A solitary figure, cloaked in burnished steel, confronts the onrushing infantry as they breach the castle’s defenses. With a swift blur of darkness, the figure materializes amidst the soldiers, dispatching them with unnatural agility.
In a dimly lit chamber, a hooded advisor leans over an opulent throne, whispering schemes into the lord’s susceptible mind. The room erupts in chaos as the lord decrees further privileges for the merchant’s guild.
Vampires, beings of cursed lineage and melancholic existence, are forever deprived of life’s simple pleasures—a sumptuous meal, a gentle breeze, the embrace of aging alongside loved ones. Deprived of such joys, they often descend into bitterness and resentment, harboring enmity towards the very world they once cherished.
Becoming a Vampire
A humanoid that is bitten by certain vampires must make a successful Constitution saving throw. The difficulty varies according to the vampire’s strength and the circumstances of the bite, as explained below:
DC 10 + half the vampire’s Challenge Rating rounded down (minimum 1) + the vampire’s Constitution modifier.
- If the victim is bitten during a New Moon, they have disadvantage on the saving throw.
- If the victim is bitten during a Full Moon, they have advantage on saving throws.
A player character who has at least one level of the class: Vampire, is immune to the affliction.
A player character who is immune to curses at the time of affliction, is immune to this affliction.
A humanoid who has failed a saving throw is afflicted with vampirism.
The afflicted character immediately loses an amount of Incarnum equal to the Challenge Rating of the vampire that bit them, as soon as they fail the saving throw.
Consequences: the afflicted character will be forced to acquire a Vampire level at the character’s next level increase if not purged prior.
If a New Moon has taken place prior to the level increase, then the affliction becomes permanent and cannot be purged. The character must proceed acquiring a Vampire level at their next level increase.
Purging the Affliction
Before the affliction becomes permanent (prior to the next New Moon), the character can purge this affliction in different ways:
- Divine Intervention by a cleric
- Obtain a Lunar Blessing in a Lunar Divination rite
- Spells such as Remove Curse effects allow the saving throw against this affliction to be repeated.
Each method may only be attempted once every 24 hours on the same target.
After being cleansed, a character can consider themselves safe from the development of the affliction, but gains 1 level of exhaustion. They cannot contract this affliction again for the next 24 hours.
