VelvetViolet
Adventurer
This is a conversion of the Mystaran Nosferatu, based on a previous 3.0 conversion. Criticism welcome.
NOSFERATU, MYSTARAN (TEMPLATE)
The nosferatu is a powerful and fearsome undead creature strongly resembling the vampire. Contrary to its dark cousin, the nosferatu neither drains levels nor fears sunlight. Common people often fear it, although some nosferatu are not evil. The nosferatu is the victim of a dark fate, torn between pain, thirst, and disgust. Just like its cousin, it hungers for blood, but it does occasionally show compassion.
One must be very observant to recognize the nosferatu for what it truly is. It can easily pass among mortals since it does not show any obvious clues to its true nature. It appears monstrous only when it attacks. Like its cousin, however, Nosferatu fails to cast either a shadow or a reflection in a mirror.
Nosferatu are usually a character of some importance in the region (a dashing nobleman, a reclusive wizard, the laird of a domain, etc.). Nosferatu do not necessarily dwell in morbid cemetaries and tombs. They thirst for the blood of the living and stay close to them.
Nosferatu tend to spend less time thinking and more time acting relative to the other long-lived undead. They also feel at ease among unsuspecting mortals. They often change identities as the living pass on and the nosferatu must maintain its activity among the newcomers. Clever disguises to modify the nosferatu’s apparent age or to impersonate progeny remain common tactics. If all else fails, they disappear for a decade or so.
Evil nosferatu act more like standard vampires, loving to torture and prey upon humans. Good-aligned nosferatu exist more as unfortunate victims, driven by an overpowering need.
CREATING A MYSTARAN NOSFERATU
“Mystaran Nosferatu” is an acquired template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the “base creature”).
A nosferatu uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to undead (augmented humanoid or monstrous humanoid). Do not recalculate base attack bonus, saves, or skill points. Size is unchanged.
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future Hit Dice to d12s.
Speed: Same as the base creature. If the base creature has a swim speed, the nosferatu retains the ability to swim and is not vulnerable to immersion in running water (see below).
Armor Class: The base creature’s natural armor bonus improves by +6.
Attack: A nosferatu retains all the attacks of the base creature and also gains a bite attack if it didn’t already have one. If the base creature can use weapons, the nosferatu retains this ability. A creature with natural weapons retains those natural weapons. A nosferatu fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack or its primary natural weapon (if it has any). A nosferatu armed with a weapon uses its bite or a weapon, as it desires.
Full Attack: A nosferatu fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack (see above) or its natural weapons (if it has any). If armed with a weapon, it usually uses the weapon as its primary attack along with a bite or other natural weapon as a natural secondary attack.
Damage: Nosferatu have bite attacks. If the base creature does not have this attack form, use the appropriate damage value from the table below according to the nosferatu’s size. Creatures that have other kinds of natural weapons retain their old damage values or use the appropriate value from the table below, whichever is better.
Special Attacks: A nosferatu retains all the special attacks of the base creature and gains those described below. Saves have a DC of 10 + 1/2 nosferatu’s HD + nosferatu’s Charisma modifier unless noted otherwise.
Blood Drain (Ex): A nosferatu can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. It if pins the foe, it drains blood, dealing 1 point of Constitution damage each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful attack, the nosferatu gains 5 temporary hit points.
Children of the Night (Su): Nosferatu command the lesser creatures of the world and once per day can call forth servitors as a standard action. They can call a pack of 3d6 wolves, a pack of 4d8 dire rats, during the day a flock of 5d10 ravens, or during the night a swarm of 10d10 bats. These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the nosferatu for up to 1 hour.
Create Spawn (Su): A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by the nosferatu’s blood drain may rise as a nosferatu three days later, but only if the nosferatu wills it; the victim returns as a nosferatu spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a nosferatu if it had 5 or more HD. Such victims are under the domination of the master nosferatu until his death or he releases them.
The nosferatu may also preserve the alignment of the victim in this process or change it to better reflect his own. Good-aligned nosferatu will only create a spawn if the victim wills it (i.e. a lover). Evil-aligned nosferatu may preserve the good-aligned alignment of the victim to create even more torment. Such nosferatu usually seek to destroy themselves or cause the doom of their evil master.
At any given time a nosferatu may have enslaved spawn totaling no more than twice its own Hit Dice; any spawn it creates that would exceed this limit are created as free-willed nosferatus or nosferatu spawn. A nosferatu that is enslaved may create and enslave spawn of its own, so a master nosferatu can control a number of lesser nosferatus in this fashion. A nosferatu may voluntarily free an enslaved spawn in order to enslave a new spawn, but once freed, a nosferatu or nosferatu spawn cannot be enslaved again.
Domination (Su): A nosferatu can dominate anyone by looking into his eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the nosferatu must take a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the nosferatu targets must make a Will save or fall instantly under the nosferatu’s influence as though by a dominate person spell cast by a 12th-level sorcerer. The ability has a range of 30 feet.
Special Qualities: A nosferatu retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains those described below.
Alternate Form (Su): A nosferatu can assume the shape of a dire bat at night or a raven in daylight hours and the form of a dire wolf at any time as a standard action. This ability is similar to a polymorph self spell cast by a 12th-level sorcerer, except that the nosferatu can assume only one of the forms listed here. It can remain in that form until it assumes another or until the next sunrise.
Damage Reduction (Su): A nosferatu has damage reduction 10/silver and magic. A nosferatu’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Fast Healing (Ex): A nosferatu heals 5 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points or lower, a nosferatu automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, it rises to 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless and resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round.
Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, the nosferatu can assume gaseous form at will as the spell (caster level 5th), but it can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.
No Fear of Sunlight (Ex): In contrast to the vampire, a nosferatu has no fear of sunlight and can walk about at will during the day, but casts no shadow.
Resistances (Ex): A nosferatu has resistance to cold 10 and electricity 10.
Spider Climb (Ex): A nosferatu can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.
Turn Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu has +4 Turn Resistance.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +6, Dex +4, Int +2, Wis +2,Cha +4. As an undead creature, a nosferatu has no Constitution score.
Skills: Nosferatu have a +8 racial bonus to Bluff, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks. Otherwise same as the base creature.
Feats: Nosferatu gain Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, and Lightning Reflexes, assuming the base creature meets the prerequisites and doesn’t already have these feats.
Environment: Any, usually same as base creature.
Organization: Solitary, pair, gang (3–5), or troupe (1–2 plus 2–5 nosferatu spawn)
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +2.
Treasure: Double standard.
Alignment: Usually evil (any).
Advancement: By character class.
Level Adjustment: Same as the base creature +8.
NOSFERATU WEAKNESSES
For all their power, nosferatu have a number of weaknesses.
Repelling a Nosferatu
A nosferatu cannot tolerate the strong smell of garlic and will not enter an area laced with it. Nosferatu find mirrors and bright lights distasteful, since they cast no shadows and have no reflection in mirrors. However, neither mirrors nor bright lights nor holy symbols keep them at bay. They are also unaffected by holy water.
Nosferatu generally avoid running water, but can cross it if absolutely necessary. They are utterly unable to enter a home or other building unless invited in by someone with authority to do so. Once invited, nosferatu may freely come and go. Magical charm, disguise, or any other trickery used to obtain the invitation is enough to allow Nosferatu entrance to someone’s home. They may freely enter public places, since these are by definition open to all.
Blood of the Living
A nosferatu craves the blood of the living. It can go no more than a week without blood before pain begins to twist its body. The pain causes all of its ability scores to drop 1 point per day after the first week of fasting, down to a minimum of 9. It requires 9 points of Constitution damage of blood per week to avoid the pain. To recover each lost point of ability score due to the pain, Nosferatu requires another 1–4 points-worth of fresh blood.
Non-humanoid blood only serves to numb the pain for a day. It cannot restore lessened ability scores.
Slaying a Nosferatu
Simply reducing a nosferatu’s hit points to 0 or below incapacitates but does not destroy it. However certain attacks can slay a nosferatu.
Immersing a nosferatu in running water robs it of one-third of its hit points each round until it is destroyed at the end of the third round.
Driving a wooden stake through the nosferatu’s heart instantly slays the monster. However it returns to life if the stake is removed, unless the body is destroyed. One must behead the undead and stuff its mouth with dirt taken from hallowed burial grounds to seal its fate forever. The definition of “hallowed burial grounds” varies with the nosferatu’s own alignment, but it should be as far removed as possible.
Optional Qualities
There are many different versions of nosferatu since their appearance in the Karameikos Gazetteer. Below are some of those variant powers.
Permanent Domination (Su): In addition to the standard effects of the nosferatu gaze, the victim becomes susceptible to the nosferatu’s command for life, or until a remove curse or break enchantment spell is cast.
Animal Blood (Ex): The blood of animals will sustain the nosferatu indefinitely and cause no pain. This is a good variant for those who wish to have good-aligned nosferatu.
Fear of Sunlight (Ex): The nosferatu could suffer from the same fear of sunlight as vampires. They suffer from sunlight and are destroyed if they stay in it for more than two rounds.
Running Water (Ex): The nosferatu could be completely unable to cross running water, as a standard vampire.
NOSFERATU CHARACTERS
Nosferatus can have any alignment, so character classes retain their class abilities when they become nosferatu, unless they change to a new alignment that is incompatible with their class.
Clerics: Clerics lose the ability to turn undead but gain the ability to rebuke undead. This ability does not affect the nosferatu’s controller or any other nosferatu that the master controls.
Sorcerers and Wizards: These characters retain their class abilities, but if the character has a familiar other than a bat, rat, or raven, the link between them is broken and the familiar shuns its former companion. The character may summon another familiar, but it must be one of the three above choices.
CREDIT
The Mystaran Nosferatu originally appeared in the Basic Edition The Grand Duchy of Karameikos Gazetteer (© TSR/Wizards of the Coast, 1987) and is used without permission.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
Based on original material by Aaron Allston.
NOSFERATU SPAWN, MYSTARAN (TEMPLATE)
Nosferatu spawn are undead creatures that come into being when nosferatu slay mortals. Like their creators, nosferatu spawn remain bound to their coffins and to the soil of their graves.
Like their masters, nosferatu spawn are difficult to distinguish from base vampires — or mortals.
CREATING A MYSTARAN NOSFERATU SPAWN
“Mystaran Nosferatu Spawn” is a template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the “base creature”). A nosferatu spawn uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to undead (augmented humanoid or augmented monstrous humanoid).
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future hit dice to d12s.
Speed: Same as the base creature. If the base creature has a swim speed, the nosferatu spawn retains the ability to swim and is not vulnerable to immersion in running water (see below).
Armor Class: The base creature’s natural armor improves by +3.
Attack: A nosferatu spawn retains all the attacks of the base creature and also gains a bite attack if it didn’t already have one. If the base creature can use weapons, the nosferatu spawn retains this ability. A creature with natural weapons retains those natural weapons. A nosferatu spawn fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack or its primary natural weapon (if it has any). A nosferatu spawn armed with a weapon uses its bite or a weapon, as it desires.
Full Attack: A nosferatu spawn fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack (see above) or its natural weapons (if it has any). If armed with a weapon, it usually uses the weapon as its primary attack along with a bite or other natural weapon as a natural secondary attack.
Damage: Nosferatu spawn have bite attacks. If the base creature does not have this attack form, use the appropriate damage value from the table below according to the nosferatu spawn’s size. Creatures that have other kinds of natural weapons retain their old damage ratings or use the appropriate value from the table below, whichever is better.
Special Attacks: A nosferatu spawn retains all of the special attacks of the base creature and also gains those listed below. Saves have a DC of 10 +1/2 nosferatu spawn’s HD + nosferatu spawn’s Charisma modifier unless noted otherwise.
Blood Drain (Ex): A nosferatu spawn can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. If it pins the foe, it drains blood, dealing 1d4 points of permanent Constitution drain each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful drain attack, the nosferatu spawn gains 5 temporary hit pints.
Domination (Su): A nosferatu spawn can crush an opponent’s will just by looking onto his or her eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the nosferatu spawn must take a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the nosferatu spawn targets must succeed at a Will save or fall instantly under the nosferatu’s influence as though by a dominate person spell (caster level 5th). The ability has a range of 30 feet.
Special Qualities: A nosferatu spawn retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains those described below.
Damage Reduction (Su): A nosferatu spawn has damage reduction 5/silver. A nosferatu’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Fast Healing (Ex): A nosferatu spawn heals 2 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, it automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to 9 miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a nosferatu spawn forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, a nosferatu spawn is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then resumes healing at the rate of 2 hit points per round.
Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, a nosferatu spawn can assume gaseous form at will, as the spell (caster level 6th), but it can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.
No Fear of Sunlight (Ex): In contrast to the vampire, a nosferatu has no fear of sunlight and can walk about at will during the day, but casts no shadow.
Spider Climb (Ex): A nosferatu spawn can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.
Turn Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu spawn has +2 turn resistance.
Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu spawn has cold and electricity resistance 10.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +6, Dex +4, Int +2, Wis +2, Cha +4. As an undead creature, a nosferatu spawn has no Constitution score.
Skills: Nosferatu spawn receive a +4 racial bonus to Bluff, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks.
Feats: Nosferatu spawn gain Alertness, Improved Initiative, and Lightning Reflexes, assuming the base creature meets the prerequisites and doesn’t already have these feats.
Environment: Any, usually the same as the base creature
Organization: Solitary or pack (2-5)
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +1
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually evil (any)
Advancement: Same as the base creature
Level Adjustment: Same as the base creature +4
NOSFERATU WEAKNESSES
Nosferatu spawn have the same weaknesses as the nosferatu that spawned them and are vulnerable to attacks and effects that repel or slay nosferatus. For details, see the Mystaran Nosferatu entry.
SAMPLE MYSTARAN NOSFERATU SPAWN
This example uses a 1st-level human commoner as its base creature.
[TD="colspan: 2"]
Mystaran Nosferatu Spawn
[/TD]
[TD="colspan: 2"]
Medium Undead (Augmented Humanoid)
[/TD] COMBAT
The DC is 12 for the Will save to resist this nosferatu spawn’s domination gaze, and for the Fortitude save to remove a negative level.
NOSFERATU, MYSTARAN (TEMPLATE)
The nosferatu is a powerful and fearsome undead creature strongly resembling the vampire. Contrary to its dark cousin, the nosferatu neither drains levels nor fears sunlight. Common people often fear it, although some nosferatu are not evil. The nosferatu is the victim of a dark fate, torn between pain, thirst, and disgust. Just like its cousin, it hungers for blood, but it does occasionally show compassion.
One must be very observant to recognize the nosferatu for what it truly is. It can easily pass among mortals since it does not show any obvious clues to its true nature. It appears monstrous only when it attacks. Like its cousin, however, Nosferatu fails to cast either a shadow or a reflection in a mirror.
Nosferatu are usually a character of some importance in the region (a dashing nobleman, a reclusive wizard, the laird of a domain, etc.). Nosferatu do not necessarily dwell in morbid cemetaries and tombs. They thirst for the blood of the living and stay close to them.
Nosferatu tend to spend less time thinking and more time acting relative to the other long-lived undead. They also feel at ease among unsuspecting mortals. They often change identities as the living pass on and the nosferatu must maintain its activity among the newcomers. Clever disguises to modify the nosferatu’s apparent age or to impersonate progeny remain common tactics. If all else fails, they disappear for a decade or so.
Evil nosferatu act more like standard vampires, loving to torture and prey upon humans. Good-aligned nosferatu exist more as unfortunate victims, driven by an overpowering need.
CREATING A MYSTARAN NOSFERATU
“Mystaran Nosferatu” is an acquired template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the “base creature”).
A nosferatu uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to undead (augmented humanoid or monstrous humanoid). Do not recalculate base attack bonus, saves, or skill points. Size is unchanged.
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future Hit Dice to d12s.
Speed: Same as the base creature. If the base creature has a swim speed, the nosferatu retains the ability to swim and is not vulnerable to immersion in running water (see below).
Armor Class: The base creature’s natural armor bonus improves by +6.
Attack: A nosferatu retains all the attacks of the base creature and also gains a bite attack if it didn’t already have one. If the base creature can use weapons, the nosferatu retains this ability. A creature with natural weapons retains those natural weapons. A nosferatu fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack or its primary natural weapon (if it has any). A nosferatu armed with a weapon uses its bite or a weapon, as it desires.
Full Attack: A nosferatu fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack (see above) or its natural weapons (if it has any). If armed with a weapon, it usually uses the weapon as its primary attack along with a bite or other natural weapon as a natural secondary attack.
Damage: Nosferatu have bite attacks. If the base creature does not have this attack form, use the appropriate damage value from the table below according to the nosferatu’s size. Creatures that have other kinds of natural weapons retain their old damage values or use the appropriate value from the table below, whichever is better.
| Size | Damage |
| Fine | — |
| Diminutive | 1 |
| Tiny | 1d2 |
| Small | 1d3 |
| Medium | 1d4 |
| Large | 1d6 |
| Huge | 1d8 |
| Gargantuan | 2d6 |
| Colossal | 2d8 |
Blood Drain (Ex): A nosferatu can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. It if pins the foe, it drains blood, dealing 1 point of Constitution damage each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful attack, the nosferatu gains 5 temporary hit points.
Children of the Night (Su): Nosferatu command the lesser creatures of the world and once per day can call forth servitors as a standard action. They can call a pack of 3d6 wolves, a pack of 4d8 dire rats, during the day a flock of 5d10 ravens, or during the night a swarm of 10d10 bats. These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the nosferatu for up to 1 hour.
Create Spawn (Su): A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by the nosferatu’s blood drain may rise as a nosferatu three days later, but only if the nosferatu wills it; the victim returns as a nosferatu spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD and as a nosferatu if it had 5 or more HD. Such victims are under the domination of the master nosferatu until his death or he releases them.
The nosferatu may also preserve the alignment of the victim in this process or change it to better reflect his own. Good-aligned nosferatu will only create a spawn if the victim wills it (i.e. a lover). Evil-aligned nosferatu may preserve the good-aligned alignment of the victim to create even more torment. Such nosferatu usually seek to destroy themselves or cause the doom of their evil master.
At any given time a nosferatu may have enslaved spawn totaling no more than twice its own Hit Dice; any spawn it creates that would exceed this limit are created as free-willed nosferatus or nosferatu spawn. A nosferatu that is enslaved may create and enslave spawn of its own, so a master nosferatu can control a number of lesser nosferatus in this fashion. A nosferatu may voluntarily free an enslaved spawn in order to enslave a new spawn, but once freed, a nosferatu or nosferatu spawn cannot be enslaved again.
Domination (Su): A nosferatu can dominate anyone by looking into his eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the nosferatu must take a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the nosferatu targets must make a Will save or fall instantly under the nosferatu’s influence as though by a dominate person spell cast by a 12th-level sorcerer. The ability has a range of 30 feet.
Special Qualities: A nosferatu retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains those described below.
Alternate Form (Su): A nosferatu can assume the shape of a dire bat at night or a raven in daylight hours and the form of a dire wolf at any time as a standard action. This ability is similar to a polymorph self spell cast by a 12th-level sorcerer, except that the nosferatu can assume only one of the forms listed here. It can remain in that form until it assumes another or until the next sunrise.
Damage Reduction (Su): A nosferatu has damage reduction 10/silver and magic. A nosferatu’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Fast Healing (Ex): A nosferatu heals 5 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points or lower, a nosferatu automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a vampire forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, it rises to 1 hit point after 1 hour, then is no longer helpless and resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round.
Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, the nosferatu can assume gaseous form at will as the spell (caster level 5th), but it can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.
No Fear of Sunlight (Ex): In contrast to the vampire, a nosferatu has no fear of sunlight and can walk about at will during the day, but casts no shadow.
Resistances (Ex): A nosferatu has resistance to cold 10 and electricity 10.
Spider Climb (Ex): A nosferatu can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.
Turn Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu has +4 Turn Resistance.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +6, Dex +4, Int +2, Wis +2,Cha +4. As an undead creature, a nosferatu has no Constitution score.
Skills: Nosferatu have a +8 racial bonus to Bluff, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks. Otherwise same as the base creature.
Feats: Nosferatu gain Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, and Lightning Reflexes, assuming the base creature meets the prerequisites and doesn’t already have these feats.
Environment: Any, usually same as base creature.
Organization: Solitary, pair, gang (3–5), or troupe (1–2 plus 2–5 nosferatu spawn)
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +2.
Treasure: Double standard.
Alignment: Usually evil (any).
Advancement: By character class.
Level Adjustment: Same as the base creature +8.
NOSFERATU WEAKNESSES
For all their power, nosferatu have a number of weaknesses.
Repelling a Nosferatu
A nosferatu cannot tolerate the strong smell of garlic and will not enter an area laced with it. Nosferatu find mirrors and bright lights distasteful, since they cast no shadows and have no reflection in mirrors. However, neither mirrors nor bright lights nor holy symbols keep them at bay. They are also unaffected by holy water.
Nosferatu generally avoid running water, but can cross it if absolutely necessary. They are utterly unable to enter a home or other building unless invited in by someone with authority to do so. Once invited, nosferatu may freely come and go. Magical charm, disguise, or any other trickery used to obtain the invitation is enough to allow Nosferatu entrance to someone’s home. They may freely enter public places, since these are by definition open to all.
Blood of the Living
A nosferatu craves the blood of the living. It can go no more than a week without blood before pain begins to twist its body. The pain causes all of its ability scores to drop 1 point per day after the first week of fasting, down to a minimum of 9. It requires 9 points of Constitution damage of blood per week to avoid the pain. To recover each lost point of ability score due to the pain, Nosferatu requires another 1–4 points-worth of fresh blood.
Non-humanoid blood only serves to numb the pain for a day. It cannot restore lessened ability scores.
Slaying a Nosferatu
Simply reducing a nosferatu’s hit points to 0 or below incapacitates but does not destroy it. However certain attacks can slay a nosferatu.
Immersing a nosferatu in running water robs it of one-third of its hit points each round until it is destroyed at the end of the third round.
Driving a wooden stake through the nosferatu’s heart instantly slays the monster. However it returns to life if the stake is removed, unless the body is destroyed. One must behead the undead and stuff its mouth with dirt taken from hallowed burial grounds to seal its fate forever. The definition of “hallowed burial grounds” varies with the nosferatu’s own alignment, but it should be as far removed as possible.
Optional Qualities
There are many different versions of nosferatu since their appearance in the Karameikos Gazetteer. Below are some of those variant powers.
Permanent Domination (Su): In addition to the standard effects of the nosferatu gaze, the victim becomes susceptible to the nosferatu’s command for life, or until a remove curse or break enchantment spell is cast.
Animal Blood (Ex): The blood of animals will sustain the nosferatu indefinitely and cause no pain. This is a good variant for those who wish to have good-aligned nosferatu.
Fear of Sunlight (Ex): The nosferatu could suffer from the same fear of sunlight as vampires. They suffer from sunlight and are destroyed if they stay in it for more than two rounds.
Running Water (Ex): The nosferatu could be completely unable to cross running water, as a standard vampire.
NOSFERATU CHARACTERS
Nosferatus can have any alignment, so character classes retain their class abilities when they become nosferatu, unless they change to a new alignment that is incompatible with their class.
Clerics: Clerics lose the ability to turn undead but gain the ability to rebuke undead. This ability does not affect the nosferatu’s controller or any other nosferatu that the master controls.
Sorcerers and Wizards: These characters retain their class abilities, but if the character has a familiar other than a bat, rat, or raven, the link between them is broken and the familiar shuns its former companion. The character may summon another familiar, but it must be one of the three above choices.
CREDIT
The Mystaran Nosferatu originally appeared in the Basic Edition The Grand Duchy of Karameikos Gazetteer (© TSR/Wizards of the Coast, 1987) and is used without permission.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
Based on original material by Aaron Allston.
NOSFERATU SPAWN, MYSTARAN (TEMPLATE)
Nosferatu spawn are undead creatures that come into being when nosferatu slay mortals. Like their creators, nosferatu spawn remain bound to their coffins and to the soil of their graves.
Like their masters, nosferatu spawn are difficult to distinguish from base vampires — or mortals.
CREATING A MYSTARAN NOSFERATU SPAWN
“Mystaran Nosferatu Spawn” is a template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the “base creature”). A nosferatu spawn uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.
Size and Type: The creature’s type changes to undead (augmented humanoid or augmented monstrous humanoid).
Hit Dice: Increase all current and future hit dice to d12s.
Speed: Same as the base creature. If the base creature has a swim speed, the nosferatu spawn retains the ability to swim and is not vulnerable to immersion in running water (see below).
Armor Class: The base creature’s natural armor improves by +3.
Attack: A nosferatu spawn retains all the attacks of the base creature and also gains a bite attack if it didn’t already have one. If the base creature can use weapons, the nosferatu spawn retains this ability. A creature with natural weapons retains those natural weapons. A nosferatu spawn fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack or its primary natural weapon (if it has any). A nosferatu spawn armed with a weapon uses its bite or a weapon, as it desires.
Full Attack: A nosferatu spawn fighting without weapons uses either its bite attack (see above) or its natural weapons (if it has any). If armed with a weapon, it usually uses the weapon as its primary attack along with a bite or other natural weapon as a natural secondary attack.
Damage: Nosferatu spawn have bite attacks. If the base creature does not have this attack form, use the appropriate damage value from the table below according to the nosferatu spawn’s size. Creatures that have other kinds of natural weapons retain their old damage ratings or use the appropriate value from the table below, whichever is better.
| Size | Damage |
| Fine | — |
| Diminutive | 1 |
| Tiny | 1d2 |
| Small | 1d3 |
| Medium | 1d4 |
| Large | 1d6 |
| Huge | 1d8 |
| Gargantuan | 2d6 |
| Colossal | 2d8 |
Blood Drain (Ex): A nosferatu spawn can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. If it pins the foe, it drains blood, dealing 1d4 points of permanent Constitution drain each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful drain attack, the nosferatu spawn gains 5 temporary hit pints.
Domination (Su): A nosferatu spawn can crush an opponent’s will just by looking onto his or her eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack, except that the nosferatu spawn must take a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the nosferatu spawn targets must succeed at a Will save or fall instantly under the nosferatu’s influence as though by a dominate person spell (caster level 5th). The ability has a range of 30 feet.
Special Qualities: A nosferatu spawn retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains those described below.
Damage Reduction (Su): A nosferatu spawn has damage reduction 5/silver. A nosferatu’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Fast Healing (Ex): A nosferatu spawn heals 2 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points in combat, it automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to 9 miles in 2 hours.) Any additional damage dealt to a nosferatu spawn forced into gaseous form has no effect. Once at rest in its coffin, a nosferatu spawn is helpless. It regains 1 hit point after 1 hour, then resumes healing at the rate of 2 hit points per round.
Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, a nosferatu spawn can assume gaseous form at will, as the spell (caster level 6th), but it can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.
No Fear of Sunlight (Ex): In contrast to the vampire, a nosferatu has no fear of sunlight and can walk about at will during the day, but casts no shadow.
Spider Climb (Ex): A nosferatu spawn can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.
Turn Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu spawn has +2 turn resistance.
Resistance (Ex): A nosferatu spawn has cold and electricity resistance 10.
Abilities: Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +6, Dex +4, Int +2, Wis +2, Cha +4. As an undead creature, a nosferatu spawn has no Constitution score.
Skills: Nosferatu spawn receive a +4 racial bonus to Bluff, Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks.
Feats: Nosferatu spawn gain Alertness, Improved Initiative, and Lightning Reflexes, assuming the base creature meets the prerequisites and doesn’t already have these feats.
Environment: Any, usually the same as the base creature
Organization: Solitary or pack (2-5)
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +1
Treasure: Standard
Alignment: Usually evil (any)
Advancement: Same as the base creature
Level Adjustment: Same as the base creature +4
NOSFERATU WEAKNESSES
Nosferatu spawn have the same weaknesses as the nosferatu that spawned them and are vulnerable to attacks and effects that repel or slay nosferatus. For details, see the Mystaran Nosferatu entry.
SAMPLE MYSTARAN NOSFERATU SPAWN
This example uses a 1st-level human commoner as its base creature.
| Hit Dice: | 1d12+3 (9 hp) |
| Initiative: | +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative) |
| Speed: | 30 ft. (6 squares) |
| Armor Class: | 15 (+2 Dex, +3 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 13 |
| Base Attack/Grapple: | +0/+3 |
| Attack: | Bite +3 melee (1d6+4) |
| Full Attack: | Bite +3 melee (1d6+4) |
| Space/Reach: | 5 ft./5 ft. |
| Special Attacks: | Blood drain, domination |
| Special Qualities: | +2 turn resistance, damage reduction 5/silver, darkvision 60 ft., fast healing 2, gaseous form, no fear of sunlight, nosferatu weaknesses, resistance to cold 10 and electricity 10, spider climb, undead traits |
| Saves: | Fort +0, Ref +4, Will +1 |
| Abilities: | Str 16, Dex 14, Con —, Int 13, Wis 13, Cha 14 |
| Skills: | Bluff +6, Climb +5, Craft or Profession (any one) +8, Hide +6, Jump +5, Listen +9, Move Silently +6, Search +5, Sense Motive +5, Spot +9 |
| Feats: | AlertnessB, Improved InitiativeB, Lightning ReflexesB, Skill Focus (selected Craft or Profession skill), Toughness |
| Environment: | Any |
| Organization: | Solitary or pack (2–5) |
| Challenge Rating: | 1 |
| Treasure: | Standard |
| Alignment: | Usually evil (any) |
| Advancement: | By character class |
| Level Adjustment: | +4 |
The DC is 12 for the Will save to resist this nosferatu spawn’s domination gaze, and for the Fortitude save to remove a negative level.
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