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Alignment: Dark Arts
Lifespan: Roughly 4000 years Size: Height from 5'4" to 6'11" Experience Level: Intermediate+ |
Talents: Illusion Magic, Energy Work, Artistic Abilities
Disposition: Noble, Polite, Inquisitive, Protective Suggested Offerings: Bloodstone, Garnet, Red Wine, Roses, Dragon's Blood, Precious Jewelry, Studying Together |
WARNING: The following information on Illustrian Vampires may be deeply disturbing to some, including non-graphic mentions of blood consumption. They maintain a problematic relationship with humankind on their world - any knowledge of Vampires as a whole can give you a clue as to what that relationship is. As a conjurer, it's not my place to dictate how they run their society, but to simply observe and be plain with you about what you are getting yourself into if you were to choose one as a companion. All Vampires I conjure swear oaths in order to keep their companion safe - please see the "In Companionship" portion of this page for more details. Please keep in mind that Illustrian Vampires are very dark in alignment, but overall I find that they are wonderful, rewarding companions regardless.
Illustrian Vampires are sanguine vampires who originate from a realm in which they rule over all. There are two classes in their world - the upper class, or the Vampires, who literally feed on the blood of the lower class, or the humans. The Illustrians don't shy away from this fact, and are usually open to debates challenging their stance on the matter. The way they see it, they are literally a separate species from humans - being creatures that live much longer lives and have a proclivity for magical ability. That, combined with their actual need to consume blood, makes them feel as obligated to human blood as many humans feel obligated to cow meat. Despite their carnivorous tendencies, the Illustrians are actually quite polite, their lifestyle being most similar to that of our Victorian England, albeit with a somewhat morbid Gothic twist.
Biology
Illustrians are born, not made, meaning that from birth they exhibit traits that are found in all Vampires of their realm. They are ethereally beautiful, having smooth, unblemished skin of any shade of brown or beige. They have fangs where their top and bottom canine teeth might be, and slightly pointed ears. Otherwise, their features appear to be generally human, albeit with a slightly taller height average. Their physiology differs, however, in that they are both extremely strong and require very little energy to function properly. They have a slow metabolism, meaning they do not need to eat very frequently, and without even showing a great deal of musculature they each easily have the ability to overpower five men if necessary. They are also extremely fast and cunning, making then ideal apex predators.
They consume blood as their primary source of nutrients, and although they do not necessarily need to consume human blood, it's considered culturally to be the most convenient and nutritious source of food. They also can and will eat regular food for pleasure and flavor, but it is considered to be unhealthy and extraneous, much like eating junk food. They don't need to consume blood very often - typically a pint or two once a week will be enough to keep a Vampire at peak condition for that entire week. When hungry, they are weak and aggressive. Upper class Vampires are typically waited upon, and don't need to go hunting. Lower class vampires, if unable to obtain human blood, may go hunting for animal blood instead, allowing some animalistic instincts to take over for a while when they are not within the bounds of polite society.
Their aging is not dissimilar to that of humans, growing extremely quickly over the course of about thirty years from infant to sexually mature adult. Once they reach maturity, they maintain an appearance of youth consistently until about the very end of their lifespan. When they become ill or injured enough to threaten their lives, they often enter a state of accelerated aging. When they pass, they do not burst into flames or turn into dust - they simply are. These vampires are not undead and they do not have the ability to rise from the dead after they meet their natural end. However, they sleep only about once every three or so months, and they will remain asleep for about a week at a time, making their heartrates slow considerably and appear to be so faint that they are barely there - however, this is the closest to sleeping in coffins and rising from the grave they will get.
Illustrian Vampires, beyond their physical prowess, also have innate magical power. Their magic is very visual, often revolving around illusions, glamours, and energetic manipulation. Their magic tends to draw directly from their own power or the power of their planet itself, and it cannot be done secretly, as it tends to be flashy and creates a lot of light. It draws directly from natural elements, and often manifests as fire, but more infrequently can manifest as other more abstract elements, such as air, ice, light, and shadow. They can also use this magic for combative purposes, using it for shields or shooting it out in beams of light and elements to attack an enemy. Weapons made from pure magic are less common, and an Illustrian Vampire is more likely to use an weapon enchanted to be infused with a specific element. It's important to note that while Illustrians all tend to have the ability to manipulate energy and perform magic, very few of them actually take the time and education needed to actually perform or master it, and those that do are often employed as Sorcerers and are given a stipend to continue their research and magical experimentation.
They consume blood as their primary source of nutrients, and although they do not necessarily need to consume human blood, it's considered culturally to be the most convenient and nutritious source of food. They also can and will eat regular food for pleasure and flavor, but it is considered to be unhealthy and extraneous, much like eating junk food. They don't need to consume blood very often - typically a pint or two once a week will be enough to keep a Vampire at peak condition for that entire week. When hungry, they are weak and aggressive. Upper class Vampires are typically waited upon, and don't need to go hunting. Lower class vampires, if unable to obtain human blood, may go hunting for animal blood instead, allowing some animalistic instincts to take over for a while when they are not within the bounds of polite society.
Their aging is not dissimilar to that of humans, growing extremely quickly over the course of about thirty years from infant to sexually mature adult. Once they reach maturity, they maintain an appearance of youth consistently until about the very end of their lifespan. When they become ill or injured enough to threaten their lives, they often enter a state of accelerated aging. When they pass, they do not burst into flames or turn into dust - they simply are. These vampires are not undead and they do not have the ability to rise from the dead after they meet their natural end. However, they sleep only about once every three or so months, and they will remain asleep for about a week at a time, making their heartrates slow considerably and appear to be so faint that they are barely there - however, this is the closest to sleeping in coffins and rising from the grave they will get.
Illustrian Vampires, beyond their physical prowess, also have innate magical power. Their magic is very visual, often revolving around illusions, glamours, and energetic manipulation. Their magic tends to draw directly from their own power or the power of their planet itself, and it cannot be done secretly, as it tends to be flashy and creates a lot of light. It draws directly from natural elements, and often manifests as fire, but more infrequently can manifest as other more abstract elements, such as air, ice, light, and shadow. They can also use this magic for combative purposes, using it for shields or shooting it out in beams of light and elements to attack an enemy. Weapons made from pure magic are less common, and an Illustrian Vampire is more likely to use an weapon enchanted to be infused with a specific element. It's important to note that while Illustrians all tend to have the ability to manipulate energy and perform magic, very few of them actually take the time and education needed to actually perform or master it, and those that do are often employed as Sorcerers and are given a stipend to continue their research and magical experimentation.
Disposition & Manifestation
Illustrian Vampires are a species whose entire presentations are very based on class, manners, and appearances. As if they were all nobility in the Victorian era, they wear very modest and formal dress at all times, and even the most eccentric individual acts with a great deal of politeness, especially when it comes to strangers, including using formal titles where applicable. They hold a great deal of respect for each other, and will almost never insult each other directly to their faces. Their manner of speech is nearly poetic, and they don't mind long pauses in conversation for the other person to consider and place their words. Mostly, Illustrians tend to live in sprawling estates where they primarily employ other Illustrians to work on their estate, whether that is performing court magic and upkeeping wards, caring for their animals and children, cleaning the house, organizing their wealth, cooking, creating custom and personalized art, or otherwise. The typical Illustrian household is busy and bustling, and is often considered home to over a hundred people at one time.
Illustrians tend to be both primarily studious and industrious, being hard workers who keep their heads down when it comes to their betters, and simultaneously being strong-willed individuals who often have very clear goals for themselves. Even from a young age, young Illustrians are encouraged to explore their interests and talents, and nothing is considered to be "grunt work" or beneath anyone. Even service jobs like cooking and cleaning are considered essential, skilled, and important work, and individuals working these jobs are equally valued by the society as a necessary career, even in comparison to medical professionals and overseers. That being said, there are some tiers of work quality, such as supervisors for all cleaners in one household. But overall, Illustrians are encouraged to do what they are good at and what makes them feel satisfied and happy, and if they feel a need to change careers late in life, the people around them are typically more than happy to support them in that endeavour.
That being said, Illustrians don't tend to be all love and light. Because of their manner of speech, they are masters of verbal sparring. They also spend a great deal of their resources into managing the human population they rule over respectively, which is certainly a darker and scarier portion of their culture. However, they tend to be somewhat sedentary, rarely going on formal "hunts" unless they wish to feel an adrenaline rush, and when they do so they will likely be chasing after wildlife game rather than humans. While they love their sheltered and lavish homes, they also have a healthy appreciation for nature, which is reflected heavily in their art and poetry.
They can be a bit stuffy and upright in their personality, but overall, they're curious individuals who love learning about the world and who have very open minds about outsiders. Additionally, despite their very Victorian cultural feel, they don't have a strict view of the gender binary and tend to be very fluid in gendered presentation themselves. To a practitioner with a skilled third eye, they may frequently appear as fullbody manifestations. However, when manifesting more subtly, they may appear as various perfumed scents, touches or light pressure on your neck or shoulders, and red orbs. However, individual Vampires have varied manifestations.
Illustrians tend to be both primarily studious and industrious, being hard workers who keep their heads down when it comes to their betters, and simultaneously being strong-willed individuals who often have very clear goals for themselves. Even from a young age, young Illustrians are encouraged to explore their interests and talents, and nothing is considered to be "grunt work" or beneath anyone. Even service jobs like cooking and cleaning are considered essential, skilled, and important work, and individuals working these jobs are equally valued by the society as a necessary career, even in comparison to medical professionals and overseers. That being said, there are some tiers of work quality, such as supervisors for all cleaners in one household. But overall, Illustrians are encouraged to do what they are good at and what makes them feel satisfied and happy, and if they feel a need to change careers late in life, the people around them are typically more than happy to support them in that endeavour.
That being said, Illustrians don't tend to be all love and light. Because of their manner of speech, they are masters of verbal sparring. They also spend a great deal of their resources into managing the human population they rule over respectively, which is certainly a darker and scarier portion of their culture. However, they tend to be somewhat sedentary, rarely going on formal "hunts" unless they wish to feel an adrenaline rush, and when they do so they will likely be chasing after wildlife game rather than humans. While they love their sheltered and lavish homes, they also have a healthy appreciation for nature, which is reflected heavily in their art and poetry.
They can be a bit stuffy and upright in their personality, but overall, they're curious individuals who love learning about the world and who have very open minds about outsiders. Additionally, despite their very Victorian cultural feel, they don't have a strict view of the gender binary and tend to be very fluid in gendered presentation themselves. To a practitioner with a skilled third eye, they may frequently appear as fullbody manifestations. However, when manifesting more subtly, they may appear as various perfumed scents, touches or light pressure on your neck or shoulders, and red orbs. However, individual Vampires have varied manifestations.
Social Structure
The Illustrian government is most similar to an aristocracy. They have no single monarch. Instead, Dukes (which can be either gender) rule over great swaths of land, and within that stretch land are a great collection of large estates under them, ruled by people of various levels of nobility. Most of the Vampires living within these areas all live in the homes of various noble figures and may have titles themselves, winding all the way down to Marquis, Earls, and Barons (these are only rough translations to match our own nobility structure on Earth). The Dukes annually convene to make large decisions regarding items like trade, land disputes, and cross-border marriage contracts. While there are some conflicts occasionally, the Dukes do go to great lengths to ensure that war is an absolute last resort, believing every life to be precious.
Primarily, the Illustrian Vampire conjures from this shop are from two Dukedoms - one that is landlocked and feels very much like rural England in landscape and environment, and one that is on a seaport and feels slightly more like a coastal Italian area in architecture and city structure. Over time, more Dukedoms may be introduced to the conjuring pool, but for now I have a stable relationship with these two and I am very happy with them.
Finally, humans live in small villages that act and function mostly freely, despite being obligated to feed the Vampiric ruling class. Interestingly, the Illustrians go to extreme lengths to ensure that the humans do not perish from their feedings, and never participate in slaughters or tithes in the form of murder. In some cases the lower-class Illustrians have developed friendly relationships with the humans of their realm as well, finding them to be "pleasant creatures." In exchange for the service of the humans, who mostly keep to themselves, the Illustrians provide them with everything they need, often donating their leftover food to the human class, paying carpenters to fix up or build homes in human settlements if necessary, or providing doctors in cases of young humans becoming sick or injured. Take no illusion that the human settlements are in any way comparable to the lavish homes of the Illustrians - the setup is certainly problematic. On the other hand, they are not treated entirely like unintelligent cattle, and most days are allowed to lead their lives regularly.
Primarily, the Illustrian Vampire conjures from this shop are from two Dukedoms - one that is landlocked and feels very much like rural England in landscape and environment, and one that is on a seaport and feels slightly more like a coastal Italian area in architecture and city structure. Over time, more Dukedoms may be introduced to the conjuring pool, but for now I have a stable relationship with these two and I am very happy with them.
Finally, humans live in small villages that act and function mostly freely, despite being obligated to feed the Vampiric ruling class. Interestingly, the Illustrians go to extreme lengths to ensure that the humans do not perish from their feedings, and never participate in slaughters or tithes in the form of murder. In some cases the lower-class Illustrians have developed friendly relationships with the humans of their realm as well, finding them to be "pleasant creatures." In exchange for the service of the humans, who mostly keep to themselves, the Illustrians provide them with everything they need, often donating their leftover food to the human class, paying carpenters to fix up or build homes in human settlements if necessary, or providing doctors in cases of young humans becoming sick or injured. Take no illusion that the human settlements are in any way comparable to the lavish homes of the Illustrians - the setup is certainly problematic. On the other hand, they are not treated entirely like unintelligent cattle, and most days are allowed to lead their lives regularly.
In Companionship
One first concern anybody might have about Illustrian Vampires as a spirit companion is their attitude regarding humans and blood, so I will begin this section by clarifying those items. First and foremost, any Vampire companion conjured from The Dragon's Library has been sworn to not harm their companion, nor to encourage, expect, or demand that their companion offer blood or self-harm for the purpose of offerings. In fact, if they do not actively discourage these things from occurring, their binding will be immediately broken and they will be banished from this realm. As their companion, you should never by any means be obligated to provide any spirit food, drink, or shelter, as they are full adults from realms where they are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves. Offerings of blood to any Vampire spirit should only ever be obtained in a way that is safe for the human companion, such as offering menstrual blood or animal blood bought from a butcher or (frozen) from a supermarket. However, blood offerings to your Vampire companion is extremely, outrageously unnecessary and is probably too messy and questionably sanitary to be worth the effort - especially where a simple offering of red wine will do. In your infosheet provided from The Dragon's Library, you'll be provided with many safe and easily obtained offering alternatives that your Vampire friend will like just as much, if not more!
Secondly, Illustrian Vampires have been made to understand that they are not to treat their human companions like they treat the humans in their world. They're very amenable to this, partially because they do not believe the humans in their world have any magical ability - but our ability to come in contact with the Illustrians at all indicates that we have some sort of functional magic running through our veins, even if it is not as potent as theirs. Those who are talented at it enjoy astral travel as much as we do, and are excited to have their own personal guides through a separate realm. Another reason they don't mind treating their human companions as equals is because they have no physical way to obtain blood from us - making it unreasonable to consider us "cattle." If you have any personal struggle with any of the philosophy of the way the Illustrian Vampire world functions, I recommend you either do not pursue one as a companion, or, if you are open-minded and eager to debate with them, send me an email and request a visit. I'd be happy to send you a trusted Illustrian diplomat to chat with.
Beyond their relationship between humans and their native food source, Illustrians are level-headed, thought-provoking individuals with a great deal of knowledge and magic to bestow upon their companions. Many of them are interested in teacher-student relationships, or more casual relationships, extending into platonic and romantic engagements. They're happy to help their companion cast any glamours or learn about the merits of elemental magic, if they're proficient in it. Even those who aren't proficient at physical magic are wonderful at general energy work and sensing, and they'd be happy to work with their companion on visualization exercises or astral travel if need be. They're happy to show any human companion around their home, with the caveat that they must accompany and protect you at all times during any visits. Additionally, they're likely to be very protective when visiting on our side, as well - if you need someone to walk home with you late at night or ensure you're safe in an awkward situation, an Illustrian is likely to be your best bet.
Overall, bringing an Illustrian Vampire into your life is likely to bring art, class, and studiousness into your family. Any Illustrian companion will be excited to learn about our technology and way of life, and they don't mind relaxing philosophical discussions or deeper exploration of magic.
Secondly, Illustrian Vampires have been made to understand that they are not to treat their human companions like they treat the humans in their world. They're very amenable to this, partially because they do not believe the humans in their world have any magical ability - but our ability to come in contact with the Illustrians at all indicates that we have some sort of functional magic running through our veins, even if it is not as potent as theirs. Those who are talented at it enjoy astral travel as much as we do, and are excited to have their own personal guides through a separate realm. Another reason they don't mind treating their human companions as equals is because they have no physical way to obtain blood from us - making it unreasonable to consider us "cattle." If you have any personal struggle with any of the philosophy of the way the Illustrian Vampire world functions, I recommend you either do not pursue one as a companion, or, if you are open-minded and eager to debate with them, send me an email and request a visit. I'd be happy to send you a trusted Illustrian diplomat to chat with.
Beyond their relationship between humans and their native food source, Illustrians are level-headed, thought-provoking individuals with a great deal of knowledge and magic to bestow upon their companions. Many of them are interested in teacher-student relationships, or more casual relationships, extending into platonic and romantic engagements. They're happy to help their companion cast any glamours or learn about the merits of elemental magic, if they're proficient in it. Even those who aren't proficient at physical magic are wonderful at general energy work and sensing, and they'd be happy to work with their companion on visualization exercises or astral travel if need be. They're happy to show any human companion around their home, with the caveat that they must accompany and protect you at all times during any visits. Additionally, they're likely to be very protective when visiting on our side, as well - if you need someone to walk home with you late at night or ensure you're safe in an awkward situation, an Illustrian is likely to be your best bet.
Overall, bringing an Illustrian Vampire into your life is likely to bring art, class, and studiousness into your family. Any Illustrian companion will be excited to learn about our technology and way of life, and they don't mind relaxing philosophical discussions or deeper exploration of magic.
Please note that all The Dragon's Library Encyclopedia entries are based on my own personal UPG and may not reflect yours.
Illustrian Vampires, in this incarnation, are exclusive to The Dragon's Library.
Illustrian Vampires, in this incarnation, are exclusive to The Dragon's Library.