[News] Vampiric Lore Dump

Hello everyone, Corintio here!

I was preparing a document to send to our level designer and when I finished it I thought: "Hmmm I think players would love to know about it too!"
So here's some....

Vampire Facts in Kalyskah

There are many legends across the world about what a vampire is. Our game has specific lore. This chapter will list the facts, and then say how do they work in game mechanics:

Vampires…

are Undead: True. They don’t have to breathe and their heart doesn’t beat, unless they use the Blood Buff. In this case they will become stronger.

drink blood: True. Vampires drink blood or any other fluid that can relate to the life of a living being. So they can also restore their strength by mating with someone living.

have red glowing eyes: It depends if they are thirsty. Only Kalyskah, the first Vampire, has red eyes. Across the generations, their eyes became more human. Nowadays, their eyes glow only slightly when thirsty but retain their natural human colour.

can have babies: False. The only way to create a new vampire is by giving vampire blood to someone before killing them. That person must receive their blood for three days. Otherwise the human will either die, lose their mind and become a ghoul, or become an incomplete vampire called Nosferatu.

are weak to sunlight: Not completely false. A vampire that has fed recently, has nothing to fear from the sun, although their blood boils with the use of any of their Dark Gifts. But if they are thirsty, then their skin will burn slowly.

dies if a wooden stake pierces their hearts: False. To kill a vampire one must put a stake in their heart AND cut off their head. The heart concentrates all the blood that a vampire is carrying. If they are pierced with a wooden stake, they will bleed until there is no more blood in their system, and fall into a slumber. They will rest like this until they can regain magical energy. To truly kill a vampire you must remove their head.

can turn into a bat: True. Vampires have many abilities that they call Dark Gifts.

need to be invited before they can get into a home: True. Kalyskah cannot break into a house that she wasn’t invited into. But once an invitation has been given, they cannot be rescinded. She can walk into public buildings as she pleases.

are weak to garlic: True. If they are too close to garlic, it will cause their Blood Points to be drained. But garlic cannot kill a vampire. It will just make them Thirsty.

don’t cast a reflection in a mirror: True, but only when they are thirsty. But Kalyskah and some other exceptions can never see their reflection.

cannot cross running water: True. The only way they can cross a river is if they are inside of a coffin.

sleep inside of a coffin: True. Vampires are attached to death, if they sleep in a common bed, they will be more vulnerable to attacks and won’t rest easily.

are weak to holy symbols: Not completely false. When Kalyskah was cursed to vampirism, she made a pact with the spirits linked to the Storm of Death. In doing so, the Storm of Life turned its back on her. Therefore, Kalyskah doesn’t have any problem with the symbols of any other Storm but the Storm of Life. The symbols related to death usually make her stronger.

Strengths:

Undead Nature: As a vampire, Kalyskah no longer requires breath, making her immune to suffocation or drowning. She can operate indefinitely underwater or in areas with no breathable air, such as toxic environments, without experiencing harm.

Blood Drinking: Vampires sustain themselves by consuming blood, but they can also feed on other life-related fluids. Kalyskah can restore her strength through intimate contact with living beings, particularly through mating, but that’s the same as having a dessert instead of a full meal.

Dark Gifts: Kalyskah and other vampires have a wide range of supernatural abilities, collectively known as Dark Gifts. These powers allow them to manipulate their surroundings, transform into creatures like bats, enhance their physical prowess, or even mesmerise their prey. Each vampire’s gifts are unique and grow stronger with age and experience, and as the first vampire, Kalyskah can learn them all as long as she takes a sip of the blood of a vampire who has an ability that she doesn’t.

The Pretend: When well fed, Kalyskah can simulate biological functions, making her skin warm to the touch and restoring her eyes to their natural human colour. This allows her to blend in with humans more easily.

Procreation: Vampires cannot reproduce biologically, but they can create new vampires through a complex ritual. By feeding a human their blood for three consecutive days, Kalyskah can turn people into a new vampire. Even if they are already dead. Failing this process risks creating mindless ghouls or the incomplete vampires known as Nosferatu.

Entering Public Places: While private homes require an invitation, Kalyskah can enter public buildings, taverns, or places of business at will. Supernatural lairs, including those of vampires or other creatures, are not bound by the invitation rule, giving her free reign over many territories.

Restoration after Slumber: After being staked and entering a comatose state, vampires like Kalyskah will eventually recover once they are no longer bleeding. In this state of slumber, their bodies heal from wounds and restore lost energy. They can remain in this suspended state for centuries, awaiting the right moment to rise again.

No Fall Damage: Kalyskah is immune to fall damage. Her supernatural body can withstand the force of falling from any height without sustaining injury.

Coffin Strength: Coffins not only allow vampires to rest fully but can also bypass wards. A vampire placed inside a coffin can be moved across rivers or warded areas that would otherwise block their movement. We can use this in the level design by making her enter a coffin and then activate something to make the coffin move across a river or another type of threshold.

Flight Mastery: Kalyskah can fly by either hovering for a few seconds early in the game or, later, transforming into a swarm and flying over longer distances. This ability grants her incredible mobility and dungeons at the endgame should have challenges that portray this. So we might add places with heavy winds that can force the bats into a certain direction and she needs to find ways to go across, or maybe make that finding where she needs to fly to is part of the puzzle.

Enhanced Healing: Kalyskah's regenerative abilities are extraordinary. She can restore even missing limbs, and if she is killed, she will reform at the last safe place she rested, usually a coffin. This makes her virtually immortal, as she can recover from almost any injury or death.

Weaknesses:

Sunlight: Vampires are not completely vulnerable to sunlight if they are well fed, but their blood boils when using their Dark Gifts, making any use of blood points more expensive. For well-nourished vampires, exposure to sunlight is uncomfortable but not lethal. However, if they are Thirsty, their skin will burn slowly, causing severe damage over time. Prolonged exposure while in this weakened state can be fatal.

Wooden Stake: Vampires are highly resistant to physical harm, but a wooden stake through the heart remains a critical weakness. A stake will not kill them outright but will drain their blood, and when there’s no more blood to drain, it locks them in a comatose state. They will remain in this slumber until they are decapitated, which is the only sure way to end a vampire's existence. Notice that as the first vampire, Kalyskah resurrects if she dies.

Garlic: While garlic is not lethal, it severely impacts a vampire's abilities. Being near garlic locks the vampire’s ability to use blood points. For Kalyskah, this means that abilities like flying, healing or enhancing her physical attributes are locked.

Reflection: Vampires do not cast reflections when they are Thirsty, or may present a blurry reflection. However, Kalyskah, as the first vampire, has never seen her reflection, regardless of her state. Her inability to witness her own image is a constant bother for her, and causes her to automatically break mirrors if the player stays close to them for too long.

Coffins: Vampires are inherently tied to death, making coffins their natural place of rest. If they attempt to sleep in a common bed, they become vulnerable to attacks and experience restless sleep, hindering their recovery. A coffin grants them the full restoration, allowing Kalyskah to heal a percentage of her damage by each hour that she sleeps in a coffin.

Holy Symbols: Vampires like Kalyskah are only vulnerable to holy symbols associated with the Storm of Life or divine beings of purity and goodness. These symbols burn her upon contact and repel her if wielded with faith. However, symbols related to death or darker forces often strengthen her, aligning with her connection to the Storm of Death.

Dead Man’s Blood: The blood of the dead is poisonous to Kalyskah. It slows her movements. This substance is often used by vampire hunters as a means to subdue and capture vampires without killing them outright. In game terms, when she has dead man’s blood in her system she won’t be able to sprint and she’ll be moving and coughing as if she’s sick.

Red Glowing Eyes: Kalyskah's eyes are permanently red due to her status as the first vampire. In her descendants, this trait has faded over time.

Ways to Ward Against Vampires:

Sunstones: Vampires are repelled by sunstones or enchanted stones linked to the Storm of Light. These rare yellow Iathori Crystals radiate a protective aura that weakens and deters vampires from approaching. They are highly sought after by those who hunt or protect against vampiric incursions since when touching these crystals, Kalyskah also takes damage.

Garlic: Garlic renders vampiric powers unreliable. When near garlic, Kalyskah's ability to use Blood-based powers, such as flight, throw dark projectiles or enhanced strength, becomes locked, making her vulnerable. The scent of garlic interferes with the flow of blood energy, preventing her from activating her Dark Gifts and it may also cause allergic reactions.

Belladonna: This mystical plant wards off vampires. When worn as a charm, belladonna provides personal protection, keeping vampires at bay. If a line or circle of belladonna is placed on the ground, Kalyskah cannot cross it, as it creates an invisible barrier imbued with the essence of life.

Invitation: Kalyskah must be invited into private human homes before she can cross the threshold. Once an invitation is extended, it cannot be revoked as long as the person who offered the invite lives, even if the household changes ownership. This restriction, however, does not apply to vampire households or the lairs of other supernatural entities, where she can enter freely without the need for an invitation.

Holy Symbols: Symbols related to the Storm of Life or good deities can ward off vampires, especially when wielded by someone with true faith. Kalyskah cannot touch, look at, or pass through areas blessed by these symbols. They burn her skin and repel her with divine force, preventing her from entering consecrated spaces.

Running Water:   Kalyskah cannot cross a river or stream unless inside a coffin, she cannot even cross bridges. Notice that this only affects pure, flowing water, which acts as a natural ward against her and other vampires. She can still cross either dirty or stationary water. However, as she grows stronger later in the game, she gains the ability to vanquish this weakness only taking some damage when she does it.