Workshopping Some Pseudo-Vampires

[Michael Ehrler]

Just trying to work out how to do a somewhat grounded interpretation of Vampires. My world of Telos is very much a world of epic and historical fantasy, but it is also filled with concepts and principles from real-world fields of science. So I wanted that to come across in my vampires. The world is set in an equivalent late-medieval period, and uses a "soft magic" system, so none of the biology or genetics stuff will be properly understood. The explanations and "rules" are written down mostly so that I remember how it all works behind the scenes. Please feel free to offer suggestions, research sources, and tell me things you like about this work-in-progress concept! And these are just notes, so I'm not worried about things like spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc.

Damphyr(?)

• Bloodkin, Night Haunters, the Sun-Cursed.
• The first Damphyr are said to have received their “gifts” through extensive and ritualized blood sacrifice and demonic ritual, as such power can surely only be gained at significant cost.
• “The Thirst” is a series of genetic mutations (source unknown) which strengthen their bones and increase the efficiency of red blood cells.
  • The downside is that this requires a tremendous amount of energy, the primary side-effect being that by ages 16-20, their red blood cells deteriorate faster than their body can replace them.
  • The “remedy” to this was discovered long in the past, and the in-world understanding of what’s happening is extremely poor.
• How it was actually discovered is unknown, but the imbibing of human blood has long been known to not only stave off the symptoms of anemia, which the Damphyr call “the Wasting”, but also fuels their other biological and genetic adaptations that give them their “powers” as well as their vulnerabilities.
• Advantages- Adult damphyr must regularly consume human blood in order to sustain these.
  • Long eye-teeth allow a damphyr to penetrate soft tissues more easily.
    • They are NOT hypercarnivores, and will happily consume fruits and vegetables.
  • Possess a more robust skeleto-muscular system, and more efficient oxygen delivery through their blood, which grants them a slightly increased resilience and endurance over other species of humans.
  • Increased white blood-cell count makes them highly resistant to disease and infection.
  • Cells regenerate faster, so their organs work more efficiently and last longer, greatly slowing the aging process.
    • If left to die of natural causes, a Damphyr may live as long as 300-350 years.
  • Excellent night vision, as described below.
• Vulnerabilities-
  • The increased demand for oxygenated blood causes damphyr to develop severe anemia, typically by the ages of 20-25.
  • A separate mutation greatly reduces the number of melanocytes in their skin, causing them to be extremely pale and sensitive to sunlight.
    • This sunlight sensitivity doesn’t cause them to literally burn as is the case with more classical vampires.
      • It does mean they are very vulnerable to skin cancers, intense heat, and extreme sunburns.
  • They are largely nocturnal and their eyes are sensitive to sunlight.
    • Likely a consequence of the prior mutation.
  • Rarely go out in the day, and when they do it is hooded and cowled.
    • When Damphyr warriors are forced to fight in the sun, they are outfitted with “Sun Armor” to protect them.
    • Steel armor infused with orichalcum, and engraved with warding runes to shield the wearer from the sun.
• The Wasting
  • The genetic anemia that afflicts all Damphyr, which is the source of their dependency on the consumption of human blood, as well as their slightly improved physical resilience.
    • Exhaustion, weakness, jaundiced skin, headaches, disorientation.
  • They must drink about a liter of blood every day (too much?).
  • Can go as long as a week without blood, but will grow increasingly weak and exhausted.
    • After about two weeks (10 days), they will be too frail to move themselves, but can still be rejuvenated.
    • After three weeks without blood, most Damphyr will be dead or too sick to recover.
• The Boyars of Tovania are the most well-known and centralized population of Damphyr in the known world.
• Since before the conquest of the Garian Empire, the Damphyr have ruled over the “lesser breeds” of humans in the region.
• The strength of the Damphyr allowed them to long ago subjugate and control the populations of Sofrians in Tovania, and eradicate the populations of Iander and Coydwynn, who the Boyars believe have “dirty blood”.
• The blood of these other human species simply does not provide as much sustenance as the blood of Sofirans, who the Damphyr are more closely related to.
• The people of Tovania have lived as serfs and thralls for thousands of years, having been bred by the Boyars to serve as slaves, disposable soldiery, and blood chattel.
  • These traditions go back so long and are so ingrained into the culture it is considered a privilege to be chosen to serve as an Isotorsange, a “Blood Attendant”.
    • Chosen for their vitality, competence, and obedience, their roles vary from personal attendants and trusted messenger in-service to a member of the Damphyr nobility, to something akin to a pet or curiosity to be put on display.
    • This largely depends on the character of the noble in question as well as the traditions of their lineage.
  • The result of this is that the Damphyr nobility see “lesser breeds” of humans as tools and livestock more than as sentient beings.
  • Some Boyar houses will occasionally recognize the usefulness of their Isotrosange, and thralls but this is far less common than not.
• Among the Boyars, the traditional rite of passage into adulthood undertaken by every Damphyr youth is the “Primaniré”, the First Feeding.
  • A three day celebration and ritual that begins when the youth first begins to show onset symptoms of the Wasting, typically between the ages of 13-16.
  • They are forced to sit in the sun, denied blood, and kept awake for two days, in which time, they begin to feel the pang of the thirst and the discomfort the Wasting brings.
    • They shed the vulnerability and “false sun” of youth, and must bear the discomfort of being in the sun so they may learn to welcome the night.
    • The Wasting exposes a Damphyr to the “soul thirst”, which will follow them for the rest of their lives.
    • The Thirst is both a blessing and a curse, for it imbues them with power that puts them above other humans. But it can never be sated.
  • On the third day, they are taken to the pens of their castle or estate to select a freshly acquired, “untapped” serf before the youth is placed in a poultice-induced sleep.
    • These unfortunate victims will be taken off and prepared as prey for a Blood Hunt.
  • Exposed to the sun, deprived of the vitae they now require to survive, and under the effects of powerful hallucinogens, the young Damphyr will be shown bloody visions.
  • When they awake, they are taken to be outfitted for their first Blood Hunt.
    • A hunt with both ritualistic and sporting traits.
    • Three serfs/thralls who have never been fed upon will be chosen, only to be released into the wilderness in the early evening.
    • Once the sun has fallen, Damphyr hunting parties will begin tracking their prey with trained bloodhounds and night hawks.
    • In the case of the Primaniré, the youth must catch and feed upon their selected thrall before dawn to prove they are ready to dominate and rule.
    • While there is no punishment for failure, it comes with great cultural stigma and shame. Those that do not succeed are eventually given the opportunity to try again, but their reputation will never fully recover.
      • None have ever survived two failures, most killing themselves or fleeing in shame should it occur.

 

[pmmg]

I commend the amount of work you put into the above, but this is more of a gaming tool and not a writing one. In writing, most of this will never come out, and this has to be shown in the writing. I personally, would not want such a detailed list of the things my creatures can and cannot do, I would never rigidly stick to it. Have you written any of this story yet? Is the story so complex that you need to keep these types of detailed notes?

If I was a gamer, all of this would be cool.

I am not sure if there are others besides Damphyrs, but the best would to present these would be in contrast to others. So, I would know the difference when a Damphyrs does something that I would have thought vampires could not do...such as fighting in the sun in their sun armor, and thus, they are different.

 

[Michael Ehrler]

I commend the amount of work you put into the above, but this is more of a gaming tool and not a writing one. In writing, most of this will never come out, and this has to be shown in the writing. I personally, would not want such a detailed list of the things my creatures can and cannot do, I would never rigidly stick to it. Have you written any of this story yet? Is the story so complex that you need to keep these types of detailed notes?

If I was a gamer, all of this would be cool.

I am not sure if there are others besides Damphyrs, but the best would to present these would be in contrast to others. So, I would know the difference when a Damphyrs does something that I would have thought vampires could not do...such as fighting in the sun in their sun armor, and thus, they are different.

Oh, absolutely. I'm not personally a big fan of hard magic systems, so it will never be explained or understood so explicitly in the fiction. My intention is to imbue the magical and fantastical elements of epic/historical fantasy with just enough real science to keep those world-building elements mysterious but with little hints that there's *something* to it. The details are mainly for me. I have ADHD, and writing things out clearly helps me keep my ideas organized.

I'm also still very much experimenting with all of it, so it's definitely subject to change.