Something besides the Krampus stalks the snowy, holiday streets this year. Just in time for the longest nights of the year comes Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Night, a guide to playing vampires, dhampirs, and vampire hunters. Always wanted to play a character with a true bloodlust? Blood of the Night gives you a variety of gory options, from playing fantastically powerful actual vampires (and detailing what that means for a game) to slipping in more subtle bloodsuckers like dhampirs. But how do you know what type of bloodsucker is best for you and your game? Blood of the Night can help you answer that question.
Start with the For Your Character section
The first section of every Player Companion is the For Your Character spread, two pages dedicated to answering your questions, highlighting focus classes and topics, and helping you find the perfect options for you character. This is the place to start, particularly with the Questions to Ask Your GM section.
The biggest question here: Will we be allowed to play any monstrous characters in this campaign, including vampires?
Remember, the GM is the arbiter of what works in her game and what doesn’t, so if you want to play a character tainted by vampirism, talk to her and find out what works in her game. If the answer’s no vampires (or other powerful races), that’s still okay! There are still plenty of ways to play a bloodsucker. In fact, that’s what dhampirs were made for. See if your GM is okay with you playing one of these creatures, which are more evenly matched to the core races. If the answer to the vampire question is yes, though, that’s great too, and opens the door for not just significant options, but also new ways to play and things to consider regarding your character.
So You’re Playing a Vampire...
Illustration by Denman Rooke
If your GM is allowing vampires in her game, the first thing to decide is what type of vampire is right for you.
- Choose Your Bloodline: Start on the inside front cover and get an overview of the four major types of vampires that haunt the Inner Sea Region. Choose which one seems most appealing to you. Each of these sections has tons of details on what distinguishes these undead hunters, along with how they come into being, their desires, secrets, roles, racial traits, and more.
- Want to know more about the mystical jiang-shi? Check them out on page 6.
- Want to play to tradition with the Dracula-like moroi? Flip to page 8.
- Looking for something more ancient and mysterious? Consider the nosferatu on page 10.
- Ready for the exotic, body-possessing vetala? Head to page 12.
- Create Your Character: Once you’ve selected the type of vampire you want to play, you’ll want to follow a few steps.
- Build your character as normal, probably starting as a 1st-level core race, but talk to your GM about specifics.
- Apply the relevant vampire template (jiang-shi, Bestiary 3; moroi, Bestiary 1 [normal vampires]; nosferatu, Pathfinder Adventure Path #8; vetala, Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Bestiary).
- Refine your powers: From traits specific to each vampire breed (pages, 7, 9, 11, 13) to specialized feats (pages 16, 17, 28, 29), no two vampires ever need be alike.
- Consider Hunger: Page 22 presents a new subsystem for hunger, whether it be the bloodlust of vampires, the carrion hunger of ghouls, the life envy of ghosts, or otherwise. Hunger brings the endless desires of the damned to the forefront of a game as never before, with penalties for fasting but also new benefits for the well fed.
- Add Campaign Details: The Inner Sea Region is full of places vampires thrive, famous vampires you might somehow be tied to, and religions willing to help you indulge your desires. Learn about them on pages 24 and 25.
- Learn How to Play Well with Others: Now that you’ve decided to play a sinister, lonely creature of the night, you’re likely headed into a game about cooperation and heroics. Pages 14 and 15 presents a primer on what it means to play a vampire in a Pathfinder campaign, with suggestions on handling alignment, how you might interact with other players, and things both you and the GM should keep in mind throughout the campaign to make sure that not just you, but all the players, have many unforgettable adventures.
- Be Flexible: The base assumptions of the Pathfinder RPG were obviously not designed to support vampiric characters, but with the tools presented in Blood of the Night and a willingness to cooperate with your GM and other players, you’ll be set for a Pathfinder experience like no other.
F. Wesley Schneider
Editor-in-Chief
