Homebrew Dhampyr Species Details

 

They were the spawn of nightmares, of monsters. The children of a damned race who will forever hunger. Dhampyr's were created out of lust or worse, but they had their uses of getting into places a vampire could not. The curse upon a Dhampyr's blood is not as powerful as their parent's, they're allowed to walk in the daylight, they're allowed to come into homes and cross running water. The worst of them are agents for their clans, seeking out targets of the vampire's fancy. 

Still, there is a softness to some of their kind. Human blood is tenacious and as varied as their race. Some Dhampyr prefer to shun their cursed blood and live a life of good deeds, even if they are shunned themselves. These rare beings deserve our compassion, I think, and our understanding because afterall it is the deed that makes the man.

— Ulrogg Tuskhorn, Half-Orc Anthropologist

Dahmpyrs are the result of an unholy union between vampire and human. The resulting offspring shares the curse of blood that a vampire has, though the effects are less potent. Scholars of all kinds conclude that it is only a human who can successfully mate with a vampire, but the reason why is still lost to unproven theories. The most popular theory, accepted by a number of academia, is that humans possess certain genes that allow a multitude of cross-breeding, hence why half-orcs and half-elves are so prevelant in society today. 

Strength of Blood

Dhampyrs resemble humans at a glance, but under close scrutiny the facade fades. A Dhampyr's fangs are elongated, their skin is pale and fair. Some even possess the red eyes of their vampiric parent, though this is not always true. The curse that comes with their blood also gives them power. A Dhampyr is usually stronger or more hardy than the average human, allowing for great feats of strength and resilience. They can also heal from grievous wounds, though it does take more time than what a full vampire is capable of. There is some myth as to whether a dhampyr subsists completely on blood, but all of their race has the ability to feed and seem to grow stronger from it. 

Ambition Tempered in Time

A dhampyr has the ambition of a human, and the time to persue that ambition. Though they do not live forever as a vampire might, their life is exended greatly by their blood curse. This extra time affords the dhampyr with the ability to hone a small handful of skills to their finest edge. Dahmpyr enjoy the motivations of humans so finding some that hunt for glory, recognition, or honor would not at all be rare. It would be rare, however, to find a dhampyr with stagnant tastes like other long-lived races tend to have, as their human blood drives them to sample all of life around them.

Constantly Tested

A vampire clan sees usefulness in the dhampyr, but only if they prove themselves to be so. A dhampyr belonging to such a clan is trained to infiltrate the living's settlements in order to lure unsuspecting victims back to the lair. Other times they are used as a strike force or assassins for their ability to enter a person's home unbidden.

A dhampyr who lives among the living is constantly being watched at best, and openly mistrusted at worse. The good dhampyr must live their life having to constantly prove themselves to others through their deeds and words. 

Dhampyr Names

Dhampyrs are naturally given human names, whether to blend into human society or to shun their own dark heritage. Refer to the Human race in the Player's Handbook for name suggestions.

 

Dhampyr Traits

Your dhampyr character has certain traits deriving from your dark bloodline.

Ability Score Increase

You gain a +2 in either Strength or Constitution.

You gain a +1 in either Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma.

Age

A dhampyr reaches adulthood at the same rate as a human, but they can live up to 500 years.

Alignment

Dhampyrs lean toward the alignment of who raised them. Those who remain with their vampire clan lean towards lawful evil.

Size

Dhampyrs vary widely in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of your position in that range, your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and one extra language of your choice. Dhampyrs must hunt and typically learn the languages of other peoples they can charm or manipulate.

Darkvision

Due to the curse in your blood, you hunt better at night. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Sunlight Sensitivity

You have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight when you, the target of your attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlight.

Regeneration

Your blood curse allows you to heal from injury. During a short rest, any scars or cosmetic damage you suffered instantly heal. Broken bones, torn muscle and burned flesh will also heal back to normal (at the DM's discretion.) This ability cannot regrow limbs or reattach any limbs that have been lost. In addition, during a short rest you regain an extra 1d6 hit points. 

The extra hit points increase when you reach certain levels: to 1d8 at 9th level, to 1d10 at 13th level, and to 1d12 at 17th level.

Bite

Your fangs are a natural weapon, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with it, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.

The damage increases by 1d4 when you reach 5th level (2d4), 11th level (3d4), and 17th level (4d4).

Blood Drain

In battle, you can drain the blood of your enemy to heal your wounds. When you hit with your bite attack, you can use a bonus action to drain the target's blood. The bite attack deals its normal damage and you restore hit points equal to the amount of damage done. Once you've fed you can't use this trait again until you finish a short or long rest.