Van Richten's Monster Hunter's.pdf - Askadesign.com

..’
P?
. there are those in the world who would
like nothing more than to destroy the
“blood-sucking fiend.” It hardly seems
to matter whether this first group of
attackers actually manages to harm
the vampire or not. The simple fact of
their assault triggers the change
because it forces the vampire to fight
to defend itself. In many cases this is
the first time the new vampire kills
(demi)humans. The vampire will
usually draw two conclusions from this
event. The first is that some
(demi)humans wanted to destroy it,
and thus all (demi)humans are
potential foes. The second is that the
vampire is a phenomenal fighter, a
virtual killing machine.
These two conclusions generally
trigger the next phase. During this
stage, many vampires become
rampaging fiends, killing for the pure
joy of it, sometimes feeding from
several victims in one night, even after
they are totally sated. Vampires will
often create their first “servitor”
vampires during this phase, before
they realize the consequences of their
actions. This phase can last for several
years, and in some vampires it ends
only when the creature is destroyed.
For most creatures, however, this stage
will last no more than twenty years.
Usually the next stage is one of
boredom. The “innocent” joy the
creature derived from exercising its
powers is gone as the monster
becomes accustomed to those powers.
Even the thrill of the hunt frequently
begins to pall after a decade or two. In
short, the prospect of an eternity of
unlife becomes bleak when all the
creature has to look forward to is its
next kill. There is also a great sense of
loneliness.
At this point, vampires typically
diverge into two groups. There are
some who try to interact once more
with (demi)human society in one way
or another. With varying degrees of
success, these creatures will try to
take on the mask of mortality, to “play
the grand facade,” to borrow a phrase
once used by a vampire (I will discuss
this concept at length, later). If the
creature fails in its first attempt to
“assimilate,” it will rarely try again. If it
enjoys some measure of success,
however, this is usually the path the
monster will follow for the rest of its
existence. It will become one of the
“shadow people” (to use another
vampire term), always existing more
or less on the periphery of
(demi)human society, moving through
it when necessary, and secretly preying
upon it.
Vampires who decide against
dabbling in society, or those who fail in
their first attempt, usually deal with the
boredom and loneliness in a more
destructive way. To add interest to their
bleak existence, they often escalate in
cruelty. Rather than killing one person,
they kill a caravan of merchants.
Rather than terrorizing a small village,
they bully an entire county. Creatures
in this phase often put much energy
and imagination into new ways to
spread destruction over the land.
Obviously this phase is most likely to
attract the attention of vampire
hunters. Conspicuous behavior
coupled with relative weakness has
spelled the destruction of many
vampires during this stage. For one
reason or another, vampires rarely
continue in this mode of mass
destruction beyond the transition to the
Mature age category. (Either they
“grow out of it,” or are destroyed.)
One definition of “maturity” in
(demi)humans is the ability to
emotionally accept one’s mortality.
Conversely, in vampires, one definition
of maturity might be to emotionally
understand the consequences of
immortality. Usually after about 100
years of existence, vampires will come
to realize that they could truly never
cease to exist , . , if they are careful.
At this stage vampires come to realize,
sometimes for the first time, just what
they have to lose.