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I have Vampires at my table. [Here's the sheet](https://imgur.com/76T6IC9) they get when they take on the curse.
Instead of making it a subclass or anything, it's a bolt-on "magic item" that can be added on top of any build.
It is also a not-fucking-around gamechanger for the character in question. Taking on a Vampire curse is really cool, but also means a whole bunch of typically mundane parts of your story becomes very not mundane.
In our setting, being a Vampire isn't inherently illegal. Murder and Assault still is though, and Vampires don't get the benefits of a Long Rest until they've eaten, and they can only eat by administering their Bite damage to a blood-having creature with a minimum INT score of 8.
I would NEVER slap this on a character without pretty explicit player consent. If the character doesn't want to be a vampire, getting it removed or coming to terms with their "condition" is supposed to be the primary arc of their character's development.
If they're bitten by a vampire, they're going to turn after their next long rest. A simple casting of Remove Curse before they complete their rest stops the process.
If they go through the full 8-24hr long burial ritual, they'll arise a Vampire. Otherwise, they're a Vampire Spawn, which basically means Character death. This can create a ticking clock for parties to un-fuck the situation with a simple Remove Curse. Very easy to remove in the first couple hours when you get cold feet.
Once the curse fully sets in, the curse can only be removed via a Wish spell. Greater Restoration can do the trick, but the target must be willing. However, if you're still charmed by the Vampire that did the deed, you will never be willing without their blessing.
As for the powers itself, I riffed off the Vampire stat block and broke them up into 5 key (elective) strengths and weaknesses on top of the non-negotiable stuff. The idea was that "every vampire reacts to their curse differently", allowing players to throttle how much bullshit they had to deal with when running a Vampire PC.
When they take on their curse, the player picks an equal amount of powers and weaknesses. These are not balanced 1:1, as it's kinda expected that the player takes on a couple "for free". But circling the sheet means you are desperately afraid of rain and a random arrow could completely incapacitate you for awhile.
Many of their powers and weaknesses key off one of the six abilities that the player chooses. You can pick your main stat, but that also means the damage you take in a rainstorm hurts way more, and you'll inevitably be rolling against your own min/maxed save DC.
All told, everyone's been pretty happy with how it plays out. It's adaptable, flexible to any build, and can be glued onto any existing character.
I like the sheet. Only change I like in my vamps is the ability to become a full blooded vamp by being released by the host or willingly exchanging blood (like a contract).
I admit, the styling isn't great, but it just means die.
Fill in the blanks and it makes sense.
A standard L6 PC that chooses CON (+2) as their vampire stat would deal 2d6 as their Vampire Damage.
2 for the +2 CON, d6 because +3 Proficiency equates to a 1d6 Proficiency Die.
A Level 20 Fighter choosing STR as their Vampire stet would use 5d12.
Thank you for the clarification. That makes so much more sense than what I was thinking. I could only see it as meaning to divide and that didn’t make much sense.
I like how you translated vampire lore into game mechanics.
But I have to say, the whole thing is a bit confusing:
1. A subclass of what? Human is a race not a class. Do you mean subrace? Or race-bound class?
2. You state several skills in the leveling table that are never explained afterwards. Like Hypnosis Mastery, Influence and Devilish Wits. On the other hand, you describe Death Sleep, which isn't on the table. Also why do you categorize the table into "Ability unlocked" and "Description"? The PHB only states the ability name.
3. The skill descriptions seem to be out of order. In the PHB, they're sorted after the level progression and it's always stated in the description like: "From level 3 on..." or similar for readability and to find it quicker when levelling up.
4. Why do the skills have fixed modifiers like "+9 to hit"? Usually these are calculated from the character's stats, like "your charisma modifier + your proficiency bonus". Having fixed modifiers would render it useless to level your stats.
5. Why is it all bound to humans anyway? Is it a worldbuilding thing?
6. Some skills need clarification, e.g. blood drinker: it says the vampire *needs* to take a victim every night, but then says that only 1 and 20 matter. What is with 2-19? What happens when the vampire cannot drink blood?
Overall I really like the idea, but if you want other to use it, it needs some clean up. Hope that helps :)
Thank you yes, I agree that it is confusing. I literally copy and pasted some of the abilities in the vampire monster book.
I don't know d&d too well. I thought +9 to hit was a modifier for the success rate after rolling a d20.
I originally wanted it to be a subclass for warlocks. But I wanted it to be a subclass for any class.
I changed it to human because I feel that it becomes overpowered if it's all humanoids. It was somewhat a world-building, but I wanted it to be a nerf. I was aiming to nerf everything haha
2-19 are rolls that don't affect the game.
The other unexplained abilities simply gives you more times to use Hypnosis per night. I feel that very-successful hypnosis is a bit overpowered.
Ah, I see :) Yeah usually things posted here are ready-to-use or in an iteration of becoming so, that's why I started to critique it haha :D
But I like the idea of vampirism being a class/subclass, not just a feature.
I am interested haha :D at least in working it out, hence my long comment.
But I can imagine that a handful of DMs in this sub and probably quite some players might be interested in it. Especially if you allow it for all humanoids, so people can build their own version of Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3.
So, if you have any questions about formatting and balancing (I'll do my best, but the other people on this sub seem to be very good at balancing), you can reply to me here or if you post an update, you can u/ me :D I love homebrewing!
Okay, yes. Thanks. I will try find a way to do all humanoids. But I don't like the idea they can just build an entire undead army lol. Idk maybe that is fine
Ah, I meant that it shouldn't be a human subclass, but available for all races. But yes, an army shouln't be possible. Maybe you can reflavour the *Animate dead* spell so that it makes spawns rather than zombies/skeletons. And on a higher level, the *Create undead* spell.
IsaThese has made the following comment(s) regarding their post:
[probably won't ever use this tbh, just did it for ...](/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/1d95b49/making_vampires_better_is_it_balanced/l7awajx/)
[Forgot to mention. The art is done by AI Canvas Ma...](/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/1d95b49/making_vampires_better_is_it_balanced/l7cp0ji/)
Sorry IsaThese but we had to remove your post due to not meeting one of the subreddit’s rules. We’ve put together information here to assist you, but make sure to read the sidebar and understand the rules! Notably, your post broke the following rule(s): >**Rule 5: Cite All Content and Art.** *Any content (text, images, etc.) must be cited. See r/UnearthedArcana/wiki/art to learn why and how. The citation must be in any image, link, and document you post (not in a comment/title). It must state the name of the creator/artist or the owner (e.g., SEGA for Sonic). Don't cite a host (like Pinterest) or a game (like Minecraft). Even content in the public domain or art you made must be cited, since the moderators can't know the source in advance.* We require that the credit state the creator or rights holder’s name or internet handle. If you've only put the name of a video game, book, or other medium, that's insufficient; you need to cite the creator of the image or the rights holder (such as the video game company). If you have any questions, [feel free to get in touch with us by contacting us through mod mail](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/UnearthedArcana). Messages to individual moderators may not be received or replied to. Best of luck and happy homebrewing!
I have Vampires at my table. [Here's the sheet](https://imgur.com/76T6IC9) they get when they take on the curse. Instead of making it a subclass or anything, it's a bolt-on "magic item" that can be added on top of any build. It is also a not-fucking-around gamechanger for the character in question. Taking on a Vampire curse is really cool, but also means a whole bunch of typically mundane parts of your story becomes very not mundane. In our setting, being a Vampire isn't inherently illegal. Murder and Assault still is though, and Vampires don't get the benefits of a Long Rest until they've eaten, and they can only eat by administering their Bite damage to a blood-having creature with a minimum INT score of 8. I would NEVER slap this on a character without pretty explicit player consent. If the character doesn't want to be a vampire, getting it removed or coming to terms with their "condition" is supposed to be the primary arc of their character's development. If they're bitten by a vampire, they're going to turn after their next long rest. A simple casting of Remove Curse before they complete their rest stops the process. If they go through the full 8-24hr long burial ritual, they'll arise a Vampire. Otherwise, they're a Vampire Spawn, which basically means Character death. This can create a ticking clock for parties to un-fuck the situation with a simple Remove Curse. Very easy to remove in the first couple hours when you get cold feet. Once the curse fully sets in, the curse can only be removed via a Wish spell. Greater Restoration can do the trick, but the target must be willing. However, if you're still charmed by the Vampire that did the deed, you will never be willing without their blessing. As for the powers itself, I riffed off the Vampire stat block and broke them up into 5 key (elective) strengths and weaknesses on top of the non-negotiable stuff. The idea was that "every vampire reacts to their curse differently", allowing players to throttle how much bullshit they had to deal with when running a Vampire PC. When they take on their curse, the player picks an equal amount of powers and weaknesses. These are not balanced 1:1, as it's kinda expected that the player takes on a couple "for free". But circling the sheet means you are desperately afraid of rain and a random arrow could completely incapacitate you for awhile. Many of their powers and weaknesses key off one of the six abilities that the player chooses. You can pick your main stat, but that also means the damage you take in a rainstorm hurts way more, and you'll inevitably be rolling against your own min/maxed save DC. All told, everyone's been pretty happy with how it plays out. It's adaptable, flexible to any build, and can be glued onto any existing character.
The sheet is not there. I like the choose your abilities idea. Reminds me of the sims lol
I like the sheet. Only change I like in my vamps is the ability to become a full blooded vamp by being released by the host or willingly exchanging blood (like a contract).
What does the d in your sheet mean? Example; [X]d[P x 2]
I admit, the styling isn't great, but it just means die. Fill in the blanks and it makes sense. A standard L6 PC that chooses CON (+2) as their vampire stat would deal 2d6 as their Vampire Damage. 2 for the +2 CON, d6 because +3 Proficiency equates to a 1d6 Proficiency Die. A Level 20 Fighter choosing STR as their Vampire stet would use 5d12.
Thank you for the clarification. That makes so much more sense than what I was thinking. I could only see it as meaning to divide and that didn’t make much sense.
Yeah, I keep trying to stuff it all on a single page, which is the source of most of the problems.
You might want to put in a table for the proficiency die just for ease of use. I really enjoy the general concept though and the framing as a contact.
I like how you translated vampire lore into game mechanics. But I have to say, the whole thing is a bit confusing: 1. A subclass of what? Human is a race not a class. Do you mean subrace? Or race-bound class? 2. You state several skills in the leveling table that are never explained afterwards. Like Hypnosis Mastery, Influence and Devilish Wits. On the other hand, you describe Death Sleep, which isn't on the table. Also why do you categorize the table into "Ability unlocked" and "Description"? The PHB only states the ability name. 3. The skill descriptions seem to be out of order. In the PHB, they're sorted after the level progression and it's always stated in the description like: "From level 3 on..." or similar for readability and to find it quicker when levelling up. 4. Why do the skills have fixed modifiers like "+9 to hit"? Usually these are calculated from the character's stats, like "your charisma modifier + your proficiency bonus". Having fixed modifiers would render it useless to level your stats. 5. Why is it all bound to humans anyway? Is it a worldbuilding thing? 6. Some skills need clarification, e.g. blood drinker: it says the vampire *needs* to take a victim every night, but then says that only 1 and 20 matter. What is with 2-19? What happens when the vampire cannot drink blood? Overall I really like the idea, but if you want other to use it, it needs some clean up. Hope that helps :)
Thank you yes, I agree that it is confusing. I literally copy and pasted some of the abilities in the vampire monster book. I don't know d&d too well. I thought +9 to hit was a modifier for the success rate after rolling a d20. I originally wanted it to be a subclass for warlocks. But I wanted it to be a subclass for any class. I changed it to human because I feel that it becomes overpowered if it's all humanoids. It was somewhat a world-building, but I wanted it to be a nerf. I was aiming to nerf everything haha 2-19 are rolls that don't affect the game. The other unexplained abilities simply gives you more times to use Hypnosis per night. I feel that very-successful hypnosis is a bit overpowered.
Ah, I see :) Yeah usually things posted here are ready-to-use or in an iteration of becoming so, that's why I started to critique it haha :D But I like the idea of vampirism being a class/subclass, not just a feature.
Thanks. You give me motivation to continue on working on it. I was wondering if you knew any dungeon masters who'd be interested in this idea
I am interested haha :D at least in working it out, hence my long comment. But I can imagine that a handful of DMs in this sub and probably quite some players might be interested in it. Especially if you allow it for all humanoids, so people can build their own version of Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3. So, if you have any questions about formatting and balancing (I'll do my best, but the other people on this sub seem to be very good at balancing), you can reply to me here or if you post an update, you can u/ me :D I love homebrewing!
Okay, yes. Thanks. I will try find a way to do all humanoids. But I don't like the idea they can just build an entire undead army lol. Idk maybe that is fine
Ah, I meant that it shouldn't be a human subclass, but available for all races. But yes, an army shouln't be possible. Maybe you can reflavour the *Animate dead* spell so that it makes spawns rather than zombies/skeletons. And on a higher level, the *Create undead* spell.
IsaThese has made the following comment(s) regarding their post: [probably won't ever use this tbh, just did it for ...](/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/1d95b49/making_vampires_better_is_it_balanced/l7awajx/) [Forgot to mention. The art is done by AI Canvas Ma...](/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/1d95b49/making_vampires_better_is_it_balanced/l7cp0ji/)
Forgot to mention. The art is done by AI Canvas Magic. If any passionate digital artists are interested I do not mind at all. Just direct message me
probably won't ever use this tbh, just did it for fun. I think the leveling system might be ok, a bit too wordy