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Vampire Mage

"Immortality eludes all but the ateri and empyrean - unless you join the coven, like I have."

Living in Solanar with a coven of Empyrean Espers where he takes on the role of muscle for the family. Locals call him 'Shadow Serpent,' as his vampire arms appear, withering like snakes out of the dark corners of alleyways, viciously grabbing at their victims and pulling them to their death. This is depicted on the back of his vest, per Empyrean custom.

Vampire Mage Class Strengths

Note that these values are not specifically used in Eternity TTRPG. Instead, these representative stats are meant to provide an overall idea of how the class plays. Definitions of these representations are provided below, which do directly align with the Eternity TTRPG system.

Vampire Mages have the following "class stats":

• 8 Attack
• 3 Defense
• 5 Intuition
• 10 Magic
• 2 Special
• 3 Quickness
• 6 Utility
• 8 Versatility

Value Definitions

The following stat definitions roughly cover the class' strengths and weaknesses, in a representational way.

• Attack: the overall ability of the class to deal damage and set the tempo in a battle.
• Defense: the innate ability of the class to reduce damage and negative effects taken, both from physical and magical attacks.
• Intuition: represents skills such as perception, stealth, or sixth-sense abilities to help them avoid otherwise unforeseeable harm.
• Magic: the innate ability of the class to manipulate the very fabric of Altius and The Dream, turning those powers to their will.
• Special: not all unique "powers" are magical in nature, and some classes have magic-like, "special" abilities.
• Quickness: the overall speed, mobility, and initiative of the class.
• Utility: the ability of the class to bolster allies, debilitate enemies, or provide useful effects in various out-of-combat situations.
• Versatility: the class' ability to adapt to any situation or environment, both in and out of combat.

Vampire Mage Stat Bonuses

Vampire mages gain stat bonuses upon leveling up, based upon the "Critical Option" chosen for each ability. These class-based stat bonuses provide roughly half of the overall stat benefits for your character, making them integral to your character's advancement.

The three categories of stat bonuses/ specialization for vampire mages are: blood magic (+1 Faith), drain (+1 Intelligence), and vampire's coven (+2 Will and +1 Resilience).

Vampire Mage Roleplay Powers

In Eternity TTRPG, each class has its own unique set of "Roleplay Powers," which enable players to feel truly outstanding. It gives each character something that sets them apart from the rest of their adventuring party.

Roleplay Powers either provide auto-successes on specific skill or knowledge checks related to the class, or provide unique effects that make players feel like they're living in the world of Eternity TTRPG with their chosen class.

Commune

You may speak with the undead, and the spirits of the dead. They, in turn, can respond to you. Undead never attack you unless you attack first. As beneficiary of the first undead's line - the vampires - you may speak to and comprehend those who came after the descendancy of your own power.

Nocturnal

Add your Soul Stat against all Fate Rolls made during nighttime. Conversely, remove your Soul Stat against all Fate Rolls made during daytime. As a vampire - or one who is fated to soon become one - you are not wholly yourself in the light of the sun.

Shadow Aura

You exude a malevolent “Shadow Aura.” You automatically detect Light Aura units within 100 yards, and you are immune to shadow damage. Missing your living heart, shadows congregate in your chest's stillness. From there, it spills forth a dark vibration, chilling the living nearby.

Vampire Mage Spells

The following vampire mage spell descriptions provide summaries of their actual in-game effects.

Blood Funnel

Damage yourself to heal your target, and you gain “Blood Healing.

Blood Rush

Chance to damage your target and yourself, and you gain “Blood Healing.”

Bloodline

You turn into a vampire, permanently altering your body and mind (and Stats).

Decay

Chance to lower your target’s Will.

Drain Life

Chance to damage your target and use their life to heal an ally.

Drain Mind

Chance to damage your target’s Wisdom and use that to heal an ally’s Wisdom.

Mortal Flay

Chance to continually damage your target.

Necromancy

Raise undead creatures.

Shadow Aura (Pain Synergy)

Gives a chance each turn to heal an ally.

Shatter Magic

Very high chance to remove a magic, maintained, or Status Effect.

Class Origin

In the years following 0KS, but prior to 186KS, Ranroth was seeking ways for mortals to attain immortality, independent of the “Gift of Kings.”

Prior to “The Great Betrayal,” Ranroth had not approved of the ways that human elites had used the Gift of Kings to further empower only themselves and those they deemed valuable for their exclusive causes.

He knew that immorality was a resource that was coveted by many, and that the same practices that led to his destruction of the Tree of Life could return.

When Ranroth had slain the original Renrys, her daughter’s ally, the Eternal Helleid, had protected the paladin. Ranroth again sought out the trinati-turned-Eternal’s help.

Having close associations with the asura (those angels of death, carrying mortals of Altius to “the Dream”), Helleid knew exactly how to grant immortality, in a way that also benefitted him.

The asura’s function in the “Eternal Zone” (the world-gods known as Altius, and The Dream), was to carry the souls of those dying upon Altius to their place in the Dream. The power belonged to them for draining the last bit of mortal life, so the soul could be carried.

In essence, they possessed the powers of life and death.

To those interested among Ranroth’s ranks, Helleid taught what the mortals called “Vampiric Magic,” and their practitioners became “vampire mages.”

By draining life force from others, in a fashion similar to what asura do just before a mortal’s death, vampire mages slowly transferred their life into “undeath,” becoming the first undead of Altius. In this way, they became immune to the ravages of time.

These early “vampires” gained many additional powers of the asura, twisting them to their own ends in ecstatic worship of Helleid and his gift of immortality.

Vampire mages could call back souls of the dead to their fallen bodies, entrapping them as slaves, commune with the undead, they became nocturnal, and they may create other vampire-like beings, called “sanguis,” by biting mortals.

And of course, through undeath, they became immortal.

Ranroth had succeeded in his goal of creating a path for all mortals to gain immortality. Though he knew that his former Eternal patrons, Hy-Rasyl and his brother, Vyros, would not approve of his decisions, Ranroth celebrated that any who wished to live forever, now could.

From thence on, all one had to do to gain immortality upon Altius was to study with a master vampire mage. Or, alternatively, know how to pray to Helleid for the power, which he willingly grants.

For better or worse, however, this information is largely concealed among the masses. For one, most societies did not want zealous followers of an Eternal of shadows, Helleid, becoming immortal. Additionally, the Eternals of light – particularly Hy-Rasyl, and his brother, Vyros – did not want Eternals of shadow to gain such a powerful following.

Therefore, from the beginning, vampire mages were nearly universally despised.

Though the vampire mages were wreathed in a shadow aura so antithetical to his initial oaths, the paladin made liberal use of vampire mages among his followers. He welcomed all who wished for such power, and for immortality, among his ranks.

Falidor Garland became the first vampire mage, vampire, and undead in Altius. However, it is Saint Ranroth who can be credited as the true father of the undead.

It is believed that this action was ultimately what led to Sellen Verinost, the pyromancer, and his band of heroes, to hunt and slay Saint Ranroth. Failing to do so, they merely imprisoned his body within the original Tree of Life, surrounded by his follower’s undead legions, and banished his soul to realms beyond the powers of the Kingstones.

Almost no one in all of Altius knew of Ranroth’s fate, so that none would attempt to free him, or take vengeance upon the heroes who stopped him.

Vampire Mage Play Style

Vampire mage's have several "styles" of play, when it comes to combat. On the one hand, drain and blood funnel/ rush effects allow for a mixture of magic damage and healing to provide both offense and sustain for your allies. On the other hand, you can take the role of a necromancer, allowing undead to fight on your behalf while you support them with various spells and buff/ debuff effects. And of course, any mixture of the two can be highly effective, as well.

"Drain Life" is one of the primary vampire mage spells, giving you the chance to both deal damage and use that damage to heal an ally. "Drain Mind" allows you the same effect, but with Wisdom instead of HP. Meanwhile, you can bolster your "Drain Life" spell by use of "Blood Funnel" and "Blood Rush." Both spells provide you with increased hit chance to Drain Life. Blood Funnel allows you to give HP to an ally at the cost of your own HP, while Blood Rush allows you a high chance to damage an enemy, at the cost of your own HP.

If you prefer undead control over direct spellcasting, "Necromancy" is the other primary vampire mage spell and combat style. While undead are covering the battlefield, spells like "Decay" to lower targets' Will, and "Mortal Flay" to cause continual damage can become truly powerful. Undead tend to cause damage a little more slowly than the Drain/ Blood build, so ongoing effects have time to cause really devastating results. For this reason, "Shadow Aura (Pain Synergy)" - with the chance to heal each turn - and "Bloodline," which boosts your undead numbers, can also be fantastic.

Finally, "Shatter Magic" is the most powerful dispel effect in Eternity, providing an insanely high chance to remove magic, maintained, or Status Effects, to round out your chosen combat style.

Vampire Mage Lore

Achilles sighed and dropped his head until the ends of his white strands soaked in the swamp. He breathed in deeply.

Andiel was chipper. “Almost got yourself killed again, I see.” He flicked the bloody knife upwards, casually catching it in its descent. “Did you see that final five feet I took towards the vampire mage? It was glorious. Perfection. He didn’t notice anything until the dagger stuck.”

After some moments and another curse, the gloomy dark elf finally raised his head. “It’s good to have vengeance.” He stood up, drying off his sword as best he could. “He did almost kill us twice. The ‘good people’ of Calciphern might even reward us. That vampire mage caused havoc after we woke him down in the chimaera caverns.”

Andiel cleaned his dagger, sheathed it, and peered around the corners of the blackened swamp. “So, where did he come from?”

“And why was he here?”

“And since when did he gain the powers of necromancy? I’d heard there weren’t any orders of vampire mages south of Murgana. The occasional rumor about Leonic, I suppose.” Andiel briefly placed his head in his hands, rubbing his temples. “How did he survive the attack on Calciphern?”

Eternity TTRPG Races

Eternity TTRPG has nine unique playable races, each with their own lore, racial powers, and variety of options for play. Choose from races you know such as humans or treants, or dive into the entirely unique world of Eternity TTRPG with crour, espers, ateri, empyrean, jadori, stoneborn, and yzarc.

Core Rulebook Classes

Take a look at other Eternity TTRPG class pages from the Eternity TTRPG Core Rulebook to learn more about each. Characters gain their class at Lv.1 (after starting with only a race at Lv.0). Classes provide characters with stat boosts. along with spells, abilities, and roleplay powers entirely distinct from one another.