[3.5] Vampires - Maybe Somebody Will Actually Play One Now

[Bauglir]

We all know how shitty vampires are in D&D. That +8 LA would be crippling for all but a few builds even if it were actually worth it, because chopping off 2/5 of your potential character is just not a good idea for something with as many varying myths as a vampire. You just can't fill all the conceptual niches, and your character is going to suck trying.

So, what I've tried to do here is boil down a vampire to the stuff that people actually want to play, and cutting out all the cruft that the designers added to make them "powerful" and "threatening" and all that bullshit we all know they aren't. I've even kept traditional vampiric weaknesses in the rules, including a way for a sufficiently powerful vampire to overcome them - because that happens in virtually every example of vampire fiction. The idea here is that for vampiric "houses" that have different special abilities, you'll use class levels to fill those in, because that's really what you should do anyway.

Hey, you can even still create spawn!

Vampire:
A vampire is a vampire. If I have to explain this, something is horribly wrong. Go read Dracula and come back.

Vampire is a template that can be applied to any living creature other than an ooze or elemental.
Size and Type: A vampire's type changes to Undead, and it gains the Augmented subtype. Unlike most undead, a vampire retains a Constitution score, and retains several vulnerabilities of the living. Do not recalculate hit dice features, except as described below.
Hit Dice: A vampire's hit dice, including those gained from class levels, increase by one size, to a maximum of d8; hit dice that are already a d8 or larger do not increase, but remain at their original value. A vampire gains one Undead hit die, with all the usual features of that type.
Speed: As the base creature. A vampire with 12 or more hit dice can fly with average maneuverability at a speed equal to ½ its land speed.
Natural Attacks: A vampire gains a bite attack. A Medium vampire deals 1d4 points of damage with this bite, and larger or smaller vampires deal damage accordingly (to a minimum of 1 point of damage).
Special Attacks:
Blood Drain (Ex): A vampire can drain blood from a helpless target (including a pinned target), dealing 1 point of Constitution damage each round as a standard action. When the vampire reaches 8th level, the vampire may choose to deal 1d4 points of Constitution damage instead each time it uses this ability. At 16th level, the vampire may choose to make the damage into ability drain, instead, each time it uses this ability. A victim killed through this ability may rise as a vampire itself (see below).
Special Qualities:
Create Spawn (Su): A vampire that slays a creature through draining its blood risks creating a new vampire. If the victim is eligible for the vampire template, the vampire may choose to raise the victim as a vampire. A vampire who does this takes 1 point of Constitution damage, which can be healed normally. The victim must make a DC 20 Fortitude saving throw; failure indicates that the transformation fails to function properly, and the resulting creature rises as a vampire spawn (see below). On a successful saving throw, the victim loses a level and gains the vampire template; the racial hit die replaces the lost level, and so the creature's XP total remains unchanged. In either case, the victim must then make a DC 20 Will saving throw; failure indicates that the victim has a Friendly attitude toward its creator, while success indicates that the victim's free will is untouched and it retains its prior attitude toward the vampire. If the victim is slain through Constitution drain instead of damage, the Fortitude saving throw DC is reduced to 15, and the creature does not get a Will save, but is automatically Friendly toward its creator vampire. These saving throws are made by the creature using its statistics prior to death, and it is important to note that the Friendly attitude is not permanent; the victim's attitude can change normally after it becomes Friendly. Thus, a new vampire is always a potential rival.
Insatiable Craving (Ex): A vampire has an insatiable craving for the blood of creatures of its former type (the type indicated by its Augmented subtype). If, in any given nine day period, it does not feed on at least 10 points of Constitution from creatures of the appropriate type, it must make a DC 25 Will save or take 2d4 points of Wisdom damage as the hunger gnaws at its mind. This damage cannot be restored by any means except feeding; each point of Constitution consumed restores one point of Wisdom 1 minute after being consumed, but does not count toward preventing further Will saves from this quality. A vampire reduced to 0 Wisdom by this quality becomes violently insane and attempts to drain Constitution by any means available to it, no matter the risk. If a vampire slays a creature through its Blood Drain ability while rendered insane, it automatically attempts to raise it as a vampire. If a further week passes without any feeding, a vampire collapses into a coma (during which it is helpless). If a creature of the appropriate type approaches within 5 feet, or exposed blood of such a creature (such as an open wound or an open bowl or cup) is brought within 30 feet of a vampire in such a coma, the vampire awakens and attempts to consume it, still savage and unthinking. If the blood in question is moved more than 50 feet away from the vampire, it immediately lapses back into its coma, its bloodlust unable to sustain it any longer. Upon consuming any amount of blood, the vampire regains 1 point of Wisdom, and further points must be regained in the normal way for points lost to this quality.
Certain types of creature are so closely related to one another that a vampire can subsist on the blood of such a relative, but typically at the loss of some efficiency. Such related types include fey and giants and humanoids and monstrous humanoids as one group, as well as animals and magical beasts and vermin as another; specific creatures may also fall into these groups, such as very human-like outsiders. A vampire must feed on twice as much Constitution from a creature with a related type.
Mirror Invisibility (Su): A vampire casts no reflection. A creature cannot track a vampire on a reflective surface to avert its eyes from a gaze attack, but other methods function normally.
Unholy Metabolism (Ex): A vampire is a mockery of life, and shares many qualities with the living. A vampire retains its Constitution score. It does not gain immunity to mind-affecting effects. It shares some of an undead creature's resiliency, gaining a +2 bonus on saving throws against (instead of immunity to) poison, sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects. Vampires remain susceptible to critical hits, nonlethal damage, and ability drain, but are immune to energy drain. Vampires can take damage to their physical ability scores. Vampires heal naturally, but are healed by negative energy and harmed by positive energy just like other undead creatures. Vampires are just as susceptible to effects that require a Fortitude save as are living creatures. Because a vampire retains its Constitution score, it does not use its Charisma score for Concentration checks. A vampire is not destroyed at 0 hit points, but is staggered, and disabled at negative hit points, just as a living creature. Spells that resurrect the dead do not affect a vampire, but if the vampire is slain, any such spell other than true resurrection brings back the creature without the vampire template; the caster of true resurrection may choose to bring the creature back with or without the template, at its option. In any case, a vampire does not lose a level from being resurrected. A vampire is proficient with its bite attack and any weapons or armor with which the base creature was proficient. A vampire does not breathe, nor need it eat or drink (but it can, at its option, though it must pass a DC 10 Fortitude save to stomach food), but see its Insatiable Craving quality. Vampires sleep.
A vampire's twisted approximation of life means that it borders very nearly on being a living creature. For the purposes of any effect that refers specifically to living creatures or undead, a vampire has a 50% chance of being considered a living creature, and is otherwise considered undead. This chance is checked independently for each particular effect.
Vulnerabilities (Su): A vampire is vulnerable to sunlight, taking 1d6 points of damage during each round of exposure to it. Vampires have difficulty crossing running water, and must make a DC 15 Strength check in order to do so; failure indicates being immediately stopped, even if on a vehicle (out of which the vampire might fall). Oceans count as running water, but a vampire can avoid this difficulty by making the journey within a coffin filled with dirt from a 3 mile radius from the site of its gaining the vampire template. After making the initial check, a vampire spawn is unimpeded by that particular body of water until it is no longer in, above, or below it, after which further crossings requiring checking anew. Vampires are automatically sickened by fresh garlic within 5 feet, and must make a DC 20 Will save in order to approach within 5 feet of a holy symbol.
Abilities: +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity
Bonus Feats: A vampire's toughened flesh and resiliency to pain allow it to strike without hesitation even against armed opponents. A vampire gains Improved Unarmed Strike.
Level Adjustment: +0
Challenge Rating: Unchanged, if the undead racial hit die replaces a class level. Otherwise, +1.

Vampire Spawn:
A beast born of a failed transformation, a vampire spawn lives a life of constant agony and bloodlust. These creatures typically survive only a short while before oblivion frees them.

Vampire spawn is a template that can be applied to any living creature other than an ooze or elemental if that creature fails a Fortitude save against a vampire's Create Spawn ability.
Size and Type: A vampire's type changes to Undead, and it gains the Augmented subtype. Unlike most undead, a vampire spawn retains a Constitution score, and retains several vulnerabilities of the living. Recalculate all statistics for a vampire spawn's racial hit dice based on its new type.
Hit Dice: A vampire spawn loses any class levels it may have possessed, and gains an equivalent number of Undead hit dice. A vampire spawn never has more than 5 hit dice; additional hit dice are simply lost.
Speed: A vampire spawn's base land speed increases by 10 feet.
Natural Attacks: A vampire spawn gains a primary bite attack. A Medium vampire spawn deals 1d8 points of damage with this bite, and larger or smaller spawn deal damage accordingly (to a minimum of 1 point of damage). A vampire spawn that possessed hands gains 2 secondary claw attacks as well, each dealing 1d3 points of damage.
Special Attacks:
Blood Drain (Ex): A vampire spawn can drain blood from a helpless target (including a pinned target), dealing 1 point of Constitution damage each round as a standard action. A vampire spawn is unable to exercise restraint when using this ability, as the taste of blood provides the only relief to the agony that constantly torments it; a vampire spawn deals bite damage in addition to the Constitution damage, and does not voluntarily stop until the victim is dead.
Special Qualities:
Bound to the Master (Su): A vampire spawn is eternally bound to the vampire that created it. Should its creator die, the spawn is immediately slain. This ability works across any distance, and even planar boundaries, but might be prevented by an anti-magic field or similar effect that prevents supernatural qualities from taking effect. In such a case, the creature dies immediately when that effect ceases to affect it.
Insanity (Ex): A vampire spawn's unending suffering renders it an unthinking beast. Its Intelligence score cannot be increased by any means. It is immune to confusion. A vampire spawn will attack any living creature other than another vampire spawn, an ooze, or an elemental within sight in an attempt to drain its blood. It is likely to attack any other creature than a vampire spawn anyway, but will not voluntary attack a being it senses to be its kin.
Insatiable Craving (Ex): A vampire spawn has an insatiable craving for the blood of living creatures. When this craving is unsatisfied, the pain of being becomes ever more unbearable, and its flesh begins to rot; a vampire spawn takes 1d4 points of Constitution and Charisma damage at the end of any day in which it does not consume at least 2 points of Constitution in blood, and does not heal naturally when resting on such a day. This damage cannot be restored by any means except feeding, which merely allows the damage to heal at the rate of natural healing. A corpse's blood can be drained for a number of points of effective Constitution equal to 1/10 the Constitution score the body had in life (rounding down).
Unholy Metabolism (Ex): A vampire spawn is a mockery of life, and shares many qualities with the living. A vampire spawn retains its Constitution score. Its tortured mind resists manipulation, granting it a +4 bonus on saving throws against mind-affecting effects. It does not gain immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects. Vampire spawn remain susceptible to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability drain, and energy drain. Vampire spawn can take damage to their physical ability scores. Vampire spawn heal naturally, but are healed by negative energy and harmed by positive energy just like other undead creatures. Vampire spawn are just as susceptible to effects that require a Fortitude save as are living creatures. Because a vampire spawn retains its Constitution score, it does not use its Charisma score for Concentration checks. Spells that resurrect the dead do not affect a vampire spawn in any special way, but if the vampire spawn is slain, any such spell brings back the creature as it was before gaining the vampire spawn template. A vampire spawn is proficient with its natural attacks, but not with any other weapons, armor, or shields (whether the base creature was or not). A vampire spawn does not breathe, nor can it eat or drink most foods or beverages, but see its Insatiable Craving quality. Vampire spawn sleep.
Vulnerabilities (Su): A vampire spawn is vulnerable to sunlight, taking 2d6 points of damage during each round of exposure to it.  Vampire spawn have difficulty crossing running water, and must make a DC 20 Strength check in order to do so; failure indicates being immediately stopped, even if on a vehicle (out of which the vampire spawn might fall). Oceans count as running water for this purpose. After making the initial check, a vampire spawn is unimpeded by that particular body of water until it is no longer in, above, or below it, after which further crossings requiring checking anew. Vampire spawn are automatically nauseated by fresh garlic within 5 feet, and take 5d6 points of damage for each round spent within 5 feet of a visible holy symbol.
Abilities: +4 Strength, +2 Dexterity, -6 Wisdom. A vampire spawn's Intelligence score is 1.
Feats: A vampire spawn loses feats accordingly due to its changes in number of hit dice (if any). Any feats for which the vampire spawn no longer qualifies are replaced with Toughness.
Level Adjustment: +0. Playing a vampire spawn is extremely recommended against, but if you feel you must, there you go.
Challenge Rating: A vampire spawn's challenge rating is equal to 1 plus 1/2 its hit dice.

Racial Feats

Many vampires have special powers beyond those presented in the templates provided above. While not universal, these powers are not exactly rare, either.

Charming Gaze
Prerequisites: Creature must be a vampire, Cha 13
A simple glance from your eyes entices other creatures, bending them to your will.
Benefit: As a swift action, you can attempt to charm any creature of the same type as your Augmented subtype within 60 feet, as the spell charm monster, except as noted here. Targeting a creature with this effect uses the same rules as affecting a creature with a gaze attack, and creatures can defend themselves against it in the same fashion. The effect lasts for as long as you remain in the target's presence, plus 1 hour thereafter, to a maximum of 1 day. You can expend this power over a creature's mind in a single burst, uttering a single suggestion (as the spell), except that the maximum duration is 10 minutes. A creature can make a Will save against being charmed at a DC of 10+1/2 your level+your Charisma modifier, and is also allowed a second saving throw against the suggestion effect. In any case, after you attempt to use the suggestion power, the charm effect ends. A creature who resists your charm attempt is immune to this ability for 1 hour thereafter, and aware of your attempt to supernaturally influence it (though unsure of the details if it cannot identify you as a vampire), while a creature who is charmed remains unaware and only becomes immune to the effect after it expires, and for one hour thereafter. You cannot charm a creature that is currently charmed by you. This feat is a spell-like ability.

Children of the Night
Prerequisites: Creature must be a vampire, Wis 13, Knowledge (nature) 6 ranks
You can call forth servant creatures that obey your whims for a time, dominated by your will.
Benefit: You can summon forth up to 4 animals as a swift action. They appear 1d4 rounds after you use this ability. You can summon one animal with 1 more hit die than you, 2 animals with 1 fewer hit die than you each, 3 animals with 2 fewer hit dice than you each, or 4 animals with 3 fewer hit dice than you. These animals act in the initiative count after yours in the round in which they appear, and follow your mental commands (which can be any of those allowed for a creature summoned with summon nature's ally), given as a free action on your turn. These animals remain for 1 minute, after which they flee as fast as possible from you. You cannot summon an animal you cannot identify. You may only summon animals appropriate to the environment in which you are located when you use this ability (as defined by the creature's Environment entry in its statistics), and those that cannot plausibly navigate to your current position do not arrive. Using this feat is a spell-like ability, but the animals so summoned are not; it is not actually a (Summoning) effect.

Mist Form
Prerequisites: Creature must be a vampire, Escape Artist 13 ranks
You can turn into a faint mist, choking creatures and evading their attacks.
Benefit: You can use the gaseous form spell on yourself at will as a standard action. You can revert to corporeal form as a standard action. The spell has no maximum duration, and has only a Personal range. Remember that Mist Form does not change any statistics of your character not mentioned in the spell, so that you retain all of your normal vulnerabilities. If you would take damage that would kill you, you may make a Reflex save against a DC equal to 1/2 the damage dealt by the attack; if you succeed, you instead use this feat as an immediate action, which may prevent you from taking the damage. This feat is a spell-like ability.

Vampiric Vigor
Prerequisites: Creature must be a vampire, Con 13, 6 hit dice
Your flesh seals itself after being wounded with no effort, and you ignore the pain of any injuries you might sustain.
Benefit: You gain Regeneration equal to 1/2 your character level. This Regeneration is overcome by silver weapons, Good-aligned weapons, holy water, wooden weapons, and sunlight. Most wood is ineffective as a weapon, except as a stake (see Equipment below), but special materials such as bronzewood qualify as wood for the purposes of this Regeneration.
Special: A coup de grace made with a weapon that overcomes your Regeneration automatically slays you.


Spell Revision

Gaseous Form
Transmutation
Level: Bard 4, Sorc/Wiz 5
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Touch
Target: Creature Touched
Duration: 1 round per level
As the cotton combusts into a cloud of smoke, so too does your target evaporate into a thin fog
While this spell is in effect, the target becomes an amorphous cloud of mist. The target gains the Incorporeal subtype, except that it does not gain a deflection bonus to its armor class from the subtype and cannot enter an object. It gains a fly speed equal to its base land speed with Good maneuverability. The target cannot use any carried manufactured weapon, and it loses any natural attacks it possessed, instead gaining an incorporeal touch attack that deals 1d4 points of damage per 2 caster levels of the spell's caster. Its lack of definition also makes it immune to flanking and critical hits, paralysis, and stunning. The target takes 1d8 points of damage per caster level if a gust of wind spell is cast that includes the target in its area. Natural wind of Severe strength or higher deals 2d8 points of damage to a creature in gaseous form per round, plus 1d8 points of damage for each category higher than Severe.


Equipment
Wooden Stake: A wooden stake can be used for mundane tasks, such as stabilizing a tent, but is also of great use to the novice vampire slayer, who may not be able to overcome a vampire in fair combat. A wooden stake, while not truly a weapon, can be used to make a coup de grace against a helpless target, as if it were a one-handed weapon dealing a base damage of 1d4 points. As it is a wooden weapon, it overcomes the regeneration of a vampire with Vampiric Vigor, automatically slaying it when used for this purpose. A wooden stake weighs 1 pound and costs 3 cp.

[xaotiq1]

No Improved Grapple/Grab?

[Troll Bräu]

To be honest, I think this template is just about as unappealing to take as the original vampire one was. I mean, who would use this other than to say, "Hey, I'm a vampire and vampires are so cool right now!"

[veekie]

Somehow it looks like the thing wouldn't go amiss if it also gave one Undead HD as well.

[Bauglir]

No Improved Grapple/Grab?

Hm, is that something vampires tend to do? If so, I could add it in, but I'd probably have to tone down the Blood Drain ability slightly. I actually don't intend it to be used as a standard combat technique, if only because it makes triggering Create Spawn way too easy, and thematically I think they tend to use it on sleeping or restrained targets because it's the equivalent of eating a meal. Something they do leisurely. I'm aware that you can get it to work pretty well if you do a grapple-heavy build, but I don't know if that's something I should build into the template or not.

Somehow it looks like the thing wouldn't go amiss if it also gave one Undead HD as well.

Hm... probably couldn't hurt, although in that case I'd probably want to drop the LA. Right now it seems like it's on par with the Draconic template, particularly with all those situational weaknesses. The biggest thing is Create Spawn and a vampire who tries to abuse that is either going to leave a long trail of corpses (thus instigating your standard vampire hunting game) or is going to be only using it on people who were a challenge to kill in the first place (in which case it has to wait till level 16, and just means that every battle potentially becomes Defeat Means Friendship).

To be honest, I think this template is just about as unappealing to take as the original vampire one was. I mean, who would use this other than to say, "Hey, I'm a vampire and vampires are so cool right now!"

Well, that is kind of the point. To allow you to do that without feeling like the game's giving you shit for it. Heck, that's the point of playing just about any character, unless you're arguing that the only reason somebody could possibly want to play one is due to the popularity of a vampire in media at the moment. That said, there's certainly room for vampire prestige classes or feats or something for somebody who wants something more specialized or something, it's just that I don't particularly care to write them. If you have any suggestions for improvement, though, I'd like to hear them! Bettering the material is never bad.

Also, I've taken the liberty of improving your post. I hope you don't mind >______>

[veekie]

Hm... probably couldn't hurt, although in that case I'd probably want to drop the LA. Right now it seems like it's on par with the Draconic template, particularly with all those situational weaknesses. The biggest thing is Create Spawn and a vampire who tries to abuse that is either going to leave a long trail of corpses (thus instigating your standard vampire hunting game) or is going to be only using it on people who were a challenge to kill in the first place (in which case it has to wait till level 16, and just means that every battle potentially becomes Defeat Means Friendship)

Seems about right yeah, its strengths are situational, as are the weaknesses. Making it the benefits of 1 vampire HD seems to work well enough. Its like a sort of PrC that way.

[Bauglir]

Okay, I've made that change and the associated dependent changes. Hopefully I haven't missed anything important.

EDIT: Incidentally, in case any readers are wondering about those supposed real vampires that can overcome their vulnerabilities because of their power and grace and blah blah blah, Dracula and those like him are high-level Sorcerers who know Antimagic Field. All the vulnerabilities are Su for a reason

[oslecamo]

If you ask me, any version where the vampire just drinks blood as a calmant is silly. My vampire actually fuels his power with the blood he drinks. You're free to go vegan, you'll just be unable to use all your nifty vampire powers.

[veekie]

Okay, I've made that change and the associated dependent changes. Hopefully I haven't missed anything important.

EDIT: Incidentally, in case any readers are wondering about those supposed real vampires that can overcome their vulnerabilities because of their power and grace and blah blah blah, Dracula and those like him are high-level Sorcerers who know Antimagic Field. All the vulnerabilities are Su for a reason

Dracula's abilities are actually closer to a druid. Weather control, animal shapes, etc etc.

[SneeR]

I really like this. It makes vampires possible for the average game!

I have a question, though: is it entirely up to the victim if they turn into a vampire? They need to make a Fortitude DC 20 Save in order to turn into a vampire (if they want?), then need to make a Will Save or be friends with the vampire?
The second part about the effects of draining CON, however, suggests that there is a lower DC and it is impossible not to like them, which sounds bad...

So, is it that the victim has no choice in the matter and must make all of the applicable saves, and if they succeed on a Fortitude Save, they have no choice but to be a vampire? i.e., the more resilient a person is, the more likely they are to become a vampire unwillingly?

[Bauglir]

I'll be honest, that was one of the trickier things to work out. The reasoning I ended up going with was making contracting vampirism something that you don't have a choice about fluffwise, but which you also have to be tough in order to survive. Further, since usually a PC will prefer to not die, it seemed like the "preferable" option should be the one that you have to try to achieve. So when a more powerful vampire kills you and makes you into a new vampire, they have a much more reliable chance of producing a vampire and one that's friendly (if you make that Will save, you're likely to be quite upset with your creator vampire over the whole murder thing).

That said, it's not exactly perfect, but (like lycanthropy), I can't think of a really optimal way to properly balance the acquisition of a "curse" that often provides buffs to the target at the expense of roleplaying a distaste for the condition or being socially ostracized.

Dracula's abilities are actually closer to a druid. Weather control, animal shapes, etc etc.

You make a good point. Maybe he had an Acorn of Far Travel keyed to somewhere in an AMF or something? I do not know all the possible shenanigans.

If you ask me, any version where the vampire just drinks blood as a calmant is silly. My vampire actually fuels his power with the blood he drinks. You're free to go vegan, you'll just be unable to use all your nifty vampire powers.

I do like that, it's just that it goes a bit further than I'd planned. If I were trying to develop a vampire with a unique flavor or otherwise interesting mechanic, I might go that way, but for this template I was kind of aiming for generic, and in most situations I tend to see them portrayed as having an Inescapable Craving sort of situation. At least in modern media.

[veekie]

Well one angle you can try with the spawn thing:
Vampires must actively decide whether to vampirize someone. Simply draining them dry would just leave you with a corpse(who may or may not rise as unrelated undead). Usual process in media is to put some of your own blood back in. When berserk, they always vampirize someone.
When they decide to create a spawn, a Fortitude save decides if they rise as a full Vampire, or a animalistic vampire-like spawn(think fast zombie with vampire traits). The Will save determines if the spawn is under your command or a free agent, saves made with the stats before they died. The usual rules with voluntarily failing saves apply.

This way, you can target weaker creatures to get basically...humanoid attack dogs. Quality servants on the other hand, may wind up as independent beings, who are on top of that, likely hostile to the one who killed them. And they all have to be fed.

One tweak I like to make to the craving. What if instead of simply falling unconscious when not fed, they fall unconscious but awaken, still insane if a suitable blood supply passes close(within reach? charge range?), and collapse again if not fed before the supply leaves this area.

[Bauglir]

I like those ideas. Incorporated. I'll write the vampire spawn template later, I've gotta catch a bus in 5 minutes now.

EDIT: Okay, Vampire Spawn added. Bit of a rough draft, and I hope I caught all instances of "vampire" and added "spawn" appropriately.

[DonQuixote]

Might want to note that vampire spawn also won't attack vampires.

In terms of the original vampire template itself, given the way that unholy metabolism works, might it be worthwhile to have them count as "living creatures" for the purposes of spells and abilities that specify such?

[veekie]

but if the vampire spawn is slain, any such spell back the creature as it was before gaining the vampire spawn template

Might wanna fix.

A vampire spawn is vulnerable to sunlight, taking 2d6 points of damage during each round of exposure to it. On total immersion in the sun, a vampire takes 20d6 points of damage in addition to the no doubt tremendous damage that would ordinarily be associated with such immersion.

Seems a bit funny, should that be indirect exposure and direct exposure?

Also, does either have Darkvision?

[Bauglir]

Actually, I want the spawn to be able to attack the creator vampire if they make the Will save. Another reason not to abuse it too heavily, and while a vampire isn't likely to be in any danger it's kind of annoying. Or at least, that's the intent (plus the whole "Attacked by your creation" thing).

I'll go fix that typo, yeah. Also, the sunlight thing is worded as I'd intended; including the immersion in the sun thing was a joke, mostly. I could delete it, since it'll almost never come up.

[veekie]

Seems alright then.

[Bauglir]

Don't know how I missed this, but I'm kind of iffy on the vampires acting as living creatures. So I'll make the template iffy, too.

[Rejakor]

meh, I wouldn't give up a class level for this.

This is a way for people to burn a level on fluff at the moment.  And doesn't give any of the thematic vampire abilities.

Just write a 4 level class that gives the vampire powers, or scaled down equivs (no reason gaze = dominate, gaze = charm + suggestion).

Then just add the vampire lord template on top for +3 LA at level 10 or higher.

[Bauglir]

I dunno, what would be a list of thematic abilities? I'd rather do the charm gaze as a racial feat, since there aren't really any spells that grant the same sort of mechanic (unlike Children of the Night, for instance, which is equally well-represented by being a druid).

As for spending a level on it; I wouldn't in a caster build, because hey, lost caster level, which is a problem thematically. And one I can't resolve because I'm not letting a strictly superior hit die advance casting for free. Other'n that, though, it's a d12 with Con, good Will, 4+Int skill points hit die giving you +2 Str and Dex in exchange for a few situational weaknesses, more or less. Sounds pretty decent, honestly. I suppose I could write in something about being able to avoid the sun damage with a parasol or some other means of making it indirect.

The vampire lord template, though, is silly. It's just the vampire template again. As I recall, it offers nothing but higher numbers and an improved create spawn, so it's right out.