Vampires
Vampires wield enormous strength and command natural forms, yet remain bound by invitation, daylight, native earth, sacrament, and specific rites of destruction.
Story so far
From Count Dracula, the Weird Sisters, and Lucy Westenra, Van Helsing builds a systematic account of vampires. They do not die naturally, grow cunning with time, command the dead and lesser creatures, manipulate storm and fog, become bat, wolf, dust, or elemental smallness, and move with the strength of many men.
Their freedom is governed by law. They cannot enter a place without invitation, lose active power in daylight, require native hallowed earth, and recoil from garlic, crucifix, and Sacred Host. Stake, beheading, garlic, or a sacred bullet can release or destroy them under the proper conditions.
Appearance
A vampire may preserve human beauty while showing pallor, red lips, sharp canine teeth, no reflection or shadow, unnatural bodily change, and renewed youth after feeding.
Role
Vampire lore becomes the hunters' tactical framework, defining both the scale of Dracula's advantage and the narrow conditions under which he can be trapped.
Relationships
Sources — 2 recorded facts, by chapter
- The Un-Dead preserve human beauty while leaving graves at night to drink blood and reproduce their curse through victims.
- Vampires wield enormous strength and command natural forms, yet remain bound by invitation, daylight, native earth, sacrament, and specific rites of destruction.