VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN DEAD UNTIL DARK
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Charlaine Harris
| YEAR CREATED:
2001
| NATIONALITY:
American (specifically from the South in Northern Louisiana)
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Pale and fairly cold to touch. If they cut their hair, it will grow back (instantly) to the length it was when they died. Their nails tend to be a bit long.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Super strong and fast, enhanced reflexes and senses, glamour (ability to hypnotize), don't age and fast healing. Levitation, shapeshifting. Some vampires can read your thoughts (telepathy).
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Sleep in a hidden spot during the day, food is blood, however a beverage created in Japan called Tru Blood is supposed to replace the need for human blood (although this is does not completely quench ones "thirst")
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Vampire must drain all your blood and replace with some of their own. If it succeeds, then you'll come back 2 - 3 days later as a very hungry vampire. (you must die first)
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Older vampires are more powerful. Vampires can also run for office. Each state/territory is run by a King or Queen of which appoints several Sheriff's to different area's in that territory. Vampires tend to belong to a nest or a coven. An elder is the leader and rule the group because of their age and wisdom.
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: They hate other supernatural races (Lycanthropes, werewolves), but work together for common causes when necessary.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Wooden stakes, sunlight, fire also kills them as well as silver.
| | | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Silver hurts them (however they seem to heal very quickly after silver is removed) and they don't like garlic (Bill asks Sookie to stop consuming it when they are together). Sunlight also burns them to the point of death. | | SOCIAL STATUS: The Great Revelation enabled vampires to "come out of the coffin" (the creation of Tru Blood helped this happen), however, America is having some trouble accepting them. Vampirism is believed to be a "virus", but that is just a cover-up for the fact that they are undead beings.
| | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Some vampires try to "mainstream" and live among humans, while others attempt to live as they had before the Great Revelation.
| | VAMPIRE BLOOD: When humans drink Vampire blood, they become more attractive to other humans and vampires and sexually potent. They also gain strength and more control over themselves. They also feel healthier and tend to be able to heal faster. Vampire blood is one of the most sought-after commodities on the black-market because of its potency (even though some humans have gone crazy after drinking it). The effects last depending on the amounts of blood that was ingested.
| | | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN TRUE BLOOD
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Alan Ball
| YEAR CREATED:
2008
| NATIONALITY:
All nationalities
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Pale, mysterious, sexy. Body temperature is cold.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Strength, regeneration, healing others (who drink their blood), Speed.
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Supposed to stick primarily to TruBlood synthetic drink and blood banks now that they are "out." Willing donors are acceptable but public drinking is illegal.
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: The maker drains the human, and then the human must drink from the vampire. The human then dies and then rises in 2-3 days.
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: American States are ruled by a King or Queen who then appoint sheriffs to rule areas; the older the vampire the stonger he/she is
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: Guarded respect.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Wooden stakes, Sunlight (complete exposure), fire.
| | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Silver weakens them, losing too much blood, Garlic, Sino AIDs weakens them for about a month.
| | SOCIAL STATUS: The lowest minority group.
| | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Those that chose to do so are "mainstreaming." Those that don't are much more unpleasant.
| | VAMPIRE BLOOD: Thick, dark red, bubbly. Gives extreme healing properties.
| | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN ANITA BLAKE, VAMPIRE HUNTER SERIES
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Laurell K. Hamilton
| YEAR CREATED:
1994
| NATIONALITY:
American
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Pale, unusually still.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: General abilities include hypnosis via eyes, extreme speed and strength. More spectacular abilities depend on vampire lineage and strength of the individual, including a wide variety of talents.
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Only living human blood. Attempts to survive on animal blood resulted in unfortunate effects.
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Drained of blood by one vampire, and then revived through the donation of that vampire's blood. Those infected with lycanthropy cannot become vampires.
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Very complicated. Vampires owe their allegiance to the creator of their bloodline (Soure de Sang), and then secondly to their master vampire. A master vampire has control over an area, usually including a city, and it is their responsibility to govern the vampires within that area.
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: Vampires consider themselves superior to all other supernatural beings, and frequently consider lycanthropes to be part of their assets.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Sunlight, holy water (in high enough volumes), silver bullets (where the heart is completely destroyed), stake through the heart and fire are all deadly to vampires.
| | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Cannot control those who refuse to meet their eyes, and are incapacitated in the presence of a true believer with a holy object (such as a Christian with a crucifix, Jew with a Star of David, etc). Cannot enter sunlight and all but the most powerful vampires are unable to wake during daylight hours.
| | SOCIAL STATUS: Due to the acknowledgement of vampires and lycanthropes existence by humans, vampires are well-known within normal society. However, as many still believe vampires to be monsters and as many violent crimes are still perpetrated by vampires and lycanthropes, these supernatural beings are generally forced to exist on the fringe of normal society.
| | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: As vampires still require living blood, interactions are divided between those that are enamored of vampires and happy to donate to the undead, and the majority of the population which treats vampires as a curiosity or as a threat.
| | VAMPIRE BLOOD: Required for the eternal binding of a master vampire's servant. Generally not shared as drinking a vampire's blood forges a strong metaphysical link between the donating vampire and the recipient, and is required in the changing of a human into a vampire.
| | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN THE TWILIGHT SERIES
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Stephenie Meyer
| YEAR CREATED:
2005
| NATIONALITY:
American
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Pale, purplish shadows under eyes, extremely attractive, golden to black eyes in those surviving on a "vegetarian" diet, red to black eyes in those on a traditional vampire diet, they tend to sparkle in sunlight. Vampires are described as breathtakingly beautiful, a trait which helps them lure in their prey.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Extreme speed, strength and hyper-aware senses. Some also have additional talents such as foresight, control over others' emotions, tracking , ability to see the future,etc
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Crave the blood of humans, but can survive off a diet of animal blood (although the thirst for blood is constantly present, even in satiation). Only needs to feed every couple of weeks.
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Requires being bitten by a vampire and injected with vampire venom. The venom then works its way through the human body, causing cellular changes throughout the body over usually a three day period. Incredibly painful.
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: As vampires are still a secret from the general populace, most vampires are solitary or in small wandering hunting groups or covens. As a result, only one political power exists within the vampire world, those which police vampire existence to ensure that the secret is kept. These police, called the Volturi, are not without corruption and are by no means a benign force.
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: Very few other supernatural beings are mentioned within the series, with the exception of werewolves.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: The only way to kill a vampire is to completely tear it to pieces and then burn the remains. As vampire flesh is very strong and the skin basically impenetrable, only vampire and werewolf teeth are able to pierce the skin.
| | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Become very conspicuous under sunlight (however are not damaged by it). Only truly vulnerable to attack by other vampires or by werewolves.
| | SOCIAL STATUS: As vampires still exist as a secret from humankind, the majority of vampires have little or no social status, and survive simply off what they are able to steal off their prey. This excludes the Cullen family, who abstain from drinking human blood and thus are able to live within normal society. However, as they do not age, their is a limited time which they can exist in any one place before needing to move on to prevent suspicion.
| | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Traditional vampires view humans purely as a food source and generally as beneath their notice otherwise. The Cullens vary from this in that they form some transient relationships with the humans around them, but due to the natural instincts of humans generally do not form strong friendships.
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| | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN The World of Darkness
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
White Wolf | YEAR CREATED:
1991 | NATIONALITY:
American | | | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Various, but generally pale, sometimes hideous, sometimes beautiful, depending on what lineage the vampire is from. | | | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Various and dependent on lineage. | | | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: At will. Humans preferable, animals less nutritious. Subsiding on a "vegetarian" diet for any length of time will leave a weakened vampire. | | | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Get your blood drained, drink vampire blood. Let sit for a few hours. | | | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Numerous. One organization attempts to "set the rules" but counter-organizations abound. Ultimately, territories are ruled by force. | | | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: Hates werewolves, ambivalent about other species | | | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Decapitation, dismemberment, sunlight | | | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Sunlight, true faith, wooden stakes (cause paralysis) and guillotines | | | SOCIAL STATUS: Often the eminence grise, or power behind the throne in human politics; necessary to keep the secret. | | | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Many servants, most who are kept in the dark about the nature of their employer. | | | VAMPIRE BLOOD: Intoxicating and binding. Both humans and vampires who drink it become increasingly enthralled to its source. Effects on humans vary, but ghouls are created this way and can become very powerful. Vampires make other vampires drink it as a way to ensure fealty. | | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN I, Vampire
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Michael Romkey
| YEAR CREATED:
1990
| NATIONALITY:
American
| | | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Slightly pale when needing to feed but flushed in appearance when recently fed. Slim/slender build, flawless skin. | | | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Superhuman strength, speed and reflexes. Various psychic abilities including, telepathy, telekinesis, pyrokinesis, hypnotic suggestion. Rapid cellular regeneration which is also the source of their youth. | | | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: About a pint of fresh human blood is required about once every two weeks. Unless physically injured then need for blood is immediate. Older vampires need blood even less often, about once a month. Vampires must consume food as well, but they do not need to eat as often as humans. Three to four meals per week meets all their nutritional needs. | | | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: The vampires saliva carries a retrovirus that is capable of rewriting a person's DNA completely altering every cell in their body effectively turning the person into a new species. It takes three bites, one every two weeks after which the immune system can no longer fight off the virus and the transformation begins. | | | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Some vampire societies have a kind of High Council of Elders who create laws and advise those within their group. Others have a more Medieval rule of law with a Vampire Lord and Lieutenants beneath him/her. Social structures vary greatly in the vampire community the world over. | | | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: In Romkey's novels vampires are the only supernatural beings mentioned. | | | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Decapitation, Incineration, Vampires can be killed if the physical damage is terrible enough. But their ability to rapidly regenerate allows them to survive extreme amounts of physical trauma. | | | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Vampires can be incinerated by sunlight, but are capable of using their telekinesis to shield themselves from the sun's rays with the proper training. | | | SOCIAL STATUS: Vampires can have a Master/Fledgling relationship with someone they turned, but this only lasts until the fledgling vampire is deemed capable of surviving without supervision. Older vampires are often of higher social status than younger vampires. Intellectual or accomplished vampires are also of higher status than vampires who are more inclined to accumulation of material possessions or pursuits of physical pleasure. Vampires who kill humans are considered to be outcasts from polite vampire society and are often killed whenever the opportunity presents itself. | | | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Some vampires seek to assist humanity behind the scenes using their psychic abilities to plant ideas in the minds of world leaders for the greater good. Other vampires seeks to gain power and subvert governments for their own ends. Vampires can easily pass for human and commonly associate with humans both socially and professionally. | | | VAMPIRE BLOOD: Vampire blood lacks hemoglobin and must be derived from human blood. Vampire blood also carries the retrovirus that can turn a human into a vampire. | | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN Interview with the Vampire (and the rest of theThe Vampire Chronicles)Chronicles
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Anne Rice
| YEAR CREATED:
1976
| NATIONALITY:
American
From the South
(Louisiana)
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Translucent pale skin, glassy eyes, glassy fingernails. Ominous and striking.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Usually: strength, glamour. Some vampires can fly, read minds, control minds, start fires, play musical instruments.
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Decreases as they age. Younger vamps need constant blood. Ancient vamps can go without if necessary. Animal blood can be used but tastes bad and isn't as satisfying.
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Drain the mortal of blood to the point of death, then allow them to drink from a vampire.
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Tend to live in small covens. Age and strength are a factor, but there is no distinct general hierarchy except within the individual coven.
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: Curiosity and interest.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Fire, dismemberment, sunlight.
| | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Loneliness, sunlight, fire, stronger vampires. It depends on age. Certain vampires are strong enough to go out into sunlight and will only get "tanned" which helps them mingle with humans at night.
| | SOCIAL STATUS: Generally aristocratic. Usually very wealthy and successful. Rarely there are poorly made vampires that are animal-like.
| | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Some do not, some do.
| | VAMPIRE BLOOD: They are very full of it, and it can have a healing and a maddening effect on humans.
| | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY in Vampire Academy
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Richelle Mead | YEAR CREATED:
2007
| NATIONALITY:
| | | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Moroi-Pale Skin, extremely thin; Dhampirs-vary in skin color--some tan some pale--, most female dhampirs are thin like Moroi--unlike Rose, who is the main character--males are usually muscular Strigoi-Extremely pale, purplish shadows under eyes | | | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Acute senses, Moroi and Strigoi have better sense than dhampirs, who have senses only a little better than a human. | | | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Moroi have to drink human blood, for that they have feeders--people who volunteer to be bitten--or, like Lissa did when they have no feeders, they can drink the blood of dhampirs also, like dhampirs, they must eat human food. Strigoi gain strength when they drink Moroi blood, but they can also drink blood from dhampirs and humans. Dhampirs have the same diet as humans. They don't need blood, since their just half vampire. | | | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: For humans to become vampires they must be bitten and have their blood drained by a Strigoi. | | | | | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN:IN The Undead Series | | 
AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Mary Janice Davidson
| YEAR CREATED:
| NATIONALITY: American
| | | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Cool to the touch | | | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Super strength Betsy can go out in the sun when all others cant and she can read Sinclairs mind during sex. | | | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: They need to feed off of humans, but the humans need to find the next best thing to taking blood. They take sex. Feeding mostly takes place during sex or they can go out and place a memory or idea in the persons head that they feed off of. | | | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: An enzyme in their spit transmitted when bitten. | | | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Betsy and Sinclair are Vampire Queen and King. Everyone must pay their respects. Betsy really doesn't want to be the Queen and wants her old life back. | | | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: There are Werewolves (Whyndham's) and the occasional Fairy (only one short story). | | | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Steak through the heart, being out in the sun for long periods of time, Betsy's half sister, Laura daughter of the Devil, has weapons made of Hell-fire that will turn a vampire into ash (everyone accept Betsy). | | | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Shoes, clothes, alcohol | | | | | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Humans don't know they exist, only ones are the ones that share the house with Betsy; Mark, Jess, Toni, Jess's boyfriend Nick, Betsy's parents and the Ant (step-mom) | | | | | | VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY IN BUFFY/ANGEL
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AUTHOR/CREATOR:
Joss Whedon
| YEAR CREATED:
1992(movie)/1997(TV)
| NATIONALITY:
American (set in Sunnydale, CA)
| | PHYSICAL TRAITS: Pale and "room-temperature."room-temperature. Older vampires grow more bestial.
| | SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES: Super strong and fast, enhanced reflexes and senses, rapid healing. Vampires are stronger in 'beast-face' than human form.
| | SUSTENANCE/FEEDING: Sleep in a hidden spot during the day, food is blood. Most vampires can consume regular food and drink but gain no sustenance from it. intoxicants like drugs and alcohol work on vampires, but it takes considerably more to affect them and the effects wear off faster.
| | BECOMING A VAMPIRE: Vampire must drain some your blood and the victim must drink some of the vampire's blood. Transformation takes a few days.
| | VAMPIRE POLITICS: Older vampires are more powerful. The vampire who transformed one generally has superiority over it.
| | INTERACTION WITH OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS: There are many supernatural creatures. Among the Demon population, Vampires are considered lower forms. Vampires fall in the middle somewhere in terms of strength and power.
| | HOW TO KILL A VAMPIRE: Wooden stakes. Direct sunlight. Holy water injected/ingested. Beheading. Fire. Vampires explode into dust when destroyed.
| | | VAMPIRE VULNERABILITIES: Holy Symbols and Holy Water burn to the touch. Direct sunlight burns, but indirect sunlight does not seem to be much of a problem. Vampires do not have any particular susceptibility to magic except spells that affect one's soul since vampires have none. | | SOCIAL STATUS: A few humans and the government know of the existence of "sub-terrestrials'sub-terrestrials or supernatural beings. There is a single "Slayer"Slayer (and later, multiple "Slayers")Slayers) with an extensive support network of "Watchers"Watchers who iss primarily tasked with killing vampires, but who will kill any supernatural threat to the world if needed. Vampires sometimes maintain a human legal identity for the purposes of dealing with bureaucracy.
| | | INTERACTION WITH HUMANS: Vampires are generally evil, but in some few cases they do interact with humans as friends/partners. The general populace is kept ignorant (and seems to be content to remain ignorant) of the existence of the supernatural. | | VAMPIRE BLOOD: Has no special properties except in transformation (see above).
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