Let's modify a B/X vampire
As I began kicking around ideas for my next book I kept returning to thoughts of vampires. And of outer space… I blame Super Blood Harvest. But I want a vampire that is uniquely mine. One that has different abilities and weaknesses that reflect the themes of the zine and provide new types of challenges for the players to face.
For context my next zine will be titled Asteroid V. It’s an adventure where you get kidnapped by vampires to populate a little human town they started on an asteroid. The vampires live among you and it's in their best interest to keep you alive and healthy in the town. After all, you are their source of nourishment. Unfortunately for you the vampires are still freaky and evil. Also they want to steal your face.
On a quest to make a new vampire I started reading different books, the best so far being Vampires, Burial, and Death by Paul Barber. I wanted as many vampire ideas as possible to reflavor an already used series of tropes. While I am still ironing out some new features I want in my vampires it is probably a good idea to see what exactly a B/X vampire does in the first place.
Let’s peak at the Old School Essentials SRD to see what- DEAR FUCKING GOD THATS A BRICK OF TEXT
Alright… I need mine to be less. There is too much to reference. This isn’t 5e or pathfinder, I shouldn’t have to be checking massive stat blocks over and over.
On a base level, the fastest way to create vampires without so much to reference is to have multiple types of vampires. Thrall, lesser, greater, summoners, bloodweavers, maskmakers, dolls, shapeshifters, hunters, guilers, etc.
All of these are random words for now but you can see the vision. I can assign a portion of the stat block to each type of vampire to make encounters with them varied and interesting. This will also allow me to have vampires across a wide range of levels.
Alright, we need to think about what to cut and what to keep.
Undead: we can keep this, because… it’s still true Mundane damage immunity: I could take it or leave it. Maybe I’ll find some alternative means to do bonus damage to vampires instead. Energy drain: this has got to GO. maybe the biggest, baddest vamp can keep it. Otherwise this is too brutal and other interesting attacks can be specified for each type of vampire Charming gaze: this is a great example of an ability one type of vampire can have and the rest don’t need to worry about. Regeneration: this is fine, but I’d rather have the vampire have to actually do something to regain HP, like drinking blood, so that I can influence how GMs will have the vampires behave in combat. At 0 HP: I think the whole "turning into a cloud and escaping” thing is… boring. Cool for the biggest baddest vampire but for like the thrall? They should just die. Especially if the cause of death is especially brutal against a vampire. Change form: once again, only one type of vampire needs this ability and it’ll be easy to reskin it. Summon beasts: same as above, one type of vamp gets this and it can be reskinned Coffins: this can be cut probably, or merged with a “drinking blood causes HP regain” type ability Vulnerabilities: Now this is fun. Each type of vampire can have a different vulnerability and the players will have to keep track as they learn the specifics of each type. Destroying: I’d like to streamline this. My vampires probably won’t have an aversion to water but maybe something else instead. Sunlight makes sense. A stake through the heart is a little redundant… but I understand why. And once again I’d like to get away from hunting coffins. I need most of the vampires the PCs fight to die when they are killed instead of retreat.
How I do my monsters
To make a long story short my system is based on what I have seen Patrick Stuart use in some of his books to make agnostic creature stat blocks. Here’s a page from my zine ENTER NEUROCHATEAU! where I explain my process:
So let’s actually make a vampire. My vampires are terrified of their own uncanny lifeless visages and take great lengths to hide their own face - only ever revealing them when they must feed.
Let’s make a lil psycho. Something that stalks and hunts people so it can cut off their faces to make masks.
Maskmaker Uncanny mannequin horror vampire with naught but a mouth for fangs. Its long pale fingers itch at the sides of its face as it watches humans whose faces it may steal. It carries many masks all made from the faces of its victims.
Armor: as chain
Hit Dice: 3 (13hp)
Move: average
Attack: scalpel as dagger + bite as longsword
Morale: whatever
Treasure: something idk \
Facelift: Creatures reduced to 0hp by a scalpel attack have their faces swiftly flayed off.
Bite: Regains hp equal to damage.
Stalker: Makes no noise until it attacks.
Vulnerability: Petrified by its own appearance, each time the Maskmaker lifts its mask to make a bite attack, or for any other reason, it must save vs paralysis or lose its turn. \
It’s just a test but it’s pretty decent… I’ll keep toying with the ideas until it's fully refined…