Vampirism

Vampirism is a magical affliction that turns ordinary people (and also not ordinary people) into bloodsucking creatures of the night, also known as Vampires.

Symptoms

Vampirism comes with many symptoms. They have no reflection, nor do they have a shadow. They are often described as incredibly attractive and alluring, though some tales will instead call them horrific and ugly. It is believed to be a case by case scenario.
They will also grow fangs, which are used to suck blood from people and animals. They develop a taste for blood, which helps to power them and is actually nutritious to the body. This is believed to be tribute to the Demon Lord from which Vampirism originated.

Abilities

Vampires gain some rather potent abilities alongside their other changes. Not every vampire learns to do these, but here are a list of the powers that can be attained by Vampires.

• Ability to suck blood
• Nearly infinite lifespan, are considered immortal
• Ageless, do not age past initially being bitten
• Shapeshifting ability (into a bat and a batlike humanoid creature)
• Can grow Batlike Wings
• Enhanced Strength, Speed, and Senses
• Telepathy
• Body naturally heals most injuries
• Can turn others into Vampires or Vampire Thralls by biting them
• Knows exact location of anyone they have ever bitten/turned
• Command over Vampire Thralls and animals they have bitten, as well as any nocturnal animal
• Ability to walk on walls and ceilings
• Hypnotic gaze

Weaknesses

Alongside their powers, however, Vampires also have many weaknesses.
These weaknesses include an aversion to sunlight, which weakens them, but does not instantly kill them. Full body prolonged exposure (an hour in full sunlight) will, however kill them. This also means that light magic to the entire body could kill vampires, and some are even able to be killed with flames and explosions.
Wearing hats and big clothes is often enough to cover Vampires from the sun, though their wings as well as parasols and umbrellas also can do the trick to save them.
Garlic, as well as some types of Onions, repel Vampires. Whether these would kill them or not are unknown, but many Vampire Hunters do eat diets consisting mostly of Garlic and Onions just in case. Briar Plants also repel Vampires, so superstitious folks plant Briars in their garden.
Some say that Vampires are repelled by religious iconography and holy items, but this is as far from the truth as possible. Due to the divine trifecta, Demons (which Vampires technically count as due to being the product of a Demon Lord) are strong against Heavenly forces. What they are weak against is instead Devilish items and powers. A Devil would likely be able to take on a powerful Vampire with a rather weak ability and would have a good chance of coming out on top if they played their cards right.
There is one Holy Item that is known to be able to defeat Vampires. A sword blessed by Izanagi, known as the Shine of Izanagi, has the power to cleave through anything that is not holy with ease. This sword's location is a closely guarded secret.
Wooden stakes are considered the most effective weapon in killing Vampires, though expert Vampire Hunters say that when it comes to a powerful Vampire Lord, a stake won't do much other than tickle. That's when you need silver, which only works on more powerful Vampires, though even that is said to not work sometimes.

How a Vampire is Made

Vampires cannot be born, even if two Vampires have children, the child will not be a Vampire. They must be bitten by another Vampire to turn into a Vampire. This means that all Vampires could trace their creation to the first Vampire, who is supposedly Dresmorlin Cobath.
It is believed that when Vampires mate and have children, they will then wait until the child has reached adulthood before biting them. This allows the Vampire to retain their youthful look forever.

Fact or Fiction?

Many people have, for hundreds of years, questioned whether Vampires were real or just an old myth meant to scare children into being afraid of the dark.
After all, for every Dresmorlin Cobath sighting people claim, there are just as many studies that have disproven the ways Vampires supposedly operate. Magic scholars claimed for years that Vampires were just an urban legend, and that people should not take Vampires seriously, or else they'd be wasting their time as the scholars had done in researching this "nonsense."
However, the actions of one man singlehandedly changed everything, making the idea of Vampires not just possible, but a confirmed fact.

Dresmorlin Cobath by Jarhed

Dresmorlin Cobath

Dresmorlin Cobath is an old Dark Elven noble, one of the first Dark Elves alongside Chadzar Dalarune, teleported to the Grey Cavity via the first Stemine.
It is said that it is due to Cobath, who was once a High Elven noble, that nobility was adopted by the Dark Elves in the first place. Cobath refused to mingle with the rabble, saying it was preposterous that he should escape from the High Elves just to be stuck among commoners.
Cobath built the first mansion in the Grey Cavity, known as Vanished Forest Manor. This was named after how the Elven Forest seemed to vanish when they teleported. However, Cobath is said to have not been pleased with just this.

Entertainment

Cobath sought entertainment in increasingly macabre ways, often getting the poor to fight for his enjoyment for the promise of money or survival. He would put them up to outrageous things, and eventually even that grew boring to him. It also put him into conflict with Chadzar Dalarune.
The famous tale known as The Dead Man's Tale claims that Dresmorlin killed much of Dalarune's family and nearly killed Chadzar before he was arrested and sentenced to death. Dark Elven execution is, in reality, just the government locking up someone until they die by natural causes or their own hand.
Yet the story goes that Cobath did not die. He grew bored, but he had gotten used to this feeling. So Chernobog, God of Demons, granted Cobath his item magic, Demon Magic. With this, Cobath was granted the powers of all Demon Lords, and as one of his first spells, he gave himself a Demonic affliction. This turned Cobath into the first Vampire, who then fled his cell and got revenge on Chadzar by cursing him in some way. The legend says Dresmorlin Cobath still roams, and creates more vampires, but it is a contested tale.

Luth Rumbleblood by Jarhed

Vampire Hunters

This man was a Human named Luth Rumbleblood. A second generation Human noble, Luth was turned into a Vampire at the age of 21 in the year 36. He claims that Dresmorlin Cobath was the one to do it, and that he wishes to rid the world of Cobath and all of his creations.
When Luth came forward in the year 100, immediately people came to arms, ready to exterminate the Vampires. Luth himself leads the largest organization, known as the Returners, where he teaches and personally uses methods that, if used against him would kill him, all in the hopes that these men can rid the world of the Vampire menace.
Thus far, Luth has yet to be killed by his own men or a Vampire, so that has at the very least gone well for him.

Vampires in Myth

Surprisingly, despite them being the creations of a Demon Lord, Vampires have appeared in some of the mythos of different Gods.
For instance, in the Church of Athena's Holy Text, the Foundation, there is a parable where a follower of Athena and a follower of Mimir are beset upon by a Vampire. The follower of Mimir is taken in by the Vampire, while the Cross of Athena protects the follower of Athena. This is meant to show that faith in Athena will protect anyone, and that Mimir worship (or worship of any Evil God) may be linked to Demons.

Helle by Jarhed

The Church of Selene, conversely, features stories of Vampires as neutral entities. They do not do harm intentionally, but instead harm by virtue of existing.
The Goddess Selene forgives them for their sins, saying that if they accept her in their hearts then they will be able to live without guilt. The story ends with them doing so, and then continuing their killing spree. This implies that Selene condones this, and sometimes the Church will ignore this story.
Some diehard believers, though, say this shows that the only thing you need to do for Selene to forgive your sins is to believe in her which, for someone as selfish and jealous as Selene, is incredibly on brand.
The Church of Helle and Nyx both share a story of a Vampire who is portrayed in the text as a hero. This Vampire drinks the blood of the nonbelievers, saying that if they wish to live as mortals then the people must believe. Their actions may be heinous, but both stories feature the Goddesses endorsing the actions of this Vampire.
It is unclear which story came first and which was inspired by the other, as they are the same story with the minor difference of one has Helle appear and the other Nyx.

Gnawer

A modern myth was created in the writing of a novel known as Gnawer, written by acclaimed Gnome author Pomp Cwildred. In the story, Gnawer is a Korvian Noble who owns a mansion in the Korvian City. From this mansion, he preys on innocent commoner Korvian until a group of Orcs stumble into his mansion.

Gnawer by Jarhed

Gnawer then turns his attention to the group of Orcs, as he slowly picks them off one by one, killing some, turning some into Vampires to serve him, and with others torturing them. He is eventually, however, undone by the protagonist of the novel, Monzol the Prime, who discovers that the necklace around Gnawer's neck will kill him if taken off. Monzol then celebrates his victory by killing more Korvians. It is a best-selling book, and one of the classics of Korvian literature.

Vampire Hierarchy

One thing that is often questioned is the hierarchy between different kinds of Vampires. There are five known classifications of Vampire. They are as follows.

Vampire Thrall

The weakest classification of Vampire, Vampire Thralls cannot turn people into Vampires with a bite or do any other Vampiric power other than sucking blood for sustenance.
They are always commanded by Vampire Lords, who often use them to carry out missions or gather victims/blood for them to feast on.

Vampire Abominations

These are Vampires who either willingly choose to stay in the batlike Humanoid form or have gotten stuck in it. This causes their minds to devolve, normally ending up as ravenous beasts with only blood on their minds.
Abominations are also often commanded by Vampire Lords, or at least serve them in hopes of gaining blood. The Vampire Lords send Vampire Abominations out as footsoldiers to do their dirty work against an enemy.

Vampire Luths

When Luth Rumbleblood was discovered to be a Vampire, he was at this stage of Vampire, the basic stage of a normal Vampire. They have some few abilities, though not the full range. They do not command any Thralls, but instead are just solo Vampires with some scarce abilities.

Vampire Lords

Vampire Lords are Vampires that have unlocked many of their abilities and have gained the power to rule. They command Thralls and Abominations, and can do outlandish things. Vampire Lords are some of the most dangerous beings to encounter alone, as they not only can kill you, but will.

Great Vampire Lord

The Great Vampire Lord is said to be Dresmorlin Cobath, the Dark Elven progenitor of the Vampires. He is said to be all powerful with all powers of a Vampire Lord plus his Demon Magic. It is said that he is immune to all but light magic, and that there is not a single being on Totania stronger than him, though even those that believe his existence doubt that no one could defeat him.
There is no evidence that there has ever been another Great Vampire Lord, but there is also little evidence of Dresmorlin, so it could be possible.