Vampires

It is a fundamental truth that most sapient beings are at their core still human. Wizards, despite their vast magical powers, are human. Anthropomorphs are humans affected by extreme biological adaptations brought on by viral infection. The faeries and elementals are truly alien, but few if any others can claim such a state. But what of the Vampire then? Are they human?

In short, yes Vampires are fundamentally still human, but their differences are extreme even by supernatrual standards. There are two ways in which Vampires are created, birth or conversion. Trueborn Vampires are rare, tracing their lineage hundreds of years back to the mid 1400's in the region surrounding the Black Sea. The most famous of the first vampires is of course Vlad III of Wallachia, more commonly known as Vlad the Implaer or Vlad Dracula. Legend claims that Vlad and other members of the Order of the Dragon worked with an Ottomon-hating Greek servant of Thanatos to grant themselves inhuman powers and resilience, but at the cost of becoming half-dead mockeries of humanity dependent on consuming blood to maintain their existence. As beings bound to the fundamental drive of death, they are able to pass their curse to the few descendents who survive to birth.

More frequently Vampires change mortals into the newly damned by way of their unique arcana, Thanatosis. While this power is not easily learned, neither is it beyond the reach of any given Vampire be they corrupted mortal or trueborn heir. Of course, it is far easier to master Thanatosis when one has a mentor to guide them so the greater powers of death are more prevalent in the trueborn of each of the great Houses of Blood. Nevertheless, a particularly promising conversion could catch the eye of a powerful blood mage and still others delve into occult research and independent experimentation to grow their power so one can never truly know if the Vampire one meets is barely more than Mycop or if the power of death is theirs to command at a whim.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Vampires appear for all intents and purposes as humans, at least while satiated by the blood of sapient beings. Those who've not fed in an extended period or those who subsist on the blood of lesser creatures slowly take on corpse-like apperances, eventually decaying to the point of losing mobility. This lack of sustenance does not truly kill Vampires, but does leave them in a vulnerable state where they are more easily killed by others.

A few physical traits do stand out among all Vampires. Vampire Fangs for instance are specialized teeth which aid in their feeding. While most learn how to obscure the presence of these fangs, they can be seen by those observant enough and with the knowledge to recognize them as inhuman. Vampire eyes are slightly morphologically different from those of mortals, allowing them to more effectively track their prey in low light or even complete darkness. This difference also results in their extreme photosensitivity, which can result in blindness and burning of the skin. Vampires also bear a similar allergic reaction to Silver as other supernatural beings, making it toxic to their system in a manner not dissimilar to arsenic in humans.

Vampires do boast enhanced physical strength, speed, and durability relative to mortals. They are also highly resistant to common toxins and diseases which impact mortals.

Genetics and Reproduction

As mentioned above, Vampires do retain the ability to procreate as humans do, however their partially dead nature always results in difficult pregnancies and frequently fetuses will not survive to term. Among those which do survive those with a single Vampire parent become Mycop, or more politely Blooded, which inherent a more limited set of strengths and few of the weaknesses associated with vampirism though they are uniformly born sterile. Those with two Vampire parents are even less likely to survive, but those that do are trueborn Vampires from birth, with all the benefits and drawbacks of that curse. These trueborn heirs are fiercely protected by the Houses of Blood and are groomed to one day take leadership positions.

Growth Rate & Stages

Trueborn Vampires will mature at a roughly normal pace for a human, assuming they are kept properly fed with the blood of sapient creatures. Vampires who reach maturity, or which were converted from their mortal lives after doing so, seem to cease aging as long as they remain well-fed. Some even appear to grow younger, all dependent on the blood they consume. Those who feed less frequently or which rely on animal blood appear to age more and take on increasingly corpse-like traits. Vampires who do not feed over an extended period eventually become so corpse-like they lose the ability to move or communicate, entering a death-like comatose state they call гибель (gibel'), though even this can be reversed simply by consuming sapients' blood.

In effect, growth and development cease for mature Vampires and become instead an aspect of digestion. This also results in the effective immortality of Vampires all of which can continue to exist indefinitely as long as they continue to feed. Rumors even persist that some of the original vampires from the Order of the Dragon survive to this day, though if they do they've become reclusive to the point of legend.

Ecology and Habitats

As with humans, Vampires exist across the globe, though they tend to prefer avoiding excessively sunny regions due to their photosensitivity.

Dietary Needs and Habits

All Vampires are united by their exclusive diet of blood. The blood of simple animals can sustain existence, but not the vitality or appearance of life leading to Vampires which appear almost as Morloks for their corpse-like state. The blood of sapient beings is generally perferred and allows Vampires to appear all but completely human without detailed examination. Most commonly this blood is harvested from mortal humans thanks both to their population and relative vulnerability to the predations of Vampires. Blood can be consumed from supernatural beings, and there are even some Vampires who exclusively feed on the blood of faeries or shapeshifters, but the vastly reduced pool of available prey and the risk of retaliation leaves these Vampires vanishingly rare. Those who've tasted supernatural blood do claim it to be especially potent though, so the temptation is always present should opportunity present itself.

There is one supernatural group that are always safe from vampiric predation, anthropomorphs. The virus which makes anthropomorphs what they are remains in their blood and consuming such is incredibly toxic to Vampires. A Vampire who consumes even a small amount of anthropomorph blood will become violently ill. A Vampire who feeds fully from anthropomorph blood, that is to say consumes a pint or more, will assuredly die in terrible pain.

Behaviour

Vampires are predatory creatures. They require blood to survive and specifically the blood of sapient being to maintain a decent quality of life. Being in effect obligate cannibals leads to psychology that either adapts to their role relative to other beings or fails to survive. Supernatural psychologists believe this is why the Houses of Blood so readily adapted to an organized crime type structure, as a more civilized representation of the predator-prey relationship. Vampires also tend to be selective about which mortals they convert, typically only choosing those they feel confident can adapt to their new existence, though there are those who simply cannot overcome the trauma of conversion and either seek permanent death or retreat into a solitary existence of feeding on animals while experiencing both mental and physical deterioration.

Civilization and Culture

Major Organizations

While there are plenty of Vampires in the world who live independently, most are members of the Houses of Blood, effectively international crime families which govern global vampiric society. Virtually all trueborn vampires are heirs to one House or another and many of those who convert mortals typically do so allied with their House. Even Vampires who largely remain out of House politics are treated as owning allegiance to their parent House by the active members of such. The Houses hold less direct influence in the Americas, but as members of the Council of Magi they are still quite powerful and go about their activities with little outside interference.

Thanatosis

The unique arcana available to Vampires blending the practices of the ancient death cult of Thanatos and the modern development of blood magic.

Novice: You learn two Novice degree Thanatosis spells of your choice.

Expert: You learn one Expert or Novice degree Thanatosis spell of your choice. You gain the focus Intelligence (Thanatosis).

Master: You learn one Thanatosis spell of your choice from any degree. You can also choose one power stunt (MABR p.93) you can perform for -1 SP (minimum 1) when casting Thanatosis spells.

Grandmaster: You learn two Thanatosis spells of your choice from any degree. Additionally, your Force when casting Thanatosis spells is always +2.

Apex: You now know all Thanatosis spells of every degree. Treat all Novice degree Thanatosis spells you cast as minor arcana with a cost of 1 PP.

Exsanguinate
Requirements: Thanatosis (Novice) Cost: 4 PP | Fatigue: TN 11 Time: Major Action Target Number: 12 Test: Constitution (Stamina) vs Force

You syphon blood from a wounded creature to heal yourself.
Choose an injured, living creature which has blood within 6 yards of you. That creature makes a Constitution (Stamina) test against your Force. If the test succeeds, there is no effect. If the test fails, the creature immediately takes 1d6+1 damage and you recover health equal to half that amount (rounded up).

Grave Visions
Requirements: Thanatosis (Novice) Cost: 6 PP | Fatigue: TN 12 Time: Major Action Target Number: 12 Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs Force

You use blood magic to temporarily tether the spirit back to a dead body in order to observe events from the perspective of the corpse.
When you successfully cast this spell, you are able to perceive events up to 24 hours prior to the death of the corpse as though from the corpse's perspective. You may continue to perceive through the corpse's senses after it's death up to the point when you cast the spell. While perceiving in this way, you cannot interact with the subjects of your observation or alter the perception of the corpse. For example, a corpse which spent 3 weeks in a coffin prior to the spell being cast would perceive nothing but the darkness of the casket until it was opened, however a corpse left dead in an alleyway may be able to perceive the direction its killer fled.

Lifestalk
Requirements: Thanatosis (Novice) Cost: 4 PP | Fatigue: TN 11 Time: Minor Action Target Number: 12 Test: None

Detect the presence of living creatures by sensing their blood.
When you successfully cast this spell, for the duration of the encounter you can sense the presence of living creatures which have blood, including their number, rough distance, and direction relative to your position. Such creatures suffer a -2 penalty on all Dexterity (Stealth) tests to hide from you. Additionally, when such creatures are within 20 yards of you, you are able to determine if any of them have been injured.

Dispossess
Requirements: Thanatosis (Novice) Cost: 4 PP | Fatigue: TN 11 Time: Major Action Target Number: 12 Test: Willpower (Faith or Self-Discipline) vs Force

Drive a possessing spirit from a mortal body.
You touch a possessed creature and attempt to sever the connection between the possessing spirit and the mortal host. Make an opposed Power Test against the Willpower (Faith or Self-Discipline) of the posessing spirit. If the mortal host does not wish to be severed from the spirit, you suffer a -2 penalty on this test. On a success, you force the spirit to leave the host and be unable to reposess it for 1 hour. On a failure, the creature remains possessed and you cannot attempt to dispossess again for 1 hour.

Bloodbind
Requirements: Thanatosis (Expert) Cost: 10 PP | Fatigue: TN 14 Time: Minor Action Target Number: X Test: Strength (Might) or Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs Force

You focus your magic on the blood of a nearby creature, connecting their lifeforce to your magic. You are then able to manipulate the targeted creature's movement as though they were a puppet on a string.
Choose a living creature which has blood and attempt to control its movements. It must make a Strength (Might) or Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs your Force. If the test succeeds, there is no effect. If the test fails, the creature moves where you choose. You cannot force the creature to take actions which would require fine motor control, only simple movement, however you can force the creature to drop any object it may be holding.
You can maintain the spell on subsequent rounds without spending additional PP by using a major action each round. Each round you do so, the creature makes another test to resist your control.
Creatures may willingly fail the test to resist this spell.

Entrance Prey
Requirements: Thanatosis (Expert) Cost: 8 PP | Fatigue: TN 13 Time: Major Action Target Number: 12 Test: Willpower (Self-Discipline) vs Force

Partially control the mind of a living creature with blood to either conceal yourself or trick their senses.
One creature within 12 yards of you must make a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test vs your Force. If the test succeeds, there is no effect. If the test fails, you choose one of the following effects:

• The creature is unable to perceive your presence through mundane means, even if other creatures attempt to point you out.
• The creature perceives you as different from your actual appearance in a manner you choose.

You can maintain the spell on subsequent rounds without spending additional PP by using a minor action each round.

Necromorphosis
Requirements: Thanatosis (Master) Cost: 20 PP | Fatigue: TN 19 Time: 1 Minute Target Number: X Test: Willpower (Any) vs Force

You convert a living mortal into a vampire.
You touch a dying mortal and offer them eternal unlife. The mortal may attept to resist this change using a Willpower test vs your Force. If the test succeeds, there is no effect. If the test fails, you take 1d6 piercing damage as some of your blood drains into the mortal's body. The mortal immediately dies and rises as a newly converted Vampire 1 hour later.
A vampire you create in this way has an innate connection to your blood. You are able to sense each other's presence when within 100 yards of each other, can communicate telepathically, and have a +2 bonus to resist any powers cast by each other.

Discorporation
Requirements: Thanatosis (Master) Cost: 16 PP | Fatigue: TN 17 Time: Major Action Target Number: 12 Test: None

Temporailly transform your body into a mass of blood or mist.
For the remainder of the encounter you become an amorphous cloud of mist or glob of blood, your choice. Any objects worn or carried discorporate along with your body. You are able to pass through spaces at least 1 inch across in a single direction. You retain all of your senses and are able to communicate via a disembodied voice. You take half damage from all non-magical attacks and your speed increases to 20 yards. Additionally, you may use the Exsanguinate power for free (0 PP, no Fatigue test) if you know it.
If you choose the mist form, you are also able to fly and hover in the air as long as you remain in this form. If you choose the blood form you are able to spontaneously shape limbs and recorporate objects subsumed into your form, allowing you to interact and attack as normal.
You may return to your normal form as a minor action at any time and if you ever lose consciousness you return to your normal form automatically.