Vampires

The Shadow Lords

Do not fear, dear travelers. We of the Lonavi domain are not the monsters of the night that exist outside our lands. While they may feed on the blood of the innocent, we have sustained ourselves through other means. While they drag innocents kicking and screaming into the dark, we push you all forward into the light.

— Lorenz Ta'pes to a group of adventurers, 1005 EA

Civilization and Culture

History

Vampires as most of the world know them are creatures out of a nightmare. People who pretend to be charming and dashing rogues who seduce their prey and isolate them from others. And when they have a perfect opportunity, they attack and drain their prey of blood and life. There's even a belief that should a person die from this manner, they will become a vampire spawn and soon a full-fledged vampire should they drink blood from their creator. As such, Vampires are feared as undead abominations in most of northern Avestra.

However, the lands of the Lonavi people know them differently. For there are the monstrous vampires that prey on innocents from the shadows outside their lands. However, the Vampires of the Lonavi region are far different. Unlike normal Vampires, Lonavi Vampires are living beings. It is believed they were one of the first Vampires to be created in the world through abnormal magic. While stories vary, the lords and ladies of the different provinces became the first shadow walkers. In the Ancient Age, many of these shadow lords ruled over their territories for centuries. Many turned tyrannical and brutal, committing acts that make future generations shudder. However, that changed with the rise of the Belmore and Ta'pes families.

Unlike other Vampire clans, these clans believed that this immortality was as much a burden as it was a gift. That this was meant for them to aid the mortals still left in the world. They convinced several factions to join their side but the rest turned against them. A civil war started between the two sides that raged for centuries. Rumors say that it's still raging today but the majority of clans submitted to the Belmore and Ta'pes. The clans then created rules that they abide by to this day.

1. Use your immortality to aid your mortal subjects
2. Treat your thralls, dhampirs, and spawn well
3. Resist the temptation of the blood
4. If your time comes, let immortality end

These rules became a guide to the Lonavi vampires as time went on. The first generations soon faded from the world and their descendants carried on their memory. However, they faced their greatest challenge when the Elders and their abberations came. The Lonavi lords had never faced a challenge like the Elders and even when the Eternals came, they found themselves under siege. Experiments on the vampires allowed them to figure out the secret of their creation and this led to the birth of the undead vampires that many know stories off.

Now a millennium later, vampires have two sides to them in the greater world of Avestra: The heroic and noble lords of Lonavi lands and the blood-thirsty undead abominations that surface across the rest of the world.

Historical Figures

• Trevor Belmore. A child of the Belmore clan who stood against the injustice that other vampires committed in the past.
• Vlad Ta'pes. The patriarch of the Ta'pes clan and one of the first vampires.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Since Vampires can be any species, there isn't really a single view for them of others. However, the biggest relationship they have is with their Dhampir children. Since dhampir can only be created by vampires, their creators feel obligated to treat their children well. Sometimes, this creates a bond between creator and scion that is almost unbreakable as the former protects and the latter serves loyally. Other times, there is such animosity between the two that it can fracture the clan, especially since vampires can turn their dhampir children into vampires.

Lifespan

Immortal

Geographic Distribution

• Alus
• Edrinia

Related Ethnicities

• Lonavi