Out For Blood.pdf

Out for Blood

by E. W. Morton

Contents

Introduction ...............................................................................2

What shall come to pass... ............................................2

A brief note on “Vampire” vs. “Vampyr” .................2

Chapter 1: Characters .............................................................3

New Uses for Skills .......................................................3

Feats ................................................................................3

Prestige Classes .........................................................................4

Arcane Pathologist ........................................................4

Blood Hunter .................................................................6

Death Guard ..................................................................7

Dubbelsauger .................................................................9

Exterminator ................................................................10

Fist of Light ..................................................................11

Fortune-Teller ..............................................................13

Gothic Pretender .........................................................14

Knight of the Dragon ..................................................16

Knight of the Phoenix .................................................17

Kresnik ..........................................................................18

Master of Sacriﬁce .......................................................19

Soul Catcher .................................................................20

Soul Collector ...............................................................23

Vamp .............................................................................24

Vampire Seneschal ......................................................25

Vampire Slayer ............................................................27

Watcher in Shadows ...................................................28

Chapter 2: Creatures ............................................................30

The Vampire Subtype .................................................30

Repelling a Vampire ...................................................30

Destroying a Vampire ................................................30

Optional Rule: Vorpal Weapons ...............................30

Optional Rule: Vampire Metabolism .......................31

Optional Rule: Aging ..................................................31

Vampire Attack Forms ...............................................31

Bloodsuckers ................................................................31

Blood Drain Attacks ...................................................32

Monsters .......................................................................................32

Aberrant Vampire .......................................................32

Astral Vampire ............................................................34

Barb-Tongued Vampire (Upior) ...............................37

Callicantzaro ................................................................41

Chupacabra ..................................................................42

Crimson Moth ..............................................................43

Deathgaze Vampire (Nelapsi) ...................................44

Death Ringer ................................................................47

Dhampir .......................................................................51

Grave Soil .....................................................................52

Iron Maiden .................................................................54

Irontooth Vampire (Upyr) .........................................55

Kuang-Shi .....................................................................59

Lesser Vampire ............................................................62

Lost Soul .......................................................................65

Nosferatu ......................................................................66

Plague Vampire (Nine-Killer) ...................................70

Vampyr .........................................................................73

Volkadlak (Undead Lycanthrope ) ...........................77

White Wolf ...................................................................80

Chapter 3: Campaigns ............................................................83

Blood Brotherhoods ....................................................83

The Brotherhood of the Phoenix ...............................83

The Order of the Dragon ............................................85

The Resurrection Guild ..............................................88

The Shadow Kingdom ................................................90

The Watch of Ages ......................................................93

Relationships between Organizations .....................95

Adventures ...................................................................95

Vampire Lairs ..............................................................97

Appendix 1: Spells ....................................................................99

Blood Domain ..............................................................99

New Spells ...................................................................99

Appendix II: Resources .......................................................102

Index ............................................................................................104

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Introduction

In the vastness of the human imagination, if there be a single

creature that embodies both our innate fear of the unknown

as well as our unappeasable desire to know it better, it would

be the vampire. Even as the superstitions that gave rise to

these consummate undead are forgotten, ﬁction inspired by

them lives on, adding more to their heritage every day. It is

nearly impossible to catalogue all of the incarnations of the

vampire that have appeared in various cultures and eras in the

course of human history. Out for Blood makes no such claim,

instead, it merely asserts to have opened the door to new

possibilities. Through this now yawning portal, we welcome

you to the world of vampires, their minions, and those who

would slay them.

cruel and nefarious clerics and a few of the sources wherein

this folklore can be accessed.

A brief note on “Vampire” vs. “Vampyr”

Throughout this book, the terms vampire and vampyr are

used quite often and a distinction, of sorts, initially needs

to be made, to head off any possible forthcoming confusion.

A vampyr (pronounced “vam-PEER” or “vom-PEER”) is a

particular type of vampire. The vampyr template is similar

to the vampire template described in the core rules, but is

designed to incorporate themes appearing within the pages

of this tome. The vampyr template can also serve another

purpose: it can replace the vampire template from the core

rules altogether. This substitution would prevent the need

from distinguishing “vampire” (the template) from “vampire”

(the creature subtype). If used thusly, “Vampire” would

instead always refer to the creature subtype, more accurately

reﬂecting the fact that not all vampires are created with the

same template.

What shall come to pass...

The material herein is broken into three chapters and an

appendix, as follows:

Chapter 1: Characters. The characters that players bring

to the table are both the driving force behind all action in

any roleplaying game as well as the root of unnumbered

interesting stories. With this in mind, this chapter takes a

look at characters that might be found in a vampire-centric

or related campaign. First, this chapter takes a quick look at

several new uses for skills and new feats that might be use-

ful to such characters. These are followed by a host of new

prestige classes meant to inspire all kinds of interesting char-

acters: from vampire hunters; to a vampire’s many minions;

to vampires themselves.

Chapter 2: Creatures. Of course, no book about vampires

and other bloodsuckers could be complete without descrip-

tions of those very creatures. This chapter takes a look at

several optional rules designed to add ﬂavor to vampires in

general, as well as an in-depth examination of a whole dark

cadre of new monsters and templates designed to show off

the diversity of the vampire. This chapter reveals dozens of

new types of vampires in addition to hordes of other hor-

riﬁc monstrosities that might be involved in vampire-related

adventures.

Chapter 3: Campaigns. In order to construct an entire

campaign around bloodsuckers, care must be taken to keep

things interesting. Thus, this chapter is a grab bag of topics

meant to keep vampire-like villains interesting time and time

again. The chapter begins with a look at several organizations

that can appear in a campaign where vampires are abundant

(or perhaps one where their numbers are on the rise). This

is followed by a list of vampire-related ideas for adventures

and encounters just waiting to be developed into full-ﬂedged

campaigns of their own. The chapter ends with a few quick

notes on various vampire lairs that might be encountered in

any setting.

Appendix: Spells and Resources. Included in this two-

part appendix are a handful of spells related to vampire

folklore, as well as the new Blood domain for particularly

-Credits-

Design

E. W. Morton

Editing & Development

Brannon Hollingsworth, Jesse Mohn,

and Todd Laing

Creative Director

Jim Butler

Typesetter

Jim Butler

Art Director

Brannon Hollingsworth

Cover Artist

Terry Wolﬁnger

Interior Artists

Cos Koniotis, Danilo Moretti,

David Hendee, Edward Bourelle,

Jesse Mohn, Marcio Fiorito, and Phillip James.

Playtesters

Andi Newton, Bevan Thomas, Chad Bowser,

Eric Driks, Keith Woodward, and Michael Kogan.

New Uses for Skills

Chapter 1: Characters

Simply put, you cannot have a story – or a roleplaying game

– without characters. Therefore, the best place to start when

considering vampire-related settings and storylines is with

the characters that will become entangled within their dark

and shadowy threads. Folklore and ﬁction related to vampires

and other bloodsuckers feature a wide assortment of heroes,

villains, and lackeys, each of whom has any number of

interesting abilities at his disposal.

allowed to retry checks to ﬁnd secret messages, and you may

take 20 on such a check.

Once you have found a secret message, you must still

decipher it. The check to decipher a secret message is the same

as the normal use of this skill, except the check uses the DC of

the Decipher Script check made to encrypt the message (see

Encrypt Message, below).

Encrypt Message: You may create a hidden message in

the text of another message, in a physical puzzle, or in just

about anything else capable of containing hidden messages

(paintings, murals, the layout of a building or garden, etc.).

Your DM rolls a Decipher Script check for you (DC 10) to de-

termine whether or not you were able to successfully encrypt

the message. On a failure, your message cannot be deciphered

at all by anyone other than yourself, but you are unaware of

this fact. On a success, your message is encrypted. It may be

discovered and deciphered by others. The DC to do so is the

result of the check you just made to encrypt the message. You

may take a 20 on this check, negating any chance that your

message can only be decrypted by you.

At your option, when you are encrypting a message, you

may choose to make it “obvious” that whatever medium you

have chosen to hold a secret message does in fact contain such

a message. A Decipher Script check is still required to decrypt

each page of the message, but no check is needed to determine

whether or not a message is present. Any character trained in

the Decipher Script skill knows immediately upon seeing the

medium that it contains some sort of hidden message.

Special: If you have 5 or more ranks in Decipher Script,

you get a +2 synergy bonus on Use Magic Device checks

related to scrolls. A character who has the Diligent feat gains

a +2 bonus on Decipher Script checks.

New Uses for Skills

All of the following new uses for skills are optional. In

particular, the new uses of the Craft (alchemy) and Heal

skills reﬂect various forensic techniques that are helpful

tools for vampire hunters and other investigators in many

settings, but which might not have an appropriate ﬂavor

for all campaigns. In all cases, refer to the Player’s Handbook

for complete information on these skills, as only options are

detailed below.

Craft (Alchemy) (Int)

Normal Use: You can make alchemical items. This skill allows

you to determine how much time and material it takes to make

an alchemical item using the DCs listed below and the rules

for making such items as found in the Craft skill description

(see the PHB ).

Identify Blood: You can only use the Alchemy skill in this

way if you have least 5 ranks in Heal, or alternatively, in the

Knowledge (anatomy) skill. Given any amount of blood and

an alchemical laboratory, you can make an Alchemy check

(DC 20, same cost in gold as the identify substance ability of

the Alchemy skill) to identify the speciﬁc type of the creature

from which the blood was taken. If you identify two different

samples of blood, one immediately after the other, you are

able to tell whether those samples are blood from the same

creature, creatures of the same type, or unrelated creatures.

Heal (Wis)

Normal Use: You can treat the injured, the inﬁrm, or the dying.

The DC and effect of your Heal check depend upon the task

you are attempting.

Necropsy: By studying the corpse of any living creature for

no less than 10 minutes and making a successful Heal check

(DC 15 for a fresh corpse, DC 20 for a rotting one, and DC

30 for a skeletal corpse), you can determine what it was that

caused the death of that creature. While the cause of death

usually corresponds to an obvious wound, this use of the Heal

skill is also able to detect less obvious causes of death (poison,

disease, energy draining, etc.), and reveals which wounds

upon a corpse were sustained after death (if any). In order to

perform a necropsy in this way, at least half of the corpse to

be studied must be on hand.

Decipher Script (Int; Trained Only)

Normal Use: You can decipher writing in an unfamiliar

language or a message written in an incomplete or archaic

form. The base DC is 20 for the simplest messages, 25 for

standard texts, and 30 or higher for intricate, exotic, or very

old writing.

Decrypt Message: The normal use of this skill assumes

that you are deciphering a message that is simply hard to

comprehend, not one that was intentionally hidden within

another message or encrypted within a non-linguistic pattern.

In reality, it is possible for a second message to be hidden

within a ﬁrst (or within gibberish). You may look for secret

messages in a text, a physical puzzle, or any other item that

might contain hidden information. Doing so takes 1 minute

and has a DC equal to the Decipher Script roll made to encrypt

the message (see Encrypt Message, below). If the check fails,

or if there is no hidden message, you ﬁnd nothing. You are

Feats

The following new feats might appeal to characters that have

dealings with vampires, either as friends or as foes. Note that

each of these new feats requires the class ability to channel

energy (negative energy for Blot the Sky, positive energy for

Part the Clouds).

Prestige Classes

Blot the Sky [General]

You are able to call upon a source of negative energy and force

nature to block the light of the sun or the moon.

Prerequisites: Ability to channel negative energy.

Beneﬁt: If you are outdoors and in plain sight of the sky,

you may expend one use of your rebuke undead ability as a

standard action to cause a cloud to pass over the sun or the

moon, even if there were previously no clouds in the sky.

This effect creates a 60-foot-radius cylinder of shade centered

upon your location and extending upwards into the heavens.

Within this cylinder, lighting conditions are calculated as if

the sky were overcast, and creatures are protected from any

detrimental effects of naturally occurring sunlight, moonlight,

and starlight (if any). This effect moves with you and lasts for

one round per level.

This feat is a supernatural ability. It does not produce

any precipitation, though it can alter magically summoned

weather conditions involving the presence or absence of

clouds. If the areas affected by the results of two or more Blot

the Sky feats overlap, their effects do not stack.

Prestige Classes

The following are various vampire-related prestige classes,

each of which is easily adaptable to any campaign. Many of

these prestige classes represent vampire hunters and those

responsible for battling wider categories of creatures (such

as undead, which happen to include vampires). Others are

the minions of vampires or those who seek to emulate the

undead.

More than a few of the prestige classes described here are

allusions (or blatant references) to ‘real-world’ folklore. In all

such cases, strict adherence to the folklore, which inspired the

prestige class is intentionally neglected in favor of interesting

game mechanics.

Arcane Pathologist

Some of the greatest vampire hunters of legend are actually

arcane pathologists by trade. These curious pseudo-scientists

study diseases and afﬂictions of all sorts, from common

illnesses to supernatural diseases and even undeath. While

it is the goal of every arcane pathologist to combat all such

pathogens, curses, and unnatural states of being, many are

motivated as much by academic curiosity than anything

else.

As their name might suggest, arcane pathologists must

all be adept at magic of some sort in order to understand any

supernatural maladies that they may encounter. Contrary to

their name, not all arcane pathologists must practice arcane

magic. Some of the most successful arcane pathologists actu-

ally hail from backgrounds steeped in divine magic, a potent

force of healing, and thus a great ally in the study of diseases.

Nevertheless, most arcane pathologists began their careers as

wizards, as the wizard class most closely matches the arcane

pathologist’s enthusiasm for academia.

NPC arcane pathologists are likely to be found in areas

where plagues – especially magical plagues – and hordes of

the undead run rampant. Such areas make excellent places

to study unnatural ailments and to ﬁght them, as well. Of

course, some arcane pathologists neglect this last objective,

preferring instead to simply observe as everything comes

apart around them. These arcane pathologists are the minority.

Most actively ﬁght to save the populace from menaces such

as plagues and the undead.

Part the Clouds [General]

You are able to call upon a source of positive energy and part

any clouds that might be blocking the sun or the moon.

Prerequisites: Ability to channel positive energy.

Beneﬁt: If you are outdoors and in plain sight of the sky,

you may expend one use of your turn undead ability as a

standard action to part any clouds that might be in the sky,

allowing natural light to break through. This effect creates a

60-foot-radius cylinder of natural light centered upon your

location and extending upward to the sky. Within this cylinder

of natural light, lighting conditions are calculated as if the

sky were clear and no fog or mist were present; creatures in

the area are exposed to any natural light currently emanating

from the sky. This effect moves with you and lasts for one

round per level.

This feat is a supernatural ability. It does not prevent

precipitation other than fog or mist, even in the cylinder of

light. It cannot be used to part magically created fog or mist,

though it can alter magically summoned weather conditions

involving the presence or absence of clouds. If the areas af-

fected by the results of two or more Part the Clouds feat effects

overlap, their effects do not stack.

Blot the Sky versus Part the Clouds

If the area of a Blot the Sky feat effect comes into contact

with the area of a Part the Clouds feat effect or vice versa, the

creatures using those feats must make immediate rebuking or

turning checks, as appropriate. The lowest-rolling character

loses concentration and the effect of his feat ends. In the case of

a tie, both creatures lose concentration and the effects end. The

same procedure is used if a Blot the Sky feat effect is created

inside an existing Part the Clouds feat effect or vice versa.

Requirements

To qualify to become an arcane pathologist, a character must

fulﬁll the following criteria:

Craft (alchemy): 4 ranks

Heal: 4 ranks

Knowledge (arcana): 8 ranks

Spellcraft: 8 ranks

Feat: Skill Focus (Heal)

Spellcasting: Ability to cast gentle repose as an arcane or

divine spell.

Arcane Pathologist

Class Skills

The arcane pathologist’s class skills are Concentration (Con),

Craft (alchemy) (Int), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (anatomy,

arcane, nature) (Int), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense

Motive (Cha), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), Use Magic

Device (Cha).

cast cure moderate wounds by losing any prepared spell of 2 nd

level or higher. At 4 th level, an arcane pathologist may also

spontaneously cast remove disease by choosing to lose any

prepared spell (other than a domain spell, if any) of 3 rd level

or higher. At 10 th level, an arcane pathologist may spontane-

ously cast raise dead by choosing to lose any prepared spell

of 5 th level of higher.

An arcane pathologist who does not prepare spells does

not gain any beneﬁt from this class ability. In addition, domain

spells may not be lost with this ability.

Compulsive Repose (Su): Starting at 6 th level, an arcane

pathologist may target corporeal undead creatures with the

gentle repose spell as if they were dead creatures. When used

against an undead creature in this manner, gentle repose du-

plicates the effects of a halt undead spell.

Hypnotic Riposte (Sp): An arcane pathologist of 8 th level

is familiar not only with afﬂictions of the body, but also those

of the mind. Once per day, as a spell-like ability, an arcane

pathologist may attempt to turn any compulsion effect against

the creature that created it. The arcane pathologist must be

able to touch a creature under the inﬂuence of the compul-

sion effect in question, but the distance between the arcane

pathologist and the creature that created the compulsion

effect is irrelevant. The creature that created the compulsion

effect is allowed a Will saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 the arcane

pathologist’s level + arcane pathologist’s Wisdom modiﬁer)

to resist the hypnotic riposte.

If the creature fails to resist the riposte, the victim of the

creature’s compulsion effect that was touched by the arcane

pathologist is now free to ignore that compulsion; though do-

ing so requires concentration (a standard action each round

the compulsion is to be ignored). Additionally, the victim

can now reach into the mind of the creature that created the

compulsion effect. Each round, the victim may choose to either

see through its own eyes or through the eyes of the creature

that created the compulsion effect. This sensory link exists as

long as the compulsion effect exists, and the creator of that

compulsion effect is not necessarily aware that its victim is

now able to spy upon it.

Skill Points at each Level: 4 + Int modiﬁer

Hit Die: d6

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the arcane pathologist

prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proﬁciency: An arcane pathologist

is proﬁcient in all light melee weapons.

Spellcasting: An arcane pathologist continues training

in magic. Whenever certain class levels are gained (as deter-

mined by Table 1.1: Arcane Pathologist ), the arcane patholo-

gist gains new spells per day as if he had also gained a level

in a spellcasting class he belonged to before taking any arcane

pathologist levels. He does not, however, gain any other

beneﬁt a character of that class would have gained (improved

chance of controlling or rebuking undead, metamagic or item

creation feats, and so on) unless otherwise stated. This essen-

tially means that he adds his arcane pathologist class level to

the level of the other spellcasting class, and then determines

spells per day, spells known and caster level accordingly.

If a character had more than one spellcasting class before

he became an arcane pathologist, he must decide to which

class he adds each level of arcane pathologist for purposes of

determining spells per day when he adds that new level.

Detect Disease (Su): This ability, usable at will, duplicates

the effects of a detect poison spell cast by a 1 st level cleric, except

that it detects the presence of diseases instead of the presence

of poisons.

Divine Health (Su): An arcane pathologist is immune to

all diseases, even those of supernatural origin.

Spontaneous Caster (Ex): Starting at 2 nd level, an arcane

pathologist may spontaneously cast gentle repose by choosing

to lose any prepared spell of 2 nd level or higher, just as a 3 rd

level cleric who channels positive energy may spontaneously

Table 1.1: The Arcane Pathologist

Attack Fort. Ref. Will

Level Bonus Save Save Save Special Spellcasting

1 +0 +2 +0 +2 Detect disease , Divine health +1 level in an existing spellcasting class

2 +1 +3 +0 +3 Spontaneous caster

3 +1 +3 +1 +3

+1 level in an existing spellcasting class

4 +2 +4 +1 +4 Spontaneous caster

5 +2 +4 +1 +4

+1 level in an existing spellcasting class

6 +3 +5 +2 +5 Compulsive repose

7 +3 +5 +2 +5

+1 level in an existing spellcasting class

8 +4 +6 +2 +6 Hypnotic riposte

9 +4 +6 +3 +6

+1 level in an existing spellcasting class

10 +5 +7 +3 +7 Spontaneous caster

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