Dhampirs
Dhampirs are the children of vampires and mortals, usually conceived during a vampire's first decade of unlife when they retain the fertility of the living. Other dhampirs are born from pregnant women afflicted with vampirism. Regardless of origin, dhampirs make up a hidden minority in Amalthea's population, coming from all common races of humanoids. Dhampirs conceived unintentionally tend to be abandoned, or raised in loveless homes. Those born to mortals are seen as a daily reminder of their mother's trauma, while those born to vampires are treated as inferior half-breeds that carry the weaknesses of their mortal fathers. Occasionally, a dhampir is born of the loving union between a mortal and a vampire, or what passes for love to a vampire, anyway. While such dhampirs are spared abuse and neglect in their youth, they are frequently groomed into assassins, necromancers, and political pawns for vampire-led crime families and undead cults. Unlike true vampires, dhampirs don't need blood to survive, although they still have cravings. While those who reject their undead heritage learn to control these urges, others fully accept their nature and attack hapless victims much as full vampires do, sometimes even in open daylight. Very rarely, a dhampir tries to find a middle ground by seeking out consensual partners to feed on, which rarely ends well, but may occasionally result in eccentric partnerships. Dhampirs are not truebreeding, and the children of two dhampirs are almost always regular members of their mortal parents' race (or a regular hybrid of the two), although they may possess a superficially vampiric appearance, such as red eyes and pallid skin. Exceptions may exist, although second generation dhampirs are so rare as to be believed impossible.
Dhampirs and Vampires
It is believed that Vanthus, an Elder God turned Great Old One, is responsible for cursing the world with vampirism, ghoul fever, and other similar afflictions, compelling those infected with an insatiable hunger for the blood or flesh of the living. Many such beings can furthermore create spawn through the act of feeding. Undeath is an abomination in the Sybilite faith, and undead are anathema to the legal systems of most of the civilized world. Only in the pirate capital of Qasala and certain tribal states of Talandra are they spared death without trial, but even then nonconsensual feeding and the creation of spawn remain highly illegal, and punishable by death. As a result, vampires in Amalthea hide their identities from public knowledge using a combination of magic, mundane disguises, and political leverage. Powerful vampires are known to carve out niches in urban underworlds, or rule over cults in remote rural communities. Dhampirs are spared execution in civilized society, as they are living mortals with uncorrupted souls, not undead. Nevertheless, their association with vampires makes them ostracized. Dhampirs can pass for ordinary mortals much more easily than full vampires, so they are frequently employed as agents for their vampiric sires. This makes all dhampirs automatically suspicious to the eyes of regular mortals. It is already difficult enough to believe that a dhampir can control their innate bloodlust; a dhampir that's well put together must be a pawn in some undead conspiracy, because where else would their urges be sated? As a result, dhampirs whose heritage is known are driven to the fringes of society, which in turn makes many of them desperate enough to turn to crime, including service to true vampires. Most dhampirs attempt to hide their true nature by inventing a fake heritage to explain their appearance, such as having a drow grandparent. While such lies may fool laypeople, they rarely stand intense scrutiny or magical detection, and these dhampirs must further avoid medical treatment in hospitals and churches lest their negative energy affinity reveals the truth.Dhampir House Rules
- Dhampirs don’t have their own subtype; for the purposes of effects targeting creatures by type (such as a ranger’s favored enemy and bane weapons), they count as both humanoids of their living parent’s subtype, and undead. However, they have a +2 bonus on saving throws against any effects that target undead.
- Dhampirs gain the following racial trait:
- Vampiric Fangs: Dhampirs have a bite attack that deals 1d4 damage, and they gain Blood Thirst as a bonus feat (ignoring the Blood sphere prerequisite).
