Questions for my vampire campaign [Archive] - Wizards Community

Questions for my vampire campaign [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Avenger314
08-27-07, 10:46 PM Hi all,

I'm running a campaign where both party members are vampires (1 warlock, 1 sorcerer). A few rules questions have come up:

Vampire questions

Vampires normally bestow negative levels (energy drain) with their slam attack. Can a vampire make a melee touch attack (forgoing slam damage) against their opponent’s touch AC and still deal energy drain? Or can they only do it with a regular attack?

Vampires are reduced to gaseous form if their hp drops to zero. They are destroyed forever if staked & beheaded, if exposed to running water for too long, or exposed to sunlight. What happens in other types of ‘instant-death’ situations?
If a vampire is exposed to a disintegrate ray, would it be destroyed or would it go gaseous?
If a vampire is exposed to a greater turning attempt (a la the sun domain or a prestige class), would it be destroyed or revert to gaseous form?
How about getting their brain extracted by an illithid?

One of my players took Fell Animate, Corpse Crafter, and Deadly Chill. My initial interpretation was that a fireball or magic missile (for example) modified by fell animate wouldn’t raise zombies. However, they wouldn’t be buffed by corpse crafter or deadly chill. The reason is that the creatures were raised by an evocation spell with a metamagic feat, not a necromancy spell. Her argument is that applying the Fell Animate feat to a spell, it raises them ‘as if raised by Animate Dead.’ What do you all think?

Are there rules on how many coffins vampires can have? My ad-hoc house rule was that when created, a vampire may freely designate one coffin to be their ‘primary.’ Any ‘backup’ coffins must be attuned to the vampire, which will take time and cost an expenditure of gold to ‘prime’ the coffin.

Another player took Improved Energy Drain (+1 on various rolls whenever they bestow a negative level). Vampires bestow two negative levels. Would a vampire gain +1 per energy drain, or +1 per negative level? (Meaning, do they get +1 or +2 each time they successfully drain?)

Advice appreciated, all.

Jim
ArochanoX
08-28-07, 12:04 AM Vampires normally bestow negative levels (energy drain) with their slam attack. Can a vampire make a melee touch attack (forgoing slam damage) against their opponent’s touch AC and still deal energy drain? Or can they only do it with a regular attack?

Strict rules intepretation: no.
SRD: "Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack (or any other natural weapon the vampire might possess) gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points. A vampire can use its energy drain ability once per round."
So only natural attacks (such as slam, gore, bite, tentacle rake) may deal the negative levels. And only once per round regardless of number of attacks.

If a vampire is exposed to a disintegrate ray, would it be destroyed or would it go gaseous?
How about getting their brain extracted by an illithid?

SRD: "If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, it automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, a vampire is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless and resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round."
SRD: A thin, green ray springs from your pointing finger. You must make a successful ranged touch attack to hit. Any creature struck by the ray takes 2d6 points of damage per caster level (to a maximum of 40d6). Any creature reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by this spell is entirely disintegrated, leaving behind only a trace of fine dust.
It depends which kicks in first: gaseous form or reducing the creature into fine dust. I would personally rule that disintegration does not entirely kill the vampire. Also even the fine dust disintegration leaves could transform into gaseous form and travel to the coffin for healing.

And I don't think Illithids can extract undead brains.

One of my players took Fell Animate, Corpse Crafter, and Deadly Chill. My initial interpretation was that a fireball or magic missile (for example) modified by fell animate wouldn’t raise zombies. However, they wouldn’t be buffed by corpse crafter or deadly chill. The reason is that the creatures were raised by an evocation spell with a metamagic feat, not a necromancy spell. Her argument is that applying the Fell Animate feat to a spell, it raises them ‘as if raised by Animate Dead.’ What do you all think?

I would allow it. He's invested 3 feats to do a trick that let's him raise fell animated zombies with a fireball. I think that's completely reasonable. 3 feats for such a small and minor ability is more than enough for balance.

Another player took Improved Energy Drain (+1 on various rolls whenever they bestow a negative level). Vampires bestow two negative levels. Would a vampire gain +1 per energy drain, or +1 per negative level? (Meaning, do they get +1 or +2 each time they successfully drain?)

As the libris mortis explicitly says: +1 per negative level bestowed. And it's unnamed - it stacks with itself. Think of a shadow dragon that bestowes 8 negative levels in an area. That could result like +32 to almost all rolls and checks...
Avenger314
08-31-07, 08:58 AM Thankee kindly :). Your answers are entirely sensible.

How would you handle a Greater turning attempt, or an 'undeath to death' spell?
Nephlite
08-31-07, 09:19 AM Thankee kindly :). Your answers are entirely sensible.

How would you handle a Greater turning attempt, or an 'undeath to death' spell?

Greater Turning: I'd say that destroys the Vampire: it is God power after all.

Undeath deals damage dsoes'nt it: so that wouldn't work. If it ignores damage than it could.

Disentegrate deals damage so even if it can reduce to dust it is damage and the gaseous form would activate at 0 I think.
shogunboy
08-31-07, 09:58 AM [QUOTE=ArochanoX;13575395]Strict rules intepretation: no.
SRD: "Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack (or any other natural weapon the vampire might possess) gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points. A vampire can use its energy drain ability once per round."
So only natural attacks (such as slam, gore, bite, tentacle rake) may deal the negative levels. And only once per round regardless of number of attacks.

Ok, there is one thing a vampire can put on their weapon if they wanted to use the slam attack. Nercotic Focus in MiC. It lets them treat the weapon as their natural weapon for things like Vampire's slam attack.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Avenger314 08-27-07, 10:46 PM	Hi all, I'm running a campaign where both party members are vampires (1 warlock, 1 sorcerer). A few rules questions have come up: Vampire questions Vampires normally bestow negative levels (energy drain) with their slam attack. Can a vampire make a melee touch attack (forgoing slam damage) against their opponent’s touch AC and still deal energy drain? Or can they only do it with a regular attack? Vampires are reduced to gaseous form if their hp drops to zero. They are destroyed forever if staked & beheaded, if exposed to running water for too long, or exposed to sunlight. What happens in other types of ‘instant-death’ situations? If a vampire is exposed to a disintegrate ray, would it be destroyed or would it go gaseous? If a vampire is exposed to a greater turning attempt (a la the sun domain or a prestige class), would it be destroyed or revert to gaseous form? How about getting their brain extracted by an illithid? One of my players took Fell Animate, Corpse Crafter, and Deadly Chill. My initial interpretation was that a fireball or magic missile (for example) modified by fell animate wouldn’t raise zombies. However, they wouldn’t be buffed by corpse crafter or deadly chill. The reason is that the creatures were raised by an evocation spell with a metamagic feat, not a necromancy spell. Her argument is that applying the Fell Animate feat to a spell, it raises them ‘as if raised by Animate Dead.’ What do you all think? Are there rules on how many coffins vampires can have? My ad-hoc house rule was that when created, a vampire may freely designate one coffin to be their ‘primary.’ Any ‘backup’ coffins must be attuned to the vampire, which will take time and cost an expenditure of gold to ‘prime’ the coffin. Another player took Improved Energy Drain (+1 on various rolls whenever they bestow a negative level). Vampires bestow two negative levels. Would a vampire gain +1 per energy drain, or +1 per negative level? (Meaning, do they get +1 or +2 each time they successfully drain?) Advice appreciated, all. Jim
ArochanoX 08-28-07, 12:04 AM	Vampires normally bestow negative levels (energy drain) with their slam attack. Can a vampire make a melee touch attack (forgoing slam damage) against their opponent’s touch AC and still deal energy drain? Or can they only do it with a regular attack? Strict rules intepretation: no. SRD: "Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack (or any other natural weapon the vampire might possess) gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points. A vampire can use its energy drain ability once per round." So only natural attacks (such as slam, gore, bite, tentacle rake) may deal the negative levels. And only once per round regardless of number of attacks. If a vampire is exposed to a disintegrate ray, would it be destroyed or would it go gaseous? How about getting their brain extracted by an illithid? SRD: "If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, it automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, a vampire is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless and resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round." SRD: A thin, green ray springs from your pointing finger. You must make a successful ranged touch attack to hit. Any creature struck by the ray takes 2d6 points of damage per caster level (to a maximum of 40d6). Any creature reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by this spell is entirely disintegrated, leaving behind only a trace of fine dust. It depends which kicks in first: gaseous form or reducing the creature into fine dust. I would personally rule that disintegration does not entirely kill the vampire. Also even the fine dust disintegration leaves could transform into gaseous form and travel to the coffin for healing. And I don't think Illithids can extract undead brains. One of my players took Fell Animate, Corpse Crafter, and Deadly Chill. My initial interpretation was that a fireball or magic missile (for example) modified by fell animate wouldn’t raise zombies. However, they wouldn’t be buffed by corpse crafter or deadly chill. The reason is that the creatures were raised by an evocation spell with a metamagic feat, not a necromancy spell. Her argument is that applying the Fell Animate feat to a spell, it raises them ‘as if raised by Animate Dead.’ What do you all think? I would allow it. He's invested 3 feats to do a trick that let's him raise fell animated zombies with a fireball. I think that's completely reasonable. 3 feats for such a small and minor ability is more than enough for balance. Another player took Improved Energy Drain (+1 on various rolls whenever they bestow a negative level). Vampires bestow two negative levels. Would a vampire gain +1 per energy drain, or +1 per negative level? (Meaning, do they get +1 or +2 each time they successfully drain?) As the libris mortis explicitly says: +1 per negative level bestowed. And it's unnamed - it stacks with itself. Think of a shadow dragon that bestowes 8 negative levels in an area. That could result like +32 to almost all rolls and checks...
Avenger314 08-31-07, 08:58 AM	Thankee kindly :). Your answers are entirely sensible. How would you handle a Greater turning attempt, or an 'undeath to death' spell?
Nephlite 08-31-07, 09:19 AM	Thankee kindly :). Your answers are entirely sensible. How would you handle a Greater turning attempt, or an 'undeath to death' spell? Greater Turning: I'd say that destroys the Vampire: it is God power after all. Undeath deals damage dsoes'nt it: so that wouldn't work. If it ignores damage than it could. Disentegrate deals damage so even if it can reduce to dust it is damage and the gaseous form would activate at 0 I think.
shogunboy 08-31-07, 09:58 AM	[QUOTE=ArochanoX;13575395]Strict rules intepretation: no. SRD: "Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack (or any other natural weapon the vampire might possess) gain two negative levels. For each negative level bestowed, the vampire gains 5 temporary hit points. A vampire can use its energy drain ability once per round." So only natural attacks (such as slam, gore, bite, tentacle rake) may deal the negative levels. And only once per round regardless of number of attacks. Ok, there is one thing a vampire can put on their weapon if they wanted to use the slam attack. Nercotic Focus in MiC. It lets them treat the weapon as their natural weapon for things like Vampire's slam attack.