly not "normally naked".

So the idea that clothing protects him, but they just forgot to put that in the statblock makes little sense. He takes 20 radiant/round in sunlight. I would say that assumes he is wearing clothing (as depicted, and as makes sense). It's not that he normally takes 80/round but wearing clothes over most of his body lowers that! Nor is it that 20/round is strictly for vampire nudists. Both are just silly.

Also if you start making up random house rules about vampire clothes, you run into stuff where spells designed to kill vampires with sunlight arguably shouldn't work or should be massively less effective because the vampire isn't a nudist. Trust me no-one wants to see Count Strahd's junk so don't go down the "clothes make you immune/reduce damage!" route.

If you want vampires to have a reason to wear high collars, big hats, sunglasses and so on, note that this 20/round is DIRECT sunlight - i.e. not reflected/ambient sunlight - so you could say if vampires don't wear that stuff, when they're getting significant reflected/ambient sunlight (i.e. bouncing off objects and the floor and so on) on them, that does maybe 5/round, or perhaps just causes them pain.

 

[Fanaelialae]

It doesn't need to be submerged - the exact wording is:

Harmed by Running Water. The vampire takes 20 acid damage if it ends its turn in running water.

If it meant "submerged in", it would say "submerged in", not "in". So if a vampire is stand ankle-deep in a stream, or waist-deep in a river, they take damage. I would say that being on a boat isn't "in" the water by any sane use of English, it's "on" the water, so they don't take damage there, but if they fall out they'd be dead in under a minute.

Re: sunlight, I think a vampire of this level of power shouldn't be protected by clothing. Lower-end vampires, recently-turned vampires, weaker vampires - I could see them being protected by clothing, but the full-on vampire statblock is a real lord of the undead, and he's clearly not "normally naked".

So the idea that clothing protects him, but they just forgot to put that in the statblock makes little sense. He takes 20 radiant/round in sunlight. I would say that assumes he is wearing clothing (as depicted, and as makes sense). It's not that he normally takes 80/round but wearing clothes over most of his body lowers that! Nor is it that 20/round is strictly for vampire nudists. Both are just silly.

Also if you start making up random house rules about vampire clothes, you run into stuff where spells designed to kill vampires with sunlight arguably shouldn't work or should be massively less effective because the vampire isn't a nudist. Trust me no-one wants to see Count Strahd's junk so don't go down the "clothes make you immune/reduce damage!" route.

If you want vampires to have a reason to wear high collars, big hats, sunglasses and so on, note that this 20/round is DIRECT sunlight - i.e. not reflected/ambient sunlight - so you could say if vampires don't wear that stuff, when they're getting significant reflected/ambient sunlight (i.e. bouncing off objects and the floor and so on) on them, that does maybe 5/round, or perhaps just causes them pain.

I thought it implicit that when I said submerged I was saying [partially] submerged rather than [completely] submerged.

 

[Krachek]

Usually when you are transformed you become a slave of your creator.
is this a downsize strong enough?

 

[jasper]

Get in there. Shut up. Sit down.
SGt, "What you gone there Jasper?
A 13-666.
SGt "So Naked person skinny dipping claiming to be a vampire."
****
Sorry I don't care what sunblock you are using, or clothing you wearing. Only mad dogs and English men go out in the noon day sun without burning. And I will take the hot hose to you and turn it on if only my mom would allow me to drink from the hose.

 

[77IM]

I created a Vampire player class and there's a sidebar about how to address each problem: Vampire Player Characters

Here's what I said, way back when:

Handling Vampiric Weaknesses
The vampire's various weaknesses are an important part of the lore and legends surrounding these monsters, but can be disruptive during game-play. Here are some suggestions.

Blood Thirst. The vampire can feed on animals or allies. A vampire who bites a willing ally may deal minimum damage instead of rolling.

Garlic. Garlic is flammable, burning up after 1 round, and even the weakest vampire can throw it up to 60 feet away.

Dwelling. For a place to count as a dwelling, a sapient creature must live there for a year and a day. In a large structure, such as a dungeon, only the rooms they use regularly count as the dwelling.

All who live there, and their guests, have the authority to invite a vampire in. For an easier game, allow the local authorities to "invite" the vampire into dwellings in their jurisdiction.

Running Water. A spell or magic item that grants a swim speed can protect a vampire against the hazards of rivers, streams, and ocean waves.

Stake Through the Heart. The vampire, or an ally, can use an action to make a DC 15 Strength check, removing the stake on a success. (Note that in my variant the stake doesn't cause paralysis, just ongoing damage. I made all of the weaknesses cause ongoing damage for consistency.)

Sunlight. The vampire can wear dark, concealing clothing to avoid being weakened by sunlight. As an action, another creature can forcibly remove this concealing clothing by succeeding on a contest of its Dexterity (Slight of Hand) versus the vampire's Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics).