FANGS FOR THE MEMORIES: THE MOST INTERESTING VAMPIRES IN THE REALMS (Free Tier) (Patreon)

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I am often asked about vampirism in the Realms, so I wanted to release this fun little write-up about what I think are some of the most interesting vampires in "the world of Dungeons & Dragons" (and no, Strahd von Zarovich is not one of them).

I won't spoil the surprise, but I've taken the time to flesh out some pretty wacky ones that I'm hoping you might find a spot for at your gaming table!

Please enjoy these all-new, and devilishly fun, Forgotten Realms vampires, crafted lovingly by yours truly.

Hugs,
Ed

Volund Hamrooke [“Voe-lund HAM-rook”], a halfling vampire who was born in 1412 DR, the only son of millers on the lower Wintercloak River in Sespech. When Hamrooke’s Mill burned down in 1426 DR, the family moved to Ormpetarr to work for relatives who were weavers in that city. When the weavers defaulted on a loan payment four years later, their creditor paid them a visit one hot summer night, accompanied by her bodyguard of six vampire spawn, and bit every last one of the fifty-two Hamrooke hin on the premises. And so it was that Volund and all of his kin became part of a small army of vampire spawn serving their creditor, the vampire Lady Alanthe Varvire, a beautiful, hot-tempered red-haired human woman of wealth and sophistication who claimed to be Chessentan nobility (though no one has ever managed to discover just where House Varvire lived, let alone lorded it over), and had spent some years buying buildings in Ormpetarr, fixing them up, and renting them out for high rates, using her takings to loan money to city businesses, until she owned almost a third of the city.

Her acquisition of the Hamrookes was seen as a step too far by the ruler of Sespech, King Maeraun Thuragar, who’d previously secretly hired outlander wizards to confirm that Lady Alanthe was a vampire; he had later hired four adventuring bands in Arrabar, and now unleashed them on the vampire’s lair, with orders to destroy her and all of her spawn.

She escaped with only six spawn and her coffin, on a barge on the Nagawater, but was discovered the next day, and dismembered by some of the adventurers. Dying, she embraced the only one of her spawn to survive the attack, Volund (who survived because he alone knew how to swim, and early in the fray dove under the raft and hid under heaped bodies, rising up between the framing logs of the raft to breathe), who was weeping over her remains. She told Volund to drink her blood and avenge her, and then perished. He did as she commanded, and became a true vampire.

He began planning revenge, but decided to do it his way.

Which is why today, in the 1490s DR, with King Maeraun long in his grave and Sespech ruled by his son Alant Thuragar, Volund Hamrooke is the Seneschal of Sespech, the never-seen backroom advisor to the King and real ruler of Sespech—and the King is a vampire spawn loyal to Volund.

There are rumors of “something odd” about the Seneschal, all across Sespech, but a surprising number of Sesprarr know Seneschal Hamrooke is a vampire and the King is his creature—and they do nothing at all about this, because Volund is the best ruler they’ve ever had, carefully making the lives of all in the land ever-better, improving piped water and sanitation and food abundance and fair lawkeeping free from corruption, insisting on better roofs and walls being built and that everyone in Sespech have hope to lift their hearts and coin to spend.

Volund Hamrooke has greater plans that he keeps to himself: he wants to quietly build Sespech into a powerhouse capable of taking over Chondath once all of its city rulers are vampire spawn beholden to Volund, and rule it all. And he has a personal goal: all that is left of the Lady Alanthe Varvire is magically preserved in one of the cellars of Castle Ormpetarr, awaiting the right necromancer to bring her back. Volund has the wealth to pay such a one, but must find someone who won’t seek to control the Lady once she’s restored (if she can be). Volund does not want to trade the Lady he loves and longs for, for a new master. So Volund hires adventurers he hopes he can trust, to scour Faerûn for the right necromancer.

If his Lady Alanthe can rise again, he will present her with a Sespech that is as much of Chondath as he can conquer, and hope to win her heart.

Glarandarlophyklees [“Glar-randar-OFF-ih-klees”] is an ambitious adult male black dragon from Laerakond who was exploring Chult and its vicinity in Faerûn when the Second Sundering began. Not realizing the true nature of what was happening around them as the Sundering commenced, certain liches who inhabited sunken ruins in Rethild studying magic to make themselves far more powerful, caught sight of the dragon and decided to magically tame him to be their steed. Glarandarlophyklees objected, a mighty battle ensued, the dragon devoured one of the liches and was struck by several spells simultaneously cast by the others, one of them translocating a captive mindwitness into the dragon’s maw to attack him from within—and the result, when the roiling chaos faded, was that only two liches survived (by fleeing), the mindwitness and the other liches had been devoured, and their devourer, Glarandarlophyklees was now—a vampire dragon!

His eyes now glow red, he retains his draconic powers (and hit points) but has gained all of the abiliites (and weaknesses, aside from sunlight hypersensitivity) of a vampire, including the ability to magically call swarms of bats, rats, or wolves. By day, he naps from time to time, sometimes gliding “on the wing” (riding thermals aloft), and in sunlight feels lassitude (but needn’t rest more deeply); he often banishes this feeling by taking to water and swimming or drifting until nightfall. If he doesn’t slay a foe, his bite often transforms them into vampire spawn loyal to him—though this doesn’t seem to work on other dragons he has fought with, since.

Glarandarlophyklees retains the cunning, desire to inspire fear, and lust to rule lesser creatures by intimidation of his kind, and now swoops on wild herds on the Shaar to feed at will, and terrorizes nomads, hissing at them that they should worship him as “the true god” he is, and do his bidding. He hates liches and any group of wizards he espies (most often Zhentarim or Red Wizard forces that include mages), and will attack such savagely, rending them utterly.

He is beginning to ponder if he should seek to conquer and rule a human city somewhere…or if that would be too much trouble, interrupting his carefree life of raiding and terrorizing. Yet he wants to do something important, and be deeply feared by many—without much work to achieve that, and certainly no recurring large effort. Perhaps his spawn could be coerced into seizing a city for him…

Yoeval [“YO-vall”], the Crimson Flumph, is a vampire flumph consumed with everpresent simmering rage (and self-loathing, as it becomes more and more evil). It very recently became a vampire by pouncing on, and draining, a true vampire magically trapped in rat form, somewhere in the wild Underdark near Skullport.

According to Vajra Safahr, the Blackstaff, the vampire (a human male hight Qeldin Ovontor, formerly of Athkatla) was bound into rat form by an archmage who intended to introduce it into a Waterdhavian noble compound to bite and transform all of the nobles and their servants into vampire spawn, for experimental purposes of his own, that would be funded by his drawing down of the noble family’s wealth. The vampire, however, escaped—and fell victim to the hungry flumph before the archmage could find and recapture it.

Yoeval retains all of its flumph powers and abilities, and has gained all vampire powers and weaknesses, save that it has no coffin, doesn’t have to rest (though it has taken to drifting slowly, aimlessly, and silently around caverns for random periods of time, as vampirism takes hold) and suffers no sunlight hypersensitivity. It has become crimson due to its anger and evil nature, and shuns the company of other flumph, acting embarrassed rather than aggressive towards them.

Always among the most curious and boldest of flumph (hence its wandering so near to Skullport), Yoeval is now taking an increasing interest in the doings of humans, drow, and others under Waterdeep, and is lurking around Skullport and Undermountain. It seems fascinated by the deeds of adventurers, and will follow and observe them from a distance for long hours, as if it finds them gripping entertainment.

If it feels threatened by any large group of beings that attacks it, or any spells hurled its way at all, it will turn into mist and try to flee as quickly as it can, seeking cover if possible as it does so.

Magic use and powerful magic items also draw Yoeval’s attention, though it seems aware of the peril of getting caught in a spell, and will dart behind cover (to peer from more safety), retreat a good distance, or even flee if danger seems high.

Vajra believes that if it feeds on creatures but doesn’t kill them (getting interrupted in draining rats and other small Underdark creatures), they could well become vampire spawn loyal to Yoeval, and do its bidding (following it doggedly if it ignores or is unaware of them).

Recently, Yoeval’s observed behavior suggests that it has begun persistently hunting for something, likely something of portable size that humans or others may be carrying. It often glides out of hiding to pace parties moving about in the Underdark, peering intently at each being in turn from various angles, paying more attention to their gear than their bodies, and then moving to survey the next. What it seeks, Yoeval hasn’t yet revealed to anyone... READ MORE 

The full version of this post is available to my Protectors of the Realms and contains three more vampires, all most interesting than the last! I've also fully narrated this post and released it in high-definition video and as an audiobook available through my exclusive RSS feed.

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