Vampire

Vampires are ancient predators, which some believe to be as old as civilization itself, and some say they are even older. Lurking in the shadows, they had millennia to evolve into the perfect hunters, and humans are their main prey.

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The Night Stalkers

Vampires have walked beside men since the dawn of civilization in the first cities of clay bricks and earthwork walls in Mesopotamia. While they might be, as a species, perhaps ten thousand years old, and are biologically immortals, there are no hints of any surviving vampire from these early days who could shed some light into the mystery of their origin. There are as many legends about it as there are broods, and each bloodline has a preferred version. Some claim it was a gift from a now-forgotten deity, some say it was a curse and punishment. A few argue it was both. The truth, however, is likely lost to time. But regardless of the circumstances of their origins, vampires have always needed to prey on mortal creatures to survive. While the conventional wisdom claims it is the blood who provide sustenance, the reality is more complicated. The blood is essential for their survival, but not alone. The blood of mortals also acts as a conduit of their essence, which is needed to feed the vampire's own and tether it, albeit temporarily, to the vampire's body. Any animal could feed a vampire, but most animals have a weaker essence, and so a single mouthful of human blood could feed a vampire as much as draining a dog dry. For many vampires, feeding on animals is barbaric and distasteful, akin to how a human would look down on chewing raw meat out of a fresh kill. It might be done in desperate times, but vampires are proud creatures and few would enjoy living that way. This means vampires almost universally live within human communities, and most have to hunt every night for sustenance.

Hunting: Then and now

The act of finding suitable prey, stalking it and feeding, whether it results in the prey's death or not, is called hunting. It's not the only way to feed, but its an essential part of a vampires life, if it can be called that. A vampire that survives through different eras and lives long enough to see the world changing often has to adapt their hunting methods over time. Back during the middle ages, in Europe, vampires could easily feed on vagabonds and travelers, as those would rarely be missed when they disappeared, and little mind would be paid to their absence. But they came in short supply and the low, spread out population meant sometimes vampires themselves often find taking the role of travelers. Especially when the disappearances of a couple of peasants aroused suspicions in the local population. But traveling was a dangerous choice for their kind. Modern cities offer different opportunities and pitfalls. The large, anonymous crowd is filled with victims nobody will miss, and it's easy to blend into de faceless millions every night, but at the same time, modern forensic techniques and communications network means that any mistake will likely haunt the vampire for a long time. Weapons evolve radically and while one could easily scoff away from a peasant with a pitchfork and trembling hands, semi-automatic weapons present a danger even for vampires.

Bloodlines & Broods

Vampires are lone hunters, but social creatures. This paradoxical relationship between how they feed and how they live is not lost on them. Every vampire belongs to a bloodline and those of the same bloodline expect some respect and loyalty, as the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb, even when the covenant wasn't a choice the mortal made in life. And more locally, a vampire might choose to associate themselves with a brood.

Bloodlines:

Not all vampires are created equals, and when a vampire sires one of their kin, they also pass along their own bloodline to the newborn. Bloodlines are lineages that can be traced to the past beyond history, and they come with their own traditions and strange new powers that will slowly flourish as the newborn age. It's hard to be categorical when trying to classify creatures as elusive as vampires, but there are six commonly known vampire bloodlines:

• Black Rose

• Cabal

• Umbral

• Celt

• Nyxor

• Sethian
• Nachzerer
• Byzantines
• Sassanids
• Cathar
• Tezcali

Broods

Broods are the closest a vampire has to a family, a group of vampyr with the common goal of survival in mind and dedicated, to an extent, to mutual aid when needed. While vampires are essentially selfish beings, and treachery is not unknown, treachery within the same brood is perceived as a serious sin and could condemn the vampire who does so to a life of being considered an untrustworthy kinslayer. For broods with mixed bloodlines, loyalty to the bloodline and loyalty to the brood can sometimes pull in different directions, and what the vampire will choose to do may forever define who they are.

Thralls, Dolls, and Ghouls

Vampire blood is a powerful substance, richer in essence beyond that of most living creatures. Drinking even a drop of blood from a vampire can affect the mind of a mortal in different ways. The exact dosage and effects greatly vary depending on the particulars of the mortal's willpower, the age of the vampire, their relationship, and the frequency in which they drink. However, in vampire society, offering your blood to a mortal is a very intimate act, and that has prevented most vampires from trying to exploit the addictive potential of their blood for money. It would be humiliating and probably turn them into a pariah, if not outright start a Bloodhunt.

Thrall

Blood thralls are humans who have fed on the vampire blood for a long time. They feel a strong bond with the vampire which blood they tasted and that makes them loyal, steadfast servants, dedicated day-guardians, and entertaining pets. Thralls feel a deep craving for their master's blood, and will often jealously protect the privilege of tasting it. While having a thrall is useful, it involves disclosing one's vampiric nature, and often providing for the thralls living, depending on the functions one wants the thrall to execute, which means only high ranking or well-to-do vampires can easily afford to have one or more thralls on retinue. Besides that practical matter, there's also the fact that the blood often fed to a thrall has a cost of the essence for the vampire, and feeding someone on a daily basis means also having to feed more for the vampire themselves. Such added upkeep can't always be easily incorporated into one's routine.

Doll

Doll, or Blood-doll, Cattle, Bloodbags or Lunchboxes, among many other names of increasingly demeaning nature, is the name given to a mortal that accompanies the vampire not because they are addicted to their blood, like a thrall, but because they are addicted to their bite or Kiss. The feeding while often hurtful is often accompanied by a discharge of endorphin, serotonin, and dopamine. The chemical cocktail in itself is a powerful motivator for people to keep seeking the thrill. While it's not unheard for a thrall to also serve as a doll or a doll to be allowed to sip their master's blood, most vampires would rather not expose their pet mortal to both, as that would be burning the proverbial candle on both ends, and they'd quickly end up with a ghoul

Ghoul

Ghoul is the creature a mortal turns to when he spends too much time around a vampire. The old Templar definition is not technically correct, but it comes scarily close to the truth. Thralls can be addicted to their master's blood for years, but eventually, their craving will begin to increase in intensity and frequency. Drinking repeatedly to sate it will only speed the process, leading the Thrall's mind to think of nothing else but their next fix. This dark spiral can eventually overpower even the intense loyalty that Thralls feel for their master and more than one vampire met their end in the hands of a starving thrall. If the process is not somehow stopped, the mortal can reach a point where all his thoughts are of consuming blood. Blood cannot feed a mortal's body in a way it does to a vampire, and they'll starve, and yet not die. That's when the word ghoul is usually applied. Starvation, addiction, and frenzied need to eat turn the mortal into a barely recognizable, gaunt husk of its former self. Frequent doses of vampire blood make ghouls exceedingly powerful and their relentless drive makes them incredibly dangerous.

The matter of Age

Vampires are biologically immortal, in the sense that there is no known upper limit of how much they can age. However, the passing of time does have a few effects on a vampire, which might explain why there are no known vampires alive from the early days, that could recount their origins as a race.

0-5 Years: The vampire is called 'Newborn' by others when it has been turned less than 5 years ago. A Newborn can feed in small doses every couple days and still display rosy skin. Many newborn vampires will still move their chest as if they were breathing even though they have no reason to do so. They have an easier time mixing with humans and many find a way to continue their old lives, if somehow hindered, hiding their true nature.

6-13 Years: At this stage in life, vampires usually start losing their ties to the mortal world and realizing the futility of trying to keep their tethers to their old life. Vampires that survive to this stage often did a few horrible things and coming to terms not rarely leads to turbulent changes in their personality. Breathing becomes a distant memory, and feeding becomes a daily need.

14-25 Years: Vampires at this stage are sometimes called 'adolescents', as this is the stage in life any and all traces of their former selves began to disappear beyond saving. The lack of aging no longer can be hidden, family and friends die, pull away, or are pushed so. While it is common for young vampires to try and survive without a brood, adolescents are often the ones who fight the most at the idea of depending or caring for anyone. And eventually, this death of their former identity leads to the need to seek or build a new one. By the end of their 'adolescence', vampires tend to stabilize, although that doesn't always happen. Feeding is still a daily need, and the vampire requires more blood to 'appear' human, with a heartbeat, blushing, and breathing, for a shorter time.

26-80 Years: Adulthood for a vampire began when they are a vampire for a little under thirty years. At this stage, most vampires are less likely to look away and be merciful of misbehaviors and mistakes as they tend to look at their fellow vampires as an equal. They will also have fewer qualms with calling a bloodhunt against an adult vampire if it feels necessary. Clans will become more demanding and adults who have not joined broods are frowned upon and seem at best as awkward strangers and at worst suspicious outsiders. This age group forms the bulk of living vampires. Adults require slightly more feeding than adolescent vampires, but the need isn't greatly increased. Their blood is more powerful for feeding thralls and healing humans, and their bloodline powers flourish more easily.

81-125 Years: When they begin approaching a century of age and have survived their new reality, Vampires are often considered Sages. Sages have lived as a vampire more than a human normal lifespan and thus have no excuse to step out of line. More than that, younger vampires will look to them for wisdom, as they have passed the trials of vampirehood and seem the world change around them as they advance. Most Vampires of renown in courts are Sages, and perhaps most of the living vampire demography falls between Sages and Adults. When a vampire lives as long as Sage, staying out of vampire politics becomes increasingly difficult, and when they do get involved, their odds of living another century begin to decrease dramatically.

126-200 Years: Vampires who are older than a hundred years and approaching their second century are called Elders. Elders require significantly more blood than adult vampires to survive, and their humanity and behavior is often more jaded and cunning than they were ever in mortal life or even in death after. Surviving this long means having seen that immortality as a bloodsucker isn't just a blessing. To reach this age, one must be an outcast or an able player in the game of courts and will command the respect of its fellow vampires, or live the life of a cowardly exile and be seen with disdain. To play the court's game is deadly, to refuse to play is ostracizing. Elders only 'appear' human (breathing, blushing) for the first minutes after feeding and even then, many do a conscious effort to suppress this reflex. Elders often have mastered their bloodline powers and command important titles in the courts.

201-300 Years: After two centuries, a vampire is given the unofficial title of Venerable. They have proven that they are able to survive the worst the court and the world has to throw at them, and it's unlikely that they lived this long without making blood sworn enemies, scorned lovers, and carrying their own dark secrets. If a Venerable vampire is not a Prince, the leader of a court or another position of respect, there's likely a story behind it. Venerable vampires have trouble dealing with humans, having lived many times their lifespan in a cruel, unforgiving world and having forgotten the kiss of the sun, jaded doesn't begin to describe their attitude towards humans, and while they may pose as kind, compassionate, their survival in the vampiric world this long means they are nothing short of cunning, ruthless manipulators and survivors.

301-500 Years: The title Methuselah is sometimes used to refer to those truly ancient vampires who count many centuries under their belt. They are often Clan leaders, Princes and Kings of major domains, and players of immense power in Vampire society and the world stage. Their influence is often easy to underestimate, given how underhanded and indirect they tend to play it. They require twice as much blood as an adult vampire does, and often have arrangements to be supplied with that. They command huge fortunes, and at times, entire countries. There are advantages to playing the long game after all. But there are downsides. Taking down a Methuselah is a great blow to a rival clan, an excellent trophy for a hunter, and their blood is powerful to be sought by sorcerers, witches. Their every move watched closely by the Templar Order and scrutinized by their peers. A Methuselah is never more than a couple of wrong moves from being destroyed.

500+ Years: The Ancient Ones are things of legends, Known by all vampiric societies. There are perhaps only a couple of vampires of this age known to be still living and awaken. Their power is immense, their needs great and their names alone a thing to fear. To survive half a millennia in the shadows is to prove oneself to be a monster of will and cruelty. Given their blood needs, Ancient Ones can only survive when sustained by a structure, requiring three or more times the amount an adult Vampire would require. Their knowledge of their bloodline's secret is unrivaled.

Turning Feral

When a vampire goes without feeding for too long, his mental faculties can begin to decline. If the vampire doesn't starve to death but is still somehow incapable of fully sating their thirst for a long time, often the case when a vampire has no access to humans and feeds of animals for too long, he can turn feral. Once the vampire has gone feral, no amount of feeding or known treatment or magic can bring them back. Their mind is gone and all that's left is a husk that lives to feed. Feral vampires are cunning but have no sense of self. They will stalk and kill prey, feeding until there's no blood left, and then move to the next. Only self-preservation stops them from attacking everything alive on sight, but they will still kill regardless of how recent their last meal was. Feral vampires may attempt to feed on other vampires occasionally, but most of the time they seem to avoid other vampires. Strangely, when two ferals meet, they tend to band together, and there have been reports of broods of over twelve ferals. The mere concept of such a thing is enough to give shivers to the most seasoned hunters and worry even powerful brood-masters.