But... They're Vampires

[Rissan4ever]

I have some questions about WFB vampires:

1) Presumably, most Warhammer battles happen during the day. What keeps the Vampire Counts from bursting into flame?
2) If the VC's can only fight at night, how do they ever go on extended campaigns?
3) Traditional vampires are virtually indestructible unless you attack one of their vulnerabilities (fire, sunlight, stake through the heart, decapitation). How does GW account for this? Is it assumed that the opponent's entire army is carrying anti-vampire weaponry?

I'm not making fun of the Vampire Counts; I actually think they're pretty cool. But I'm left scratching my head about these questions.

[Mazelf]

actually, GW vamps sparkle when they go out in the sun and they dont usually go out on campaign because they are too busy falling madly in love with teenage girls from Talabenheim

[plasticaddict]

actually, gw vamps sparkle when they go out in the sun and they dont usually go out on campaign because they are too busy falling madly in love with teenage girls from talabenheim

rofl

[Rissan4ever]

actually, GW vamps sparkle when they go out in the sun and they dont usually go out on campaign because they are too busy falling madly in love with teenage girls from Talabenheim

LOL! That answers my questions nicely. Thanks.

[eldargal]

1) Who says they don't fight at night? Empire men and whatnot might need sleep but vampries and undead don't, I bet they attack at night to maximise their advantage. Failing that, parasols, clouds of bats blocking hte sun, magic clouds etc.;)
2) See above
3) Vampires are hard to kill on the battlefield, I assume this reflects the difficult in decapitating a preternaturally vast barsud/ho trying to rib your genitals off. Even then permanent death is more difficult, they can be resurrected if their follows get their body/ashes/bits of. Vlad von Carstein died a hell of a lot in his campaign, for lulz, and came back the next day and the people that killed him turned up dead.

[Mr.Pickelz]

Agreed with Eldargal, Plus you don't have an army of vampires like in Underworld, you have a zombie army led by vampires.;)

[gcsmith]

Firstly who says they follow traditional vampire lore??
Secondly novels ive read show vampire either being at night, or creating darkness.
Secondly their troops can attack in day anyway so yes they can go on extended campaigns while they are in their carts.
And as i say since they may not follow traditional lore they may or may not have certain difficulties

[Wildeybeast]

1) Who says they don't fight at night? Empire men and whatnot might need sleep but vampries and undead don't, I bet they attack at night to maximise their advantage. Failing that, parasols, clouds of bats blocking hte sun, magic clouds etc.;)
2) See above
3) Vampires are hard to kill on the battlefield, I assume this reflects the difficult in decapitating a preternaturally vast barsud/ho trying to rib your genitals off. Even then permanent death is more difficult, they can be resurrected if their follows get their body/ashes/bits of. Vlad von Carstein died a hell of a lot in his campaign, for lulz, and came back the next day and the people that killed him turned up dead.

The BL book Runefang mentions them creating darkness and Nagash does something similar with beetles in the first Nagash book. As I understand it, the standard killing methods of fire, decapitation and stakes are recommended by the church of Sigmar. As for Vald, he kept coming back because of a magic ring, rather than normal vampire abilities. He was finally killed off after the greatest thief in the old world was paid to sneak into his camp during the day and nick the ring whilst Vald rested in his coffin. Even then, it took the Grand Theogonist chucking himself and Vlad off the walls of Altdorf onto lots of spikes to finish him once and for all.

[Wolfrahm]

Sunblock SPF-nucleur block.Its all the rave around the covens.

[MaltonNecromancer]

Allow me to present the 1st Law of Games Workshop gaming.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RuleOfCool

And it's corollary, the 2nd Law of Games Workshop gaming.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MST3KMantra

That is all.

Why don't they catch fire in the sun? No reason is necessary. They just don't. they're on the battlefield in the day because it's cool; here endeth the discussion.
How do they ever go on extended campaigns? No reason is necessary. They just don't. they're on the battlefield in the day because it's cool; here endeth the discussion.


Why does anything happen in 40K/WHFB? Because it's awesome.

Now, what you've experienced is called Fridge Logic.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FridgeLogic

This has happened because 40K and WHFB and utterly motherfrakking bonkers. Seriously, they are nonsense of the highest order. Chainsaw swords? What about kickback? Massive things on top of helmets? Why would they willing wear a lever that an enemy could use to break their neck? Bio-titans and giants? What about the square-cube law? Steam-powered horses? How do the legs adjust for rough terrain without a central computer to handle all the gyroscopic information? And so on. If you want to nitpick over the stuff that makes no sense, then my friend, you'll be a while...

...

Oh, and as an unrelated side note, in the vast majority of folklore, vampires are unaffected by sunlight. The whole vampires dying in the sun was codified by the 1926 film "Nosferatu". This, ironically, makes "Twilight" more accurate than many other vampire stories. Just a shame it promotes abusive boyfriends...

[Scion_of_Terra]

The 7th ed VC codex covered the sunlight question fairly well. To quote, "One source of debate is how sensitive a Vampire is to sunlight. In truth, this varies with age and lineage. The sun weakens them, and may even kill lesser Vampires. The greatest Vampires can move abroad during daylight, though they do not favor it. To achieve its full power, such as in battle, a Vampire summons dark clouds to swathe the sky and swarms of bats to obsucre sunlight."

[mstingray]

Oh, and as an unrelated side note, in the vast majority of folklore, vampires are unaffected by sunlight. The whole vampires dying in the sun was codified by the 1926 film "Nosferatu". This, ironically, makes "Twilight" more accurate than many other vampire stories. Just a shame it promotes abusive boyfriends...

That made me laugh but end up with a bitter feeling in my stomach

[eldargal]

Funnily enough this point is addressed directly in the Vampire section of the bestiary in the new Army Book (having a GW staff member have a crush on you pays off, got an army book and Coven Throne yesterday:rolleyes:):

Ever since Nagash cursed their kind centuries ago, Vampires have have loathed the sun for it weakens them. Thus, when they march to war the sky darkens as the Vampires summon great storm clouds and swarms of bats to blot out the hated daylight.
The exact of effect of the sun varies, in the superb Ulrika the Vampire novel 'Bloodborn' I've just finished, slight exposure results in blisters and burning while full exposure kills them.

[Rissan4ever]

Thanks for clearing that up, Eldargal. I thought it would be something like that. IF I ever get into WFB (which is unlikely, given its distinct lack of both radios and lasers), the goth-boy teenager who still resides somewhere in the back of my mid-30's brain won't be able to resist the allure of the fanged masters of undeath.

[wittdooley]

Funnily enough this point is addressed directly in the Vampire section of the bestiary in the new Army Book (having a GW staff member have a crush on you pays off, got an army book and Coven Throne yesterday:rolleyes:):

The exact of effect of the sun varies, in the superb Ulrika the Vampire novel 'Bloodborn' I've just finished, slight exposure results in blisters and burning while full exposure kills them.

Is Ulrika a character in the VC book?!?!

[eldargal]

I wish.:rolleyes: Nope, she is just in Bloodsborn and Bloodforged (which I have not read yet). Oh and a third book, Bloodsworn is due out next June, yay!

I <3 Ulrika:
http://www.games-workshop.com/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m1780018a_60100281092_Bloodforged_873x627.jpg
Scary thing is, she looks just like me. Not that you can tell from my awful Avatar picture(edit: changed that hehe Edit: changed it back). Same nose, same shaped face, same bone structure, same mouth, same shade of lipstick, same figure more or less.

[Cherub]

Your going to get that outfit now aren't you eldargirl lol

[eldargal]

Yes sir.

[Brakkart]

Scary thing is, she looks just like me. Not that you can tell from my awful Avatar picture(edit: changed that hehe Edit: changed it back). Same nose, same shaped face, same bone structure, same mouth, same shade of lipstick, same figure more or less.

Does she look so much like you in this one :D :

http://www.blacklibrary.com/Images/Product/DefaultBL/xlarge/Bloodsworn.jpg

Very much liking the ferocious Ulrika on the cover of the third book.

[eldargal]

Nope, and she doesn't look like me much on the first cover either, different nose.:rolleyes: I do like ferocious Ulrika also, though less keen on her new more masculine hairstyle. Of course now that I like the character so much I'm really worried they will go killing her off (again technically) after a few books. I am overprotective of GW female protagonists as they are so few in number.:(

Here is teh blurblet for Bloodsworn too:

Returning to Nuln after her adventures in Praag, Ulrika finds the Lahmian vampires preparing for war. Across the Old World, their rivals, the sinister von Carsteins, attack their strongholds and lead the witch hunters to their hidden lairs. Spurned by her sisters, Ulrika forms an uneasy alliance with the von Carsteins in a plot to destabilise the Empire by striking at its very heart – they plan nothing less than the assassination of Emperor Karl Franz. With enemies on all sides and the Empire in flames, Ulrika must decide whether her future will see her living among the humans, or as their enemy.

[Brakkart]

Nope, and she doesn't look like me much on the first cover either, different nose.:rolleyes: I do like ferocious Ulrika also, though less keen on her new more masculine hairstyle. Of course now that I like the character so much I'm really worried they will go killing her off (again technically) after a few books. I am overprotective of GW female protagonists as they are so few in number.:(

I wouldn't worry about them killing her off as she is apparently very popular and also she reappears in the Gotrek & Felix novels later on. The entire Ulrika trilogy takes place between the end of Vampireslayer and the start of Manslayer in that 20ish year period where G&F are off around the world seeking something... anything... that is actually capable of killing the Slayer. During this period they apparently visit Araby, the Southlands, Lustria, Cathay, the Ogre Kingdoms and Ind too before returning to the Old World in Orcslayer. I believe some of the stories in the upcoming Anthology will be set during these travels.

[eldargal]

That is good to know.:)

[DarkDesigner]

Oh, and as an unrelated side note, in the vast majority of folklore, vampires are unaffected by sunlight. The whole vampires dying in the sun was codified by the 1926 film "Nosferatu". This, ironically, makes "Twilight" more accurate than many other vampire stories. Just a shame it promotes abusive boyfriends...

Just thought I'd back this up... not the twilight thing... but in Bram Stoker's Dracula (OK I fess up, I've not read it, but have seen the Francis Ford Coppola film...) it's mentioned that Vampires can roam around during the day, but they're 'low powered'. So every time your single empire foot soldier manages to kill a vampire lord... yeah that was during the day.

[Chris*ta]

Funnily enough this point is addressed directly in the Vampire section of the bestiary in the new Army Book (having a GW staff member have a crush on you pays off, got an army book and Coven Throne yesterday:rolleyes:):

Glad to see you're using your powers for good there, Eldargal :D


I <3 Ulrika:
Scary thing is, she looks just like me. Not that you can tell from my awful Avatar picture(edit: changed that hehe Edit: changed it back). Same nose, same shaped face, same bone structure, same mouth, same shade of lipstick, same figure more or less.

Sounds like it's BOLS cosplay time!

Y'know, I read Dracula ages ago (about 15 years I think) and there is no real suggestion that sunlight kills or hurts vamps. They (normally) sleep during the day, certainly, but that's all that's stated for certain, iirc.

[DarkDesigner]

Y'know, I read Dracula ages ago (about 15 years I think) and there is no real suggestion that sunlight kills or hurts vamps. They (normally) sleep during the day, certainly, but that's all that's stated for certain, iirc.

Yeah I thought so. Thing is every piece of vampire fiction takes what it wants to, and obviously with films it'll depend on their budget. For example not having a reflection in a mirror, I've seen examples (although I can't for the life of my remember which) where the vampires have reflections but that's mainly because it's hard enough doing the trick photography so that the cameraman isn't in there, let along then CGing the vamps out.

So, as much as we all deride the Twilight glitter vampire thing, Stephanie Meyer just took the myth and put her own spin on it. Same as Stoker realised he would need Dracula wandering about in the day and added the 'low powered' tag on it, and Anne Rice ignoring pretty much every weakness of vampires except for blood drinking and sunlight.

On a side note, one of the best explanations for why Dracula has the weaknesses he does was in the film Dracula 2000. It has one of the best premises for a vampire backstory that I've seen to date, although in my opinion it wasn't executed so well. I would say it's worth watching just for the story twist, rather than reading spoilers about it. Plus it's got Gerard Butler and Nathan Fillion in it, which is win.

[Heatray]

Hey yall I had a questions that seemed relevant to this;

Are all the WHFB Vampires evil? In the 3ed book it talked about Blood Dragons like they were basically knights-errant; not really good, but not evil. In the 4ed book it talked about a Strigos Vampire who took care of his land and people...in one instance defeating an Orc raiding party to protect one of his towns.
However, in the 5ed book all the Vampires it mentions are dicks. Evil dicks. Mannfred got his evilness turned up to eleven, and even Vlad and Isabella are painted as being pretty dickish.

My question being; Are there any not-evil Vampires left?

[Rissan4ever]

Hey yall I had a questions that seemed relevant to this;

Are all the WHFB Vampires evil? In the 3ed book it talked about Blood Dragons like they were basically knights-errant; not really good, but not evil. In the 4ed book it talked about a Strigos Vampire who took care of his land and people...in one instance defeating an Orc raiding party to protect one of his towns.
However, in the 5ed book all the Vampires it mentions are dicks. Evil dicks. Mannfred got his evilness turned up to eleven, and even Vlad and Isabella are painted as being pretty dickish.

My question being; Are there any not-evil Vampires left?

As far as I know, Ulrika (sp) isn't terribly evil. But, eldargal can answer that better than I, since they're apparently twins. ;)

[Deadlift]

My question being; Are there any not-evil Vampires left?

If you get a chance, read the WFB Vampire wars trilogy, there is this fellow. He tries to fight his vampiric nature and is a "good" vamp in my books.

Pulled from Wikipedia
Jerek von Carstein Sired by Vlad in Inheritance, he is the last Vampire created by Vlad before his demise. Once Jerek Kruger, a noble and proud man who served as Grand Master of the Knights of the White Wolf, he once slew Vlad in combat, only for Vlad to rise again and claim vengeance a year later. Atop a temple spire in Middenheim, he and Vlad dueled again, resulting in Jerek Kruger becoming Jerek von Carstein, the youngest of Vlad's twisted mockery of family.
While Vampirisim turned Konrad into a beast who kills for blood, Jerek maintained his once-honourable heart. When Pieter leads an assault upon Nuln, Jerek quickly resents his 'brother' labelling him a monster after witnessing his acts of wanton slaughter. Jerek gleaned useful information from one of Konrad's pet Necromancers however, learning the secret of Vlad's immortality: his signet ring. Jerek resolved to find and destroy it, travelling to Altdorf and even exhuming the bodies of Wilhelm and Vlad. He did not find the ring and despaired: the thief who took the ring was lost to him, and all he could do was hope that it would remain lost.
Losing his will to fight, disgusted by his own brethren, Jerek considered himself as neither human nor Vampire but torn between the two. He claimed Konrad was beyond help and that his kingdom would be the same as Vlad's - carrion birds fighting for scraps. Jerek was not killed as Konrad believed, and returned at the Battle of Grim Moor, where he aided in the human victory. He continued to thwart the Von Carstein line, thwarting Mannfred's alliances and continually seeking the cursed Carstein ring. At Hel Fenn he tore off Mannfred's left hand, which bore the Carstein Ring, leaving him easy prey for Martin of Stirland. Jerek took the Von Carstein Ring with him, and was sealed up with it in an unknown location by Kallad, the ring's guardian for all eternity. As Kallad bricked Jerek Kruger up in the darkness, he acknowledged that the creature before him was a man and not an undead beast, remarking on Jerek's incredible humanity even after losing his soul. Presumably the Von Carstein Ring remains lost to this day.

[Psychosplodge]

actually, GW vamps sparkle when they go out in the sun and they dont usually go out on campaign because they are too busy falling madly in love with teenage girls from Talabenheim

But will they blend?

http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=3542&d=1357683442
3542


Apparently so...

[eldargal]

It's actually a complicated question. There are vampires that may be considered good in the sense that they try and minimise the harm they do. Ulrika and Genevieve or example, though Ulrika slips rather spectacularly in her third novel. The Lahmians in general feed from willing thralls and try not to kill simply because missing people and corpses with neck bites raises a lot of questions. But at the same time they view humans pretty much as cattle.

It is very much shades of grey (the good kind), many vampires are downright evil, others less so because it is in their self interest to be somewhat benevolent (the 'good' vampire aristocrat for example). One or two (like Genevieve) may be considered genuinely good.