Vampire Nosferatu

Vampire Nosferatu (CR 13)

Pure Evil - Medium - Undead

Lore:	Know (Religion)
24		43
Basic DC		Full DC

Initiative

21

Perception:
31	+21
Passive	Active

Ambush:

10+

on a d20

Senses:

• Standard Senses

Movement Types:

Defense

AC

34

Man Def

33

Monster Health
336	168	25
Hit Points	Bloodied	Hit Dice

Saving Throws
Fort:	+10
Refl:	+15
Will:	+10

Strong Against:

• (Undead 1) Immune (no effect): diseases (infected, diseased, blighted), poisons (tainted, poisoned, blighted), ability damage (dilution, damage, drain), and essence damage (suppression, omission, destruction)
• (Undead 2) Immune (no effect): bleeds (bruised, bleed, ruptured), fatigued, exhausted
• (Undead 3) Immune (no effect): magical sleep (drowsy, sluggish, asleep), paralyzed, stunned
• (Undead 4) Immune (no effect): any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects, or is harmless)

Weak Against:

• Vampires take 10 points of non-resistible energy damage any time they end their turn in a square subject to daylight (natural or magical). This applies once per round in combat, or ten times per minute outside of combat. This weakness does NOT increase or decrease the damage a vampire takes from specific undead-damaging effects and attacks.

Offense

Size:	Medium
5 ft.		5 ft.
Space		Reach

To-Hit

+20

Man Off

+21

Action

0

Points

Standard Attack (Melee):

• 1x Vampire's Bite +20 (3d10+17/x2)
  as piercing (physical, common)
  plus: Bleed 13

Full Attack (Melee):

• 1x Vampire's Bite +20 (3d10+17/x2)
  as piercing (physical, common)
  plus: Bleed 13
• 2x Bloody Claws +22 (3d6+6/x2)
  as slashing (physical, common)

Standard Attack (Ranged):

Full Attack (Ranged):

Siege Damage: Not siege capable

Statistics

22

STR

19

DEX

—

CON

16

INT

18

WIS

20

CHA

Skills:

• Bluff: 23
• Diplomacy: 23
• Knowledge (Local): 21
• Perception: 21
• Sense Motive: 23
• All other skills: 16 (no ranks)

Languages: Necril, Common, Thanic

Feats:

Special Abilities

Mesmerizing Gaze (Su)

A Vampire's gaze is powerfully, dangerously soporific. If a Vampire is allowed to gaze on a victim without interruption, they will be driven into a nightmare-ridden sleep, or simply knocked unconscious by the force of the fiend's will. Once per round as a swift action, the Vampire may pour their charismatic essence into their piercing gaze and attempt to lull a mortal creature within 100 feet into sleep. The Vampire chooses a target to which it has line of sight and line of effect and forces them to roll a Will save versus a DC of 23. If they fail the save they are Asleep until they are awakened. If they make the save, they are Drowsy until the end of their next turn and take 3d6+7 points of Psychic (energy, uncommon) damage.

Vampire's Hiss (Ex)

Once per round as a standard action, a Vampire may pour its hunger for life into an ear-shredding hiss. This affects a fifteen foot cone and can be used to inflict damage on nearby creatures or to damage objects. If used to inflict damage, all enemy creatures in the area of effect take 4d8+17 points of sonic (energy, common) damage, and must make a Fort save, DC 23, for half damage. If used to attack objects, the hiss deals no damage to creatures in the area, but instead, the vampire performs a Sunder check on a single object in the area of affect using its Maneuver Offense (1d20 + 21). If the object is held, worn, or wielded by a creature in the area of effect, the target DC is the wielder's Maneuver Defense. If it is an unattended object, the target DC is 26. Success reduces the object's Durability by 1. An object that has its durability reduced to 0 or less becomes Broken.

Swarm of Bats (Sp)

Concentration: 1d20 + 15 vs. a DC of 29 (14 needed on the die) Once per round as a standard action, a Vampire may use a spell to tear open a portal to Infinite Bats. These bats flood through into our reality and create a Swarm of Bats. This effect occurs within 100 feet of the Vampire's square. It must have line of sight and line of effect to the target square. A Swarm of Bats fills a four-by-four square of the vampire's choice within range. Note that this Area of Effect does NOT require an open space — it can be cast in a smaller space and merely lose some squares of its effect. When it is created, a Swarm of Bats inflicts 3d8+11 points of slashing (physical, common) damage on all creatures in the area of effect. Affected creatures are allowed to make a reflex save, DC 23, for half damage. Once summoned, a Swarm of Bats persists in its space until dismissed by the vampire that summoned them (as a free action during their turn), the summoning vampire is slain, or the encounter ends. On all rounds after they are summoned, Swarms of Bats block line of sight and line of effect through their squares. Any creature who enters a square affected by a Swarm of Bats after it is summoned suffers Bleed 13 until healed. Note that Bleeds do not stack.

Vampire Nosferatu

Vampires are one of the great nations of Undeath. Vampires are Emptied Undead, meaning they have been cored out of life. Unlike most of the Emptied, they do not noticeably decay, although during battle their disgusting nature is amply evident in the mess they leave behind. Vampires are the greatest representatives of the Corrupting Undead, those undead who seek the preservation and continuation of life, so that they may corrupt it into ever more Undeath. As a result, the motivations of Vampires are more complex than the Destroying Undead or the Eaters.

Vampires like people. They like the trappings of civilization, they like the happy whirl of social life, they enjoy the company of others, both undead and living alike. Vampires want to make more Vampires, it is an erotic part of their existence that they would be greatly diminished by losing.

Vampires get along well with most other Undead, even though relations often involve the Vampires using their domination abilities or simply persuading the other Undead to be patient. It is not unusual for Vampires to be encountered with powerful Skeletons, Wights, Death Knights, Liches, and other mighty Undead, even including the Lost Ones, who make terrifying allies indeed.

On top of this, Vampires are unique among Undeath in that they create living allies, their Vampiric Thralls. The existence of Vampiric Thralls makes finding a Vampire nest immeasurably more difficult, because Vampire Thralls are alive. Thralls are mortals who admire and envy the Vampires for their abilities, and whom the Vampires have fed their blood to. Vampire Blood can create new Vampires, or, in lesser doses, a living human becomes addicted to it, as if it were strong drink, or some horrifyingly strong opiate.

Vampire thralls are the first rank of Vampire culture, the eternally obedient and awfully empowered servants whom the Vampires use to interact with the daytime world. But to a Vampire, the faithful Thralls are just servants and fighters, meat to be sacrificed and used up as required. No, most Vampires are far more occupied with the byzantine machinations of Vampiric Society, a dark carousel of midnight parties and dalliances in dark corners, plots and plans and schemes all woven together into a fascinating skein complex enough to keep even an immortal monster entertained.

Nosferatu are Vampires that have survived their first few Dark Decades. They have fully sampled all the dark delights of vampiric society, and the marks of their dissipation sit heavily upon them. Nosferatu are those youngling vampires that have survived their debut, and are the least of the vampires that are actually players in the great games and not merely enjoying them.

As a result, it is possible, but unlikely, that a Nosferatu would have caught the eyes of one of the Great Old Monsters. As a result, some Nosferatu may receive aid from a Patron or even mightier Vampire, and terrible indeed is such a Nosferatu. In all cases, nosferatu are often well-established in their first lairs, and often have quite a lot to lose. As a result, Nosferatu begin to pay a lot of attention to the workings of the living world, with an eye to politics and local governance.

Combat Tactics

As a result of their widely varied personalities, Vampires can and do have many different styles of combat. Indolent types will hang back, send in a Thrall or two if they have them, and blanket parties in Swarms of Bats and start hissing when they get closer, backing away the whole time. More aggressive types will dive right in and go to full attacks, fighting alongside any Thralls, sure the thralls will work their hearts out to protect them as much as possible. Vampire fights should be wild, fast-moving affairs where the terrain changes frequently due to Swarms of Bats. Vampires are fully aware that Swarms block line of sight and line of effect, meaning they can be thrown on top of spell casters to shut them right down, and even the more pugnacious types will do this if they are aware of a dangerous caster.

Vampires are well aware of the power of their inflicted bleeds to stunt the healing effects of divine casters, and will be sure to hit any divine caster they see with Swarms and bites to be darn sure there are as many Bleeds as possible, to lower the chance of the Divine caster simply blasting them out of existence. Vampires like existence.

Once a fight begins vampires want to win, quickly and easily. If a fight turns nasty, they will usually run away without hesitation, abandoning any Thralls without a second thought. To flee, Vampires will usually use their considerable flight to break around a corner and then evade into the heavens.

NOTE: It should go without saying that Vampires, due to their weakness to daylight, avoid the sun like death. Vampires are indeed creatures of the night.

Out of Combat

Nosferatu are not pretty things, despite their high Charisma, and they typically respond in one of two ways. Some glory in their awfulness, dressing in the richest of finery, indulging in the finest of perfumes, and living in palatial splendor. Others are made ashamed by their vile facade, and seek to lurk in darkness, wearing masks and oftentimes neglecting their shells in the most careless ways.

Regardless of how they deal with their appearance, almost all Nosferatu are motivated to advance their stature. It takes a particularly twisted mind to revel in their ugliness, and such Nosferatu are frequently among the very worst of a terrible breed.

Nosferatu tend to have a favored cadre of thralls and lesser dead that they rely on, although of course, everything is expendable in extremis.

Immortality

Many undead creatures, such as this one, cannot be killed by normal means. If the creature is reduced to zero or fewer hit points, it will lie in moldering ruin only until the following night. It will then rise with a single hit point and go hunting to feed. To destroy a creature such as this, you must defeat it and then expose its body to daylight (natural or magical). Alternatively, you can place a stake through its heart — while this will not destroy it, the creature will be unable to revive itself as long as the stake remains in place. Lastly, if you decapitate the creature or burn its body completely, it will be permanently slain.

Rewards

XP: 25,600

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 17,625 gp.

Weight: 130 lbs.     Volume: 5.2 cu. ft.

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll a d20 on Table 1 below once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 10	Nothing Found
11 - 14	1 Languid Remnant (tier 1)
15 - 17	1 Pale Remnant (tier 2)
18 - 19	1 Bright Remnant (tier 3)
20	Roll on Table 2
###	Nothing to see here!
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 2: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Languid Remnants (tier 1)
6 - 10	3 Pale Remnants (tier 2)
11 - 14	1 Intense Remnant (tier 4)
15 - 17	1 Blazing Remnant (tier 5)
18 - 19	1 Vital Remnant (tier 6)
20	Roll on Table 3
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 3: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	3 Bright Remnants (tier 3)
6 - 8	3 Intense Remnants (tier 4)
9 - 11	3 Blazing Remnants (tier 5)
12 - 14	3 Vital Remnants (tier 6)
15 - 17	1 Prime Remnant (tier 7)
18 - 19	1 Mythic Remnant (tier 8)
20	1 Empyrean Remnant (tier 9)