How to cure a vampire?

[Chris633]

I have a player, who in his background, had his family killed by vampires and his sister turned. He wants to go on a quest to turn her back to being human. He's also a paladin.

So option one is that it's just not possible. So he either he has to accept she is undead. Otherwise he or another PC will have to kill her.

Option 2 is that it is possible. So I was hoping for ideas on fun and creative ways of going about it.

Thanks!

 

[Shiroiken]

I would go with Option 2, but give it an easy way and a hard way.

Easy way: kill her then resurrect her. Straightforward, but can still be very challenging. Potential downsides: she may take it personally (hold it against him for killing her), time as a vampire might have changed her perspective (making her evil), and/or she chooses not to come back (preferring the afterlife).

Hard way: a Mcguffin can be used to bring her back. This would have a quests to: learn what it is, learn where it is, go get it, then face her. This time would allow her (or her master) to grow in strength, possibly turning more and more people (and the McGuffin probably only fixes 1 person) and solidify their position.

The first option is best for an ongoing campaign, as it should only take a session or two. The second options is good for the beginning of a campaign, since it could easily be the focus of the game. Another choice would be to give both options to the characters, forcing them to choose.

 

[hbarsquared]

Campaign-long quest. At first, just chasing rumors for several levels. Then, finding a legitimate sage with a couple ideas requiring MacGuffins. Finally, after collecting everything needed, consider whether the sister is even worth redeeming at that point. And/or, have it conflict with theain campaign itself. Must make a choice: save the world or save his sister.

 

[Fanaelialae]

Definitely give him a chance to cure his sister. You don't have to make it easy, but this is something the player is requesting for his character and it isn't unreasonable, so it ought to be more fun to allow it than not. I'd have the cure involve, at a minimum, tracking down and slaying the vampire that turned his sister. It's classic.

You can give the player a hard choice, but I wouldn't recommend it be between saving his sister and saving the world. Assuming that his sister lives in the world, that's a non-choice. Also, if the player is clever and thinks of a way around the hard choice, don't force the issue. Reward the player by letting him save his sister and the day. You should never railroad a player into a no-win situation.

 

[MarkB]

One important thing to distinguish for this sort of scenario is: What is a vampire, in relation to the original person?

There are a fair few options, in literature and on screen, with some of the most common being:

• Another being entirely, but possessing the memory - and thus personality-traits - of the original, with the original person's soul having departed.
• As above, but with the original person's soul trapped within, unable to act.
• The same person, but twisted to evil, their conscience and empathy removed during the transformation.
• The same person, personality intact, but afflicted with irresistible cravings that may turn them to evil.
• The same person, personality intact, but mentally bound to their maker, who will endeavour to corrupt them to evil by them time they attain independence.

How you handle this question will affect whether the character's sister is still an active being in vampiric form, or a dead loved one whose animated corpse is a McGuffin to be reclaimed, and that in turn will affect how the characters interact with her.

Note that this is something you ought to know, or at least have some views on, as DM, but it isn't necessarily something the PCs will have full - or correct - knowledge of.

 

[psiconauta_retro]

Shouldn't it be possible to cure her vampirism by slaying the Sire (the vampire that embraced her)? Or that is the way to deal with lycanthropy? I can't Remember...

To locate and put down her vampire master could be an awesome quest to get started. Then they would need to find someone who could cast magic powerful enough to lift the curse (this could be anything from super easy to extra hard depending on your world and the character's level).

 

[MarkB]

Shouldn't it be possible to cure her vampirism by slaying the Sire (the vampire that embraced her)? Or that is the way to deal with lycanthropy? I can't Remember...

That's an option in some vampire stories, but it often comes with a strict time limit before the effect becomes permanent.

 

[aramis erak]

I have a player, who in his background, had his family killed by vampires and his sister turned. He wants to go on a quest to turn her back to being human. He's also a paladin.

So option one is that it's just not possible. So he either he has to accept she is undead. Otherwise he or another PC will have to kill her.

Option 2 is that it is possible. So I was hoping for ideas on fun and creative ways of going about it.

Thanks!

it's explicit that raise dead works once the vampire is slain. A wish can do it without slaying the vampire.

http://dndadventurersleague.org/faq-update-5192015/

 

[Chris633]

Thanks for all the ideas! It helped get my wheels turning.

A little more background. I just sprung on the PC that his sister is still alive after 15yrs last night. He knew she had been turned, but had though she's been destroyed. One of my other PCs is a warlock with an archfey patron. The PCs went to the feywild and visited her to see if she could lend them aid on their current adventure. The paladin also asked her if she knew how to cure a vampire. She said she didn't as she doesn't deal in such magics, but recommended he petition the Queen of Air and Darkness. In my game, she is an archfey who rules the Winter Court.

So now I am figuring that the Queen will first request some favor in exchange for her help. Then the PCs will need to find a way to get the paladin's sister to the feywild and to the Winter Court. Because the Queen is twisted, she'll say that the vampire must be killed be someone who loves her (the paladin). She'll say it's because only when the vampire is killed with love can the human soul be brought back intact or something like that. Then will the Queen bring her back to life. So essentially I am doing a play off of the kill & resurrect idea.

I'm debating if I should add a McGuffin of some sort that is part of the "ritual."

 

[Chris633]

I love this. I'm going to think on this and see how I want to plat it. It will also help me add flavor to how I play her.

One important thing to distinguish for this sort of scenario is: What is a vampire, in relation to the original person?

There are a fair few options, in literature and on screen, with some of the most common being:

• Another being entirely, but possessing the memory - and thus personality-traits - of the original, with the original person's soul having departed.
• As above, but with the original person's soul trapped within, unable to act.
• The same person, but twisted to evil, their conscience and empathy removed during the transformation.
• The same person, personality intact, but afflicted with irresistible cravings that may turn them to evil.
• The same person, personality intact, but mentally bound to their maker, who will endeavour to corrupt them to evil by them time they attain independence.

How you handle this question will affect whether the character's sister is still an active being in vampiric form, or a dead loved one whose animated corpse is a McGuffin to be reclaimed, and that in turn will affect how the characters interact with her.

Note that this is something you ought to know, or at least have some views on, as DM, but it isn't necessarily something the PCs will have full - or correct - knowledge of.