OSR: Gorgon: Save vs Petrification

by AlexGaxiola

Number Appearing: 1

Alignment: Any Evil

Languages: Lingua Franca plus 1d3 local Monster tongues

Treasure: Equipment, clothing and money taken from their victims

 

Gorgons are putrid creatures, humanoids with scaled bodies and long, flashing claws of metal, usually naturally-occurring bronze.  Their hair is a nest of writhing serpents and their faces are so hideous that it is said that gazing upon one will cause one to turn to stone.  Sadly, this is one folk tale that is entire true.

Gorgon

HD 3

AR 2

Atk Claws or Weapon (1d6+1/1d6+1)

Mor 13

Saves 10 or less

Immune to Petrification, Poison damage

Petrifying Appearance: If a creature sees a Gorgon's face, that creature must save.  On a failed save, that creature is petrified and turns to stone.

Toxic Blood: If a creature ingests or injects a Gorgon's blood, that creature must save or die.

Anti-Petrification Venom: Gorgon venom can be used to reverse the effects of petrification.  If exposed to a Gorgon's venom, you become immune to petrification for 1 hour.   

Curse of Stone: When a Gorgon dies, there is a X-in-10 chance that any creature she has petrified, where X equals that creature's HD, transforms back into flesh.       

Tactics:

- Don't be scared

- Let your 'Petrifying Appearance' do most of the work

- Flee if faced with real danger

Gorgons tend to be reclusive brings, dwelling in isolated areas.  They hate when their solitude is intruded upon and tend to respond with hissing snakes and bared claws.  As they are extremely dangerous however, this rarely happens.  Occasionally a fool-hardy band of Cultists or criminals will attempt to recruit a Gorgon to aid them in their wicked schemes.  This rarely ends well.

Gorgons can leave their lair for many reasons, but generally they will only leave for a few reasons.  

Why did the Gorgon leave her lair?

1d4

1- She seeks a companion.  This companion must be evil, or at least willing to tolerate her wickedness and savagery.

2- Rare foods.  Gorgons generally only eat raw meat, but a Gorgon who has eaten food stolen from their victims may develop a craving for such delicacies as "bread" or "cheese".

3- Rare meats.  Gorgons prefer meat, but eating the same type over and over gets boring, especially when you don't cook it.  The Gorgon wants a Rare type of meat, one she doesn't usually eat.

4- Manufactured goods.  Gorgons often pride themselves on living in a "natural", ie savage way.  But some Gorgons have grown used to the comforts of civilization and desire such things as furniture, rugs or decorations.

by SigneRJArts

Gardens of Stone:

When not hunting, Gorgons spend their time decorating their gardens.  A Gorgon's garden is composed of all of the creatures she has petrified.  These statues will be pain-stakingly lugged into place, adorned with looted clothing or armor and plants may be cultivated to grow around them in an artistic manner.

Gorgons measure each other's strength and status by the size of their gardens.  They quietly compete with each other to have the most elaborate and impressive gardens.  The criteria by which a garden is judged impressive varies among Gorgons depending on region.

What does this Gorgon consider the most important criteria for a garden to have?

1d6

1- The number of statues 

2- The realism of their poses

3- The variety of poses

4- The variety of petrified creatures

5- The artistic arrangement of the statues

6- The decoration of the statues

What does this Gorgon do to customize her garden?

1d4

1- She arranges the statues as if to tell a story

2- She strips all the statues of their clothing.  Their non-petrified clothing and armor is stacked somewhere in her lair 

3- She cultivates flowers, so they wrap her statues in living color.

4- She specifically neglects her statues to give them a unique "weathered" look.

      by jackpot-comics

Blood and Venom:

Part of the reason Gorgons prefer solitude is that they know their bodies can contain many useful ingredients and so often, when visitors come a-calling, they come with the intention of destroying the Gorgon or stealing some of her blood or venom.  For such an insult, the Gorgon is more than willing to destroy the interlopers in question.  

Gorgon blood is well known to Alchemists and Adventurers as a potent toxin.  Consuming it slays almost all creatures.  It is also a key ingredient in many poisonous cocktails or anti-venoms.  

Gorgon venom, by contrast, is much more helpful, able to reverse the effect of petrification.  This is how Gorgons usually feed- they transform parts of a creature back into flesh and slowly eat those parts.  This is why a Gorgon's lair will often be filled with armless or one-legged statues.  Gorgons often eat a statue's limbs one at a time, then they bite the torso, to transform the rest of the statue into flesh.  This leaves a creature with no limbs, utterly helpless before the Gorgon.  Gorgons often eat their prey alive at this point- or at least, until the poor creature bleeds to death or dies of shock.  

Treasures of the Gorgon:

Roll once on the Trade Goods, then once on the Magic Items table, then roll on the 'Unusual Statue' table until you have a result of 12 or more.  

Trade Goods:

1d12

1- Sacks of coins.  You find 1d3 [1= 1d10 sacks of copper coins; 2= 1d6 sacks of silver coins; 3= 1d3 sacks of gold coins.]  Each sack contains 1d20 coins.

2- 1d20+5 sets of fine clothes

3- 1d10 barrels of grain.

4- 1d8 smoked hams.

4- 1d6+2 wheels of cheese.

5- A mostly functional wagon.

6- A block of salt.

7- 1d3 casks of wine.

8- 1d4 bolts of cloth.

9- 1d6 bundles of wheat.

10- 1d4 bundles of dried pipeweed.

11- 1d6 barrels of pickled vegetables.

12- 1d3 bundles of jerky.

Magic Items:

1d6

1- 1d6 scrolls.

2- 1d6+1 potions.

3- A Wizard Weapon.

4- A magic food item.

5- A work of Artifice.

6- A magic item.  

Unusual Statues: 

The Gorgon's garden contains 1d20+2 humanoids, 2d20 animals and 1d10+1 domesticated animals (dogs, horses, pigs).  It also contains...

1d20

1- 1d6 adventurers.

2- 1d4 Doom Eyes.  

3- 1d4 Mimics, each one transformed into something useful (such as a chair, table, treasure chest).  There is a 2-in-6 chance that one Mimic is mid-transformation when it was petrified, allowing the party to see what they are.

4- One of the Fair Folk.  

5- 1d20+10 Chaotic Monsters.  This garden contains 1d6 [1= Garrols; 2= Kobolds; 3= Goblins; 4= Gralei; 5= Quaggoths; 6= Clowns.]

6- A Wizard.  There is a 1-in-10 chance he is a Lich.  If not, he has 1d6 levels in Wizard.  

7- A Vampire.  There is a 2-in-6 chance that the Vampire looks just like a normal person, otherwise it is obviously a Vampire.  

8- A big animal.  Something impressive but dangerous, such as 1d6 [1= An Elephant; 2= A Giant Wolf; 3= A huge bear; 4= A Lion; 5= A water buffalo; 6= A wild boar.]

9- 1d20 Wolves.

10- 1d3 Giant Spiders.

11- A Handsome Man and his servants.  

12- A Durama and his servants.

13- A Prophet of (a) God.  He bears one of the Secret Names of God.  He is also on a divine mission.

14- A seer who saw this coming, guarded a message into her flesh

15- An Outsider.  The Outsider long ago abandoned this shell, so instead of transforming back, you will be left with a magical statue that could be modified by an Artificer or broken down into magical grist, which could be used to craft a magic item.  It would also be valuable to a Sage or Wizard.  

16- A Genie of a random type.  The Genie is a 1d4 [1= Deep Janeen; 2= Efreet; 3= Djinn; 4= Marid.]

17- A Sphinx.  

18- A Coatl.

19- A Giant.  The Giant is a 1d6 [1= Hill Giant; 2= Frost Giant; 3= Fire Giant; 4= Iron Giant; 5= Cloud Giant; 6= Fomorian] 

20- A Dragon.

          by IrenHorrors

The Curse of Stone:

There are two cures for the petrification a Gorgon causes, both well-known.  The first is their venom- if applied to a petrified creature, that creature will immediately revert back to flesh.  However, there is a second, much more dangerous cure.  If a Gorgon is killed, there is a chance that the creatures she has petrified will transform back into flesh.  The chance of this occurring seems to mostly relate to the strength of the creature who was petrified, with powerful creatures easily able to revert back, while less potent creatures cannot revert back on their own.  For this reason, local peoples will often protect Gorgons and discourage their slaying, especially if some sort of dangerous creature wandered into her garden and was turned to stone.      

Plot Hooks:

1d8

1- The children of the village have found a cool new garden out by the woods, and though the grown-ups told them not to go there, they didn't listen.  When they saw the scaly lady, they ran away.  But little Kiki got left behind!  Go rescue him!  Also, they don't want you to go tell their parents.

2- An Alchemist wants a drop of Gorgon's blood for an experiment he's working on.  Go get some for him.  He would prefer you don't kill the Gorgon, but he isn't that picky.  

3- An Alchemist wants you to go check on the last group of adventurers he sent to investigate a Gorgon's lair.  They never returned for the other half of their money.  He wants what they were supposed to get for him or a refund.

4- A group of adventurers are going to try and kill a Gorgon, who is said to have a pile of magic swords in her lair.  The only problem is that Erkath, the Pale Terror, a Dragon that terrorized the land a generation ago flew into the Gorgon's garden about five years ago and was petrified.  Everyone is 100% confident that if the Gorgon is killed, he will return and terrorize the land once more.  Stop those fool-hardy adventurers before they do more harm than good.

5- A Durama who is fascinated by all things gross and unpleasant has heard that Gorgons are spectacularly ugly.  He wants to look one in the face, without turning to stone.  Find him a way to do that and he will reward you.

6- A community that does not believe in capital punishment wants to get rid of a vicious criminal who wronged them.  Escort him to the Gorgon's garden and let him be petrified.  Make sure he doesn't escape or hurt anyone along the way.  

7- A Gorgon recently petrified someone very important and/or rich.  His family would like you to recover the statue of him so they can de-petrify him.

8- An adventurer who narrowly evaded a Gorgon's petrifying face discovered she has a veritable horde stashed in her lair.  He wants to go rob her, but not end up decorating her garden or being eaten.  He has recruited you to help, but he secretly plans on using you as a distraction.

by GENZOMAN

OSR: Lamia: Sexy Snake Seductresses

Many ideas borrowed from here.  

by Ana-Rone

Number Appearing: 1

Alignment: Any Evil

Languages: Lingua Franca 

Treasure: Fine clothes, jewelry, expensive food and drink, perfume and other luxuries

Vain-glorious and hedonistic, the Lamia are a degenerate type of creature, beautiful and alluring as they are dangerous.  

Appearance:

Lamia resemble beautiful maidens from the waist up, with long, serpentine bodies from the waist down.  They usually have slit-pupil eyes like a snake and often bear some other sign of their reptilian nature, such as patches of scales on their human flesh.  They are also known to possess long fangs which they use to inject venom.  Some say that Lamia can also use these fangs to drink blood, though scholars dispute whether or not this is possible, or even something the Lamia would seek to do.    

As lovers of luxury and finery, Lamia take great pride in their appearances, wearing beautiful garments that emphasize their best qualities, adorning themselves with jewelry, wearing perfume and styling their hair in elaborate and fashionable ways.  A Lamia will never present herself to guests unless she has bathed, donned one of her fine outfits, put on her make-up and adorned herself with gold or jewels, though their styles vary depending on personality and the like.

          by Ninsianna

Lamia

HD 1d3+3

AR 1d4

Atk Venomous Bite (+2 to hit, 1d6 damage only) + Tail Swipe (1d8+1) or Weapon (1d6+2) + Tail Swipe

Mor 11

Saves (7+HD) or less

Immune to Charm and Poison

Venomous Bite: Lamia venom is a narcotic, numbing the area around where a Lamia bites and inducing a sense of euphoria in the one exposed to it.  Anyone exposed to Lamia venom must save or be Charmed to her for 1 hour.  A Charmed creature must successfully save to act against the Lamia or do anything that could cause her harm.  Each time a creature is exposed to Lamia venom, it also causes 1d6 COG damage.  If this reduces a creature to 0 COG, he becomes addicted to the Lamia's venom and will be considered constantly Charmed by her.    

Constrict: If a creature is struck by a Lamia's tail, the Lamia can halve the damage and automatically grapple the creature.  This creature is then grappled and restrained.  Each round, the Lamia can crush the creature, causing it to take 1d6 CON damage.  If this reduces a creature to 0 CON, that creature dies from a massive heart attack.  CON damage done like this is healed as soon as the Lamia's grip is broken.

Tactics:

- Avoid violence if possible

- Grapple a creature with your tail and then Bite them

- Charm all enemies and try to reason with them

- Flee if actually in danger

                        by krysdecker

To customize a Lamia, roll on the tables below:

How beautiful is she?

1d4

1- Hideous.  The Lamia possesses an abundance of serpentine features on her upper half, or perhaps her reptilian lower body is blighted by human-like additions or both.  She is disturbing and unnatural to look upon.  

2- Not at all.  The Lamia is not a horror, but her human half is too reptilian to be anything but unnatural and disturbing.  Her closeness to humanity makes her unsettling.  

3- Pleasant.  The Lamia is pleasant and mostly human from the waist up, but she is nothing truly special.  She is likely to be quite insecure about this.  

4- Gloriously so.  The Lamia is a vision of female perfection and she definitely knows it, reveling in her beauty.  

What does this Lamia adorn her body with?

1d8

1- A modified dress of finest silk, heavy with subtle ornamentation.  The finest work you have ever seen.  

2- A courtesan's gown, revealing and sensual, suitable for a boudoir.

3- A black leather outfit, stiff and forbidding.  

4- The furs of a beautiful and exotic creature, such as a tiger or chimera.  

5- A parody of a holy woman's garb, modified to be as sexualized as possible.

6- Jewelry and gold.  She wears nothing besides this.  

7- Body-paint.  She may have painted her skin to make it look like she is wearing skin-tight clothing, or may have simply covered herself in ornamental designs.  

8- Nothing.  She is utterly naked, confident in her own radiance.  

What is her current desire?

1d8

1- Sex, and lots of it.  She is interested in beautiful people, degenerate people and interesting things to try coupling with.

2- Wine.  She is becoming a connoisseur of alcohol and has developed a taste for rare and fine vintages.  

3- Drugs.  She loves getting high on whatever her current substance of choice is.  She is developing a tolerance and will either greater quantities or something stronger.  

4- Food.  She has become a gourmand, with a taste for delicacies and the beautiful creation of master chefs.  

5- Art.  She wishes to be immortalized in art and has been collecting artists to produce self-portraits of her in whatever mediums currently strike her fancy.  

6- Love.  She loves the dance of courtship, of songs and poems composed for her, of desperate lovers pining after her.

7- Sloth.  She just wants to do nothing more than laze around and be waited on, hand-and-foot.  She desires servants, personal assistants and perhaps slaves.  

8- Flattery.  She wants to be acknowledged as the most important, beautiful and talented person around, so she will seek to surround herself with people like that.

Does she possess any other abilities?

A Lamia has an X-in-10 chance of having one of the following abilities, where X is her HD. 

1d6

1- Hypnotic Gaze.  The Lamia possesses the ability to enthrall creatures with her gaze.  If you meet her gaze, you must save or be Charmed to her for 1 minute.  Creatures affected by her Hypnotic Gaze will be extremely suggestible to orders from the Lamia and will seek to please her or follow any orders given within that one minute.  They will not violate their own moral code, unless the order has been so said to not conflict with it.  Creatures can make another save if the Lamia orders them to do something evil (according to their standards) or takes a hostile action against them or someone the creature likes.    

2- Sorceress.  The Lamia is a sorceress and possesses a talent for magic.  She has MD equal to her HD and knows the same number of spells.  Her magic will specialize in 1d4 [1= Aiding allies and hindering enemies; 2= Escaping or evading danger; 3= Confusing or misleading enemies; 4= Manipulating the Elements.]

3- Water Breathing.  The Lamia can breathe underwater and is a powerful swimmer, easily faster than any human or land-dwelling humanoid.  

4- Command of Fire.  The Lamia can freely control fire as a Free-Form Wizard.  She possesses a bonus to control Fire equal to 1/2 her HD and MD equal to her HD.  

5- Poison Expert.  The Lamia is an expert at poisons.  She wields a poisoned weapon or applies poison to the weapons of her allies.  She may also apply her own venom to her allies' weapons, to better charm her enemies.  

6- Spirit Pact.  The Lamia has made a pact with a spirit.  In exchange for sacrifices or other services, a Spirit has given her 1d4 [1= The ability to transform into a normal human woman.  While transformed, she is totally ordinary and can easily walk among humans without raising any suspicion; 2= Her venom has been enhanced, now instead of a Charm effect, it is mind-controlling.  Those affected by her venom must save to disobey her orders; 3= She can teleport up to 50' 3/Day.  She can do this on her turn as a free action; 4= She can 1/Day regenerate, recovering 1/2 her HD in HP.]  

        by Ana-Rone

A Lamia's Coven:

Lamias are pleasure-seekers, slothful and indolent.  They desire only to continuously indulge themselves and avoid anything that would prevent them from doing so, such as being forced to work or physical danger.  For this reason, Lamia do their best to accumulate power and wealth to insulate themselves from the world and any consequences of their actions.  They do this through a combination of manipulation, seduction and addictive venom.  

Lamia prefer to nest in cities and other areas of civilization, even though this obviously puts them in more danger than being out in the wilderness.  For this reason, they almost always work through intermediaries and let others handle the bulk of any public-facing work.  They do this for their own protection, but also because they'd much prefer someone else do it for them.  

A Lamia's first goal will be to find a group of lackeys to protect it and help it to seek out further pleasures.  

Who serves the Lamia?

1d6

1- A criminal syndicate.  They were seduced through the promises of sex and potential profit.  Many of it's members are addicted to her venom and the leader has a 50% of sleeping with her.

2- A warrior brotherhood.  She tenderly nurses their wounds and uses her venom to numb their pain.  They are fanatically devoted to her and most of them are at least a bit in-love with her.  

3- A secret society.  The secret society may have some sort of goal or they may simply be an elite social club with overly elaborate secret handshakes, but they are now rapidly transforming into a pleasure cult and a den of depravity for the city's rich and bored, the society's original purpose rapidly falling by the wayside.  

4- A band of outcasts.  They were already rejected by their own society, so why should they not team up with the weird monster who's nice to them and promises to use her powers to help them? 

5- An underground religion.  They were forced into hiding because their beliefs were considered heretical.  Now the Lamia has been welcomed into their midst as a blessing from their Gods and potentially as a tool to get revenge against their oppressors, maybe even to retake what was once belonged to them?

6- A cult.  The cult was either started by the Lamia or by someone else.  If the former, then the Lamia encourages her followers to revere her as a divine mother figure and to trust wholly in her leadership, giving everything to her for "safe-keeping".  If started by someone else, the leader and the Lamia are working together to grow the cult, keep the members in line and privately engaging in all sorts of debauchery.        

What trusted servant or pet does she entrust with her own personal protection?

1d8

1- A Malison, a man with the head of a serpent and great, venomous fangs.  There is a 2-in-6 chance this is her own son.      

2- A hired mercenary, famed for his legendary skill with blade and bow.  

3- An Ogre, who regards her as it's Mother-figure.  

4- An Empusai, disguised as a companion or handmaid.  

5- A Man-Snatcher Fowl.    

6- A Harpy.  

7- A Yagra.

8- An Annis Hag.

Her second goal will be to find a wealthy or powerful patron to protect her and help to fund her desired lifestyle.

What powerful person has fallen under the Lamia's influence?

1d8  

1- A nobleman.  The noble is a 1d4 [1= Local lord; 2= Local Liege Lord who oversees lesser nobles; 3= Minister; 4= In line for the Throne/Part of the royal family.]  He provides political cover and dissuades anyone from looking too closely into the Lamia's hidden activities.   

2- A pair of wealthy merchants.  They are funding the Lamias' indulgences, while competing with each other to outdo each other with lavish gifts.    

3- A master thief.  He is capable of defeating any lock or defense and can steal anything the Lamia desires.  

4- A high-ranking priest.  He is a very influential person and under the Lamia's influence, he has started siphoning off Temple resources and funneling them to her.

5- A Warlord.  The Lamia can call upon a small army of warriors if she has need of such a thing.    

6- A powerful scholar of High Art.  The scholar is a 1d3 [1= Alchemist; 2= Wizard; 3= Medium.]  

7- A skilled warrior.  He is a skilled and famed warrior, known for his mastery of weapons or knowledge of martial arts.  He is infatuated with the Lamia and kill anyone she desired him to.    

8- A powerful monster, such as a 1d4 [1= Vampire Elder; 2= An Oni; 3= A Rakshasha; 4= A Demon.]  This monster is either nearby or is using a disguise to live within civilization.

by Cryostorm15

Her third goal will be to protect herself from the consequences of her previous actions.  

What is her current problem?

1d6

1- One of the young men who serves the Lamia has wealthy and powerful parents, who are concerned for their son.  They have hired some adventurers to find him, dig him out of whatever den of sin he has nestled himself inside and drag him home.  This risks exposing the Lamia's hidden pleasure-den.

2- One of the men the Lamia has seduced to her side has a vengeful wife who is determined to expose her husband's infidelities.  First, she must find out where he keeps disappearing to.

3- The authorities are poking around a rash of mysterious criminal acts, looking for a culprit.  This could expose the Lamia, unless she can distract them and push their suspicions onto someone else.  

4- Another secret group is planning on staging a coup to take over the city.  Their first attempt was botched and now the authorities are on high alert, beating the bushes, looking for the rest of the cult.  The Lamia's servants are in danger of being caught and if they are found, they will spill everything, including her existence and location.  

5- A rival monster has been traveling the city in disguise, murdering, eating people or otherwise drawing attention.  The Lamia will need to stop it, drive it away or direct it to go somewhere else where it being exposed will not harm the Lamia.  

6- An army of enemies has descended upon the city or community that the Lamia has nestled herself inside of.  She will either need to secretly aid the defenders in some way or find a way to escape before violence engulfs her and destroys everything she has.  

What will she attempt to bribe you with if caught?

1d6

1- Wealth.  Thanks to her ill-gotten gains, the Lamia is quite wealthy.  She will try to pay you off.  

2- Her venom.  The Lamia will claim her venom has all sorts of useful health qualities and will offer it to you.

3- Her Magic.  The Lamia will claim to have access to magical knowledge and will work magic for you, if you just spare her.  She will claim this whether or not she has actual access to magic.

4- Her influence.  The Lamia has friends in high places.  If you need something, she could pull some strings for you.  Alternatively, she claims her friends will take vengeance upon you, should you harm her.  There may be some truth to this matter.  Then again, it could be a bluff.  Her powerful friends might be just as happy that a potential liability has neutralized itself.

5- Her abilities.  Need someone seduced, pacified or otherwise controlled?  The Lamia could easily take care of an enemy for you, make him a valuable ally.  A few days of her "persuasion" will convince your enemy to side with her and through her, you.  

6- Her servants.  The Lamia may have powerful servants.  If she doesn't, she will exaggerate their usefulness.  She will lend you their services, in exchange for sparing her life.

by navate

OSR: Vampires

I've made more than a few posts about playing as a Vampire, but never about fighting one.  This is a severe oversight which I shall address.

                          by tjota

Types of Vampire:

Newborn- Humans who have recently been infected with the disease of Vampirism, they have few of the cursed gifts of their condition, but similarly, almost none of the weaknesses.  Treat them as what they were before being infected, but with a few changes.  

Statblock:

To create a Newborn Vampire, create his normal statblock, add the following abilities, then roll for the random results.

All Newborn Vampires have the following abilities/conditions:

Blood Drain: Newborn Vampires have a 1d6 bite attack that causes the target to take 1d6 CON damage.  If this CON damage reduces a creature to 0 CON, it dies.  If the Vampire can regenerate, this heals him for 1d6 HP.    

Undying Thirst: All Vampires thirst for blood.  If given a chance to drink blood, the Vampire must succeed a morale check to resist the urge. 

Infectious: Vampires carry the disease known as Vampirism.  If a non-Vampires comes into contact with a Vampire's bodily fluids, such as when bitten, during sex, or any other situation where a blood-borne infection could be spread, that creature must succeed on a CON save.  On a failed save, that creature becomes infected with Vampirism.    

They have a 50% of having:

Vampire Eyes: As a free action, they can make eye contact with a human (or humanoid) and force that human to save.  On a failed save, the human becomes frightened by the Vampire and will not approach it.  The human must succeed on a COG save each round or run and hide.  On a successful save, the human overcomes their animal fear and resists the Vampire's influence.  

They have a 20% of having:

Sunlight Sensitivity: The Vampire's eyes and skin are sensitive to sunlight.  They have disadvantage on all checks and saves while in direct sunlight.  They also have difficulty seeing- their eyes have become quite sensitive to light.  Wearing dark glasses or lenses will negate this effect.  

Enhanced Senses: Compared to a human's blunt senses, this Vampire has heightened senses.  He can see in low light, though not perfect darkness, he can hear heartbeats when it is quiet and he can track scents like a bloodhound.  He makes all checks based on sensing or perceiving things with advantage, but when forced to save against some disruptive sensory effect, such as a bright light or loud sound, he has disadvantage on the save.    

They have a 10% chance of having:  

Regeneration: As an action on his turn, the Vampire can regain 1d6 HP.  If injured with fire or a silver weapon, he can only heal 1d4.  Damage from holy or blessed weapons cannot be healed this way and can only be healed by resting over time.  

     by DSillustration

Fledgling

HD 1d6

AR 1d3

Atk Weapon or Enhanced Strength (1d6+2/1d6+2) or Blood Drain

Mor 13

Saves (7+HD) or less

Undead: Undead do not feel pain or get tired.  They are immune to poison and disease.  They do not need to eat, sleep or breathe.  Any spell that says "Undead" in its title or description is talking about something like this.

Sunlight Vulnerability: Undead take 1d6 radiant damage for every round they spend in sunlight.

Blood Drain: Fledgling Vampires have a 1d6 bite attack that causes the target to take 1d6 CON damage.  If this CON damage reduces a creature to 0 CON, it dies.  This heals the Vampire for 1d6 HP.    

Enhanced Senses: Compared to a human's blunt senses, Fledgling Vampires have heightened senses.  They can see in low light, though not perfect darkness, they can hear heartbeats when it is quiet and they can track scents like a bloodhound.  They makes all checks based on sensing or perceiving things with advantage, but when forced to save against some disruptive sensory effect, such as a bright light or loud sound, they have disadvantage on the save. 

Regeneration: As an action on his turn, a Fledgling Vampire can regain 2d6 HP.  If injured with fire or a silver weapon, he can only heal 1d6.  Damage from holy or blessed weapons cannot be healed this way and can only be healed by resting over time.   

Undying Thirst: All Vampires thirst for blood.  If given a chance to drink blood, the Vampire must succeed a morale check to resist the urge.

Infectious: Vampires carry the disease known as Vampirism.  If a non-Vampires comes into contact with a Vampire's bodily fluids, such as when bitten, during sex, or any other situation where a blood-borne infection could be spread, that creature must succeed on a CON save.  On a failed save, that creature becomes infected with Vampirism.  

Tactics:

- Rush in, trusting your regeneration to save you

- Target anyone carrying anti-Vampire weapons first

- If all targets carry anti-Vampire weapons, target the biggest threat

A Fledgling, also called a Child or Neophyte, is a Vampire that has finally started to gain some actual power from the curse laid upon them.  However, they have inherited a number of weaknesses, along with their newfound abilities.  They burn in sunlight and are harmed by the touch of silver now, unlike their Newborn cousins.  They are also sensitive to loud noises and bright lights, as they are not used to their superhuman senses yet.  They find pungent odors, such as garlic, revolting.

by Madboni

Elder

HD Varies, see below

AR Varies, see below

Atk Varies, see below

Mor 15

Saves (7+HD) or less

Undead: Undead do not feel pain or get tired.  They are immune to poison and disease.  They do not need to eat, sleep or breathe.  Any spell that says "Undead" in its title or description is talking about something like this.

Sunlight Vulnerability: Undead take 1d6 radiant damage for every round they spend in sunlight.

Fear Aura: Elder Vampires, can if they wish, radiate an Aura of Fear.  All creatures within 50' must save.  On a failed save, those creatures become frightened and take 1d6 COG damage per round they can see or hear the Vampire or are otherwise threatened by it.  If this COG damage reduces a creature to 0 COG, the creature runs away or hides.  If neither is possible, it will beg for mercy.  If that produces no effect, then the creature will fight, but only so it can escape.  

Frightened creatures cannot move closer to an enemy.  Additionally, creatures who pass their save must save again each time the Elder does something sufficiently scary, such as killing another party member.    

Blood Drain: Elder Vampires have a Bite Attack that does 2d6 CON damage to any creature it hits.  If this CON damage reduces a creature to 0 CON, it dies.  This heals the Vampire for 2d6 HP.    

Enhanced Senses: Compared to a human's blunt senses, Elder Vampires have heightened senses.  They can see in low light, though not perfect darkness, they can hear heartbeats when it is quiet and they can track scents like a bloodhound.  They makes all checks based on sensing or perceiving things with advantage, but when forced to save against some disruptive sensory effect, such as a bright light or loud sound, they have disadvantage on the save.   

Regeneration: As an action on his turn, an Elder Vampire can regain 2d8 HP.  If injured with fire or a silver weapon, he can only heal 1d8.  Damage from holy or blessed weapons cannot be healed this way and can only be healed by resting over time.   

Undying Thirst: All Vampires thirst for blood.  If given a chance to drink blood, the Vampire must succeed a morale check to resist the urge.

Infectious: Vampires carry the disease known as Vampirism.  If a non-Vampires comes into contact with a Vampire's bodily fluids, such as when bitten, during sex, or any other situation where a blood-borne infection could be spread, that creature must succeed on a CON save.  On a failed save, that creature becomes infected with Vampirism.  

Sleep of Death: The Vampire must rest in a coffin each night or lose 1d6 HP per day.  This HP cannot be recovered until the Vampire rests in a coffin again.  The Coffin must be lined with soil from the land where the Vampire was born or where his ancestors were interred.  He can also rest on this earth alone, without need for a coffin.     

Specific Death Condition: The Vampire has a specific death condition.  He must be staked through the heart, beheaded and his neck stump stuffed with garlic and sage.  The head must be buried far away from the Vampire's corpse.  Unless that condition is met, the Vampire will return to unlife in (12-HD) months (min 1).  His servants, if he has any, know this and will steal his body away for safe keeping.  The only other way to ensure the Vampire dies is through immolation by sunlight.      

Staked: If impaled through the heart with a stake at 0 HP, the Vampire will go into a state of torpor until the stake is removed.  They will be helpless at this point, indistinguishable from a normal corpse.   

Tactics:

- Depends on the Elder, see below      

Also called Mature Vampires or Middle-Bloods, a name they loathe, Elders are Vampires who have been changed for some time now.  They are fully Undead, reigning over petty courts of other Undead, human sycophants and other foul creatures.  They are powerful, yes, but nearly as much as they claim.  

They are also more than a little out of touch, their personality having been frozen at the moment they became true Undead.  They have difficulty understanding the changes to mortal society and will often be obsessed with ideas and grievances from decades or centuries ago.    

by gugu-troll

To generate an Elder Vampire, roll on the Tables below:

How old is this Elder?

1d3

1- Young, for an Elder.  The Elder has only been a Vampire for decades.  He has 1d6+2 HD.  He has an AR of 2.  He makes two Attacks that do 1d8+2 damage on a hit.  

2- Mature.  The Elder has been a Vampire for a century or more.  He has 1d8+2 HD.  He has an AR of 3.  He makes two Attacks that do 1d8+4 damage on a hit.  

3- Old.  The Elder has been a Vampire for multiple centuries.  He has 1d10+2 HD.  He has an AR of 4.  He makes two Attacks that do 1d8+6 damage on a hit.  

What is their Affiliation?

1d3

1- Independent.  The Elder follows the old law, that the strong rule and the weak obey.  He does not belong to any organization and refuses to bow to any.

2- Clan Elder.  The Elder is part of a Vampire Clan, part of the entrenched aristocracy who spends his time locked in byzantine political intrigues, competing with his unaging rivals to stay atop the unstable pyramid that is Vampire society.  

3- Returned.  The Elder was staked, but not killed, in ancient times and entered torpor for an extensive amount of time.  He has been largely forgotten and has no clue how much time has passed since he was staked, or how the world has changed in the years since he entered torpor.  

Do they have any servants?

1d4

1- Not yet.  The Elder is currently alone, but likely not for long.  

2- Their Spawn.  The Elder is accompanied by 1d4 lesser Vampires, who serve at his pleasure.  These lesser Vampires have a 50% of being Newborn or Fledgling Vampires. 

3- Mortal Servant.  The Elder is assisted by a human, or a member of the local community.  This mortal serves the Vampire because 1d4 [1= He is being controlled by magic; 2= He was persuaded by the Vampire to serve him in exchange for some potential reward; 3= He was part of a blood cult that worshiped Vampires and potentially, this Elder, as a divine being; 4= He hates his neighbors or another group of people and wants to use the Vampire to harm those people.]

4- As above, except the Vampire is served by a group of mortals.  These mortals are part of a 1d6 [1= A family that has served the Vampire for generations; 2= A blood cult that worships Vampires in general or this one specifically; 3= A secret society that serves the Vampire in exchange for learning dark magic and possibly being changed into a Vampire; 4= A pleasure cult that views being infected with Vampirism as a great "blessing"; 5= A criminal syndicate which works for money, or seeks to leverage the Vampire's power to expand their hold on the criminal underworld (they are more naive than the pleasure cultists); 6= A group that holds onto some ancient belief or grievance that has long been forgotten by everyone besides them and the Vampire.]

Do they have any other powers?

1d2

1- No.  He trusts in his own strength.  

2- Yes.  The Elder knows 1d6 Blood Arts and can cast them in place of an Attack.

What tactics does the Elder use?

1d4

1- Evaluate your enemies and when you find the strongest or most dangerous one, target them ruthlessly.

2- Attack and retreat, use fabian tactics.  Avoid fairness.

3- Target the weak links, spread fear among the lesser enemies

4- Stroll in confidently and attack the first thing you see.  A lion doesn't care for the opinions of sheep.

                        by 2wenty

Ancient

HD 1d8+10

AR 5

Atk Weapon or Superhuman Strength (1d10+6) x3 or Superhuman Strength (1d10+6) and Blood Drain

Mor 17

Saves (7+HD) or less

Statblock Changes:      

Use the Elder Statblock, with the following changes.  

Stuff of Nightmares: Ancient Vampires cannot be injured by non-magical weapons, unless those weapons are silver (or silver-edged) or blessed/holy.  They take damage from fire and magical weapons normally.  

Regeneration: An Ancient Vampire's regeneration lets them heal 3d8 HP as an action.  Other then that, it works the same as an Elder's.   

Blood Sorcerer: Ancient Vampires know 1d8+2 Blood Arts.  

Specific Death Condition: If not staked through the heart, beheaded and then having their body burned to ash and scattered into a river or at a crossroads, an Ancient Vampire will return to life in a year and a day.  Alternatively, immolation by sunlight will permanently destroy an Ancient Vampire.    

Tactics:

- Treat all enemies with brazen contempt, unless they prove dangerous

- Make conversation and badly ape class and sophistication

- Kill those who prove annoying

- If actually in danger, destroy all responsible and all who saw your weakness

Ancient Vampires, or the Old Blood as they grandiosely refer to themselves, are Methuselahs from a previous Age.  They have either woken after a long period of torpor or have been secretly maneuvering in the shadows for a long time.  These towering Blood Gods are extremely powerful and cruel, having long forgotten anything that once resembled their humanity.  

While an Elder can still pretend to be human, Ancients will rarely bother with any sort of pretense.  They have lived for so long that all creatures now can fit into only two categories for them- food or tools.  While younger Vampires can still retain some shred of their humanity, these creatures have long ago shed such trappings.  They are predators, a mockery of man clad in ill-fitting skin.

                      by zzytudou

To generate the servants of an Ancient Vampire, roll on the tables below:

The Ancient Vampire is served by a...

1d8

1- A family line of humans, many of whom are practitioners of dark and blood magic.  Some of their ancestors were even "gifted" with the curse of Vampirism, so they could continue to serve the Vampire in death.  The family regards the Vampire as their patron.  The Vampire might have even once been one of their ancestors while he still lived.  

2- A blood cult that has members in many important positions, from the Church to the Aristocracy and the powerful Guilds.  They serve the Vampire in hopes of gaining immortality through the curse.  They are not the most physically powerful, but they command great sums of money and have large webs of influence.  They can make many problems simply disappear with a word to the right person.  

3- A band of Ghouls who feed on the desiccated corpses of the Vampire's kills.  They revere him as a predator-king and are plenty eager to bow and scrap at his feet, in exchange for more meat.  They also have more than a few half-ghouls in the group, who act as a buffer and keep prying eyes away by being as normal as they can be.

4- A mystery cult, with increasing levels of membership that reveal more and more of the truth.  Only the innermost ring of members know about the Vampire, those outside it are either dupes who genuinely believe in the religion or greedy people seeking an easy way to gain money and power.  

5- An exceptionally brutal mercenary company that prefers to be paid in slaves and plunder as opposed to coin, though they will take it.  Rumored to be a refuge for Wizards practicing dark magic and necromancers who create 'Immortal Soldiers'.  But surely those are just stories, right?

6- A Sage's Collective or Wizarding Order that is well-regarded for it's deep history and breadth of knowledge.  They possess many secrets that were long ago forgotten by others, though they will only teach them to their own members (or those who pay a considerable fee).  And while there are dark rumors about them, such as how people often disappear in the city beneath their headquarters, surely that is just scuttle-butt, the kind that occurs when too many scholars of High Art gather in one place.  

7- A slave-trading company that specializes in moving human flesh from seller to customer for very reasonable prices.  They likely deal in other things as well, but they are known for their early involvement in the slave trade.  They are very cheap and do not charge nearly as much as their competitors, making them a great fit for any less scrupulous customer.         

8- A small nation or province of an Empire that has a black reputation for being afflicted by plagues, curses and monster attacks, as well as dark magic, cults and sedition.  The people there are also said to be excessively clannish, backwards and barbaric.  They are unsophisticated rubes who believe in wild superstitions that more civilized folk rightly ignore as poppycock.  

The Ancient Vampire's favorite servant is...

1d10

1- An especially loyal human.  This human has a 50% of being a normal person (1 HD) or an equal chance of being a powerful Fighting Man with 1d6+1 class levels.  The human is devoted to their master for any number of reasons but could easily be motivated by the prestige of serving such a powerful being, a lust for power, misplaced loyalty or anything else.   

2- A lesser Vampire, one of their spawn.  The Vampire is a 1d6 [1= Newborn; 2-5= Fledgling; 6= Elder.]  The lesser Vampire feels a natural kinship with their sire and longs to attend and serve them, in the same way a child longs to bask in a parent's approval.  

3- A Magi.  The Magi has a 50% of being able to cast spells as a level 1d4+1 Wizard, or is a skilled Alchemist.  The Magi is researching Alchemy in the hopes of discovering the secret of immortality.  However, he does not wish to become a Vampire, as he does not want to end up like his Ancient Master.  

4- An ancient Ghoul.  Ghouls live only to feed and the Ancient Vampire has proved an endless meal ticket.  For that reason alone, the Ghoul has decided to remain as the Vampire's attendant. When well-fed, and he's almost always, the Ghoul is jolly and gleeful, though still terribly evil.   

5- An intelligent Undead.  The servant is a 1d4 [1= Wight; 2= Wraith; 3= Mummy; 4= Lich.]  The Undead may be bound by magic and forced to serve, but they could just as likely serve willingly, either because they appreciate the bleakness of the Vampire's perspective or hope to nudge the Vampire into helping them accomplish a task they could not do alone.  

6- A Demon.  Demons love Vampires as they are mortals at their finest, cruel, violent and endlessly depraved.  The Demon is endlessly willing to serve, while encouraging the Vampire to engage in greater acts of wickedness.    

7- An Elf or other long-lived race.  The Vampire sought a companion long ago, one who could understand the isolation caused by a perspective frozen by time.  His companion understood him then.  Now neither of them care how the world has changed- they barely notice, except to complain and to make notes on what they plan to change.  Regardless of what race the Vampire's companion is, the companion has HD equal to at least 1/2 the Vampire and is very powerful in his own right.   

8- A Succubus.  Vampires usually lose their sexual drives once they become Undead and so it was with this Vampire, until he met this Demon of Lust.  Now he has become inflamed for her and wants to possess her forever.  The Succubus is aware of this and is using her appeal to manipulate the Vampire to do this.  Note that this could be reversed- an Ancient Vampire Queen could find herself losing her head over an Incubus.  Also note that while the Demon of Lust is doing the manipulation, they might be in far more danger than they realize.   

9- A Hag.  Hags are masters of manipulation so this one has either fooled the Vampire and dragged him into some complicated scheme without his knowledge, or he knows exactly what she's up to and he's just going along out of boredom or hunger.  Alternatively, she may be far too terrified of him to do such a thing and instead acts as his spy-mistress and agent.    

10- A Skinwalker.  Skinwalkers all crave power, so acting as the right hand to the most powerful thing they've ever seen seems like not only an excellent survival strategy, but a potential way to gain more power and influence.

by KnightyNightey

Treasures of the Kindred:

These are treasures that might be in the possession of an Elder or Ancient Vampire.  If a Newborn or Fledgling has such a treasure, it was likely loaned or out stolen.  Either way, the real owner will come looking for it soon enough.  

1d8

1- Stygian Glass.  A black mirror that acts as a scry-glass.  Has a terrible demon face that can appear in it and be instructed to follow commands.  It always follows orders exactly, but will offer the owner of the mirror bad advice, misleading information and a highly skewed perspective.  It will claim to be unable to lie (this is a lie).  It wants to see you die, simply for it's own amusement.  Also, it will beg you not to break the mirror.  If you do, it will die (this is a lie).

2- Eclipse.  A huge, glittering war-scythe, with a blade sharp enough to shave with.  It does 1d8+Atk damage on a hit.  3/Day, it can extinguish any light source smaller than a bonfire.  It can also neutralize a source of fire, instantly snuffing it out.  If the fire is magically generated, the conjuror of the flame gets a save to resist the effect.  If the owner successfully saves, then the charge is not used up.  Note that this ability does not work in direct sunlight.  

3- Pall of Darkness.  A glass bottle filled with thick black smoke.  1/Day, if uncorked, the bottle will swiftly fill 30 cubic feet with darkness, dropping the light level massively.  This darkness blinds anyone who does not have the ability to see in the dark and even if a creature can see in low-light, they still have disadvantage on all checks made to see or attacks aimed with vision.  This darkness will spread each round until it covers 100' cubic feet or the bottle is corked up.  This darkness lasts for 10 minutes or until the bottle is corked up.  If opened in direct sunlight, the darkness lasts only 1 minute before it is dispelled.        

4- Eye of the Abyss.  A beautiful amulet of amber and jet, shaped like a cat's eye.  If worn by a spellcaster, it grants them +2 MD and an Affinity (+2) towards Necromancy spells.  If worn by a non-spellcaster, it grants magical abilities equivalent to a Level 1 (free-form) Wizard and an Affinity towards Necromancy spells (+1).    

5- Mourner's Shroud.  A funerary shroud, made of fine silk and woven with beautiful designs of horses.  If anyone places this shroud over a sleeping person, that person will fall into a state of suspended animation.  As long as the shroud covers them, they will not need food, water or air.  They also will not be able to wake up or move until the shroud is removed.  All creatures, besides the one who placed the Shroud over the sleeping creature, must save upon seeing the shroud-covered body.  On a failed save, they will regard the creature as dead and be totally convinced of this fact, despite any evidence to the controversy.  If the Shroud is removed, the sleeping creature can wake up as normal and anyone who believed the creature to be dead, upon seeing evidence to the controversy, will wonder why they whole-heartedly believed such a silly thing.  

6- Orb of Kingship.  When activated, 1/Month it will give the user the ability to speak in an incredibly persuasive manner and cause a mass charm effect to sweep over any group of creatures standing before him.  Those creatures must save, on a failed save, they will be Charmed to the user of the Orb for 1 Month.  However, after the Charm effect wears off the creatures will return to their more normal behavior and may start to question any decisions they made while Charmed or orders they were given.  Additionally, each time the Charm effect is used on the same group of creatures, it weakens as they slowly build a tolerance.       

7- Winter's Thorn.  A spear with a tip of frozen ice, it does 1d6+Atk damage, with an additional +1d6 ice damage on a hit.  3/Day, it can also create walls or structures of ice, as long as they are within the following dimensions: 30' long, 5' wide and 10' high.  

8- Slavemaster's Ring and Slave's Band.  A collar of hammered silver and a matching ring, both adorned with rubies.  When the Slave's Band is put on, it cannot be removed, except by the wearer of the Slavemaster's Ring.  When the wearer of the Slavemaster's Ring takes damage, the wearer of the Slave's Band takes an equivalent amount of psychic damage, unless the ring's wearer does not wish for this to happen.  The bearer of the Slavemaster's Ring can also induce physical sensations on the one who wears the Slave's Band, including pleasure or pain.

       by JamesRyman

Becoming a Vampire:

Any Vampire can infect you with Vampirism by accident if you come into contact with their infected fluids (blood, saliva, sexual fluids) but most often, Vampires take care to not spread their curse to everyone they meet.  Most often, the people allowed to become Vampires are those who have served a Vampire for many years or are otherwise favored by a Vampire.  For example, a lover, a favored servant, an especially talented craftsmen, etc.  

The most common way people contract Vampirism is through their bite.  The second most common way is through sex with an infected person.  Many rakes and loose women will contract Vampirism at some point.  They will often go out of their way to hide this, as in most cultures, Vampirism carries the sentence of exile at minimum, or death in the more puritanical societies.  If someone is found to have Vampirism, rumors of them engaging in wild orgies under the moon while worshiping evil gods are sure to follow, regardless of how the disease was contracted.  

Some prostitutes also catch the disease and often spread it to many through their trade, so Vampirism is sometimes referred to as "Whore's Bite".  This is the topic of much speculation- many prostitutes have been accused of having fangs in their genitals, which they use to spread the disease, for example.  Young people are told to maintain their chastity, or they will surely be cursed with the living death of Vampirism.

Optional Rule: Vampiric Degeneration

In my revised Vampire class, I considered the idea of Vampires degenerating over time.  The idea was that Vampires slowly decline over time and if they do not control themselves, they will slowly transform into a more bestial form that is more powerful, but less controlled, similar to Vampire: the Masquerade's Humanity system.  

If you incorporate such a system, note that most Vampire Elders and Ancients must practice at least some form of discipline in their feeding, as otherwise they would have long ago degenerated into Strigoi.  

Strigoi are basically Vampires, but with the intelligence of an animal.  They have the strength and raw power of a Vampire, but cannot use most of a Vampire's other powers, as they lack the knowledge of how to employ them.  Strigoi also generally follow the orders of Vampires, unless they are hungry, in which case they just rush in and attack, feeding until sated.  Once well-fed, a Strigoi becomes docile and can be easily commanded by a Vampire of a similar or higher rank.  

For this reason, Vampire Elders and Ancients who degenerate into Strigoi are usually destroyed, as they are too dangerous to keep around and too difficult to control.  Lesser Strigoi are often kept by a Clan or Household to be used as a tool of terror, a weapon in times of war and occasionally as brute laborers, as though dumber than most dogs, Strigoi are still powerful physically.  Just keep them away from the blood-serfs, or you're looking at a massacre.  

Why do Vampires look different?

Why are there so many different types of Vampires, not necessarily in abilities, but in terms of appearance?  Here are a few explanations for why.

1d4

1- Vampires descend from their sire.  Whatever their sire looked like, the older a Vampire gets, the more like his sire he will become.  If his sire was beautiful, he will be beautiful.  IF his sire was a disgusting freak- so will he, eventually.

2- When you become a Vampire, your body is slowly modified to express your inner nature.  The older you get, the more pronounced this gets.  If you were a deceitful person, your features will become bland, unremarkable and average, so to better deceive others.  If you were an evil monster, you will become twisted and unnatural looking.  If you were vain, you will become more and more attractive as the years go by.

3- When you become a Vampire, depending on your starting morality, you degenerate a certain amount.  Those who are virtuous or at least neutral will end up looking mostly human.  Those who are bad but not evil will gain some traces of inhumanity, such as cold eyes, corpse-like complexion, etc.  Those who are evil are more monstrous.  The most wicked barely resemble humans at all, except as a cruel parody, like they were made by an evil god to mock you as they drained your corpse of life.  

4- A Vampire's body often changes dramatically throughout their unlife because of regeneration, deliberate modifications, slight errors when shapeshifting or altering your appearance with magic.  They are not as stagnant as they appear.  So maybe they reason the Vampire looks like a beautiful man is because he wants too.  Maybe he's a blood-sucking beast in appearance because he wants to be.

by PE-Travers