Vampire (Zendikar)

D&D 2024 species: Vampire (Zendikar). Source: Plane Shift: Zendikar. Explore rules, features, and source references for this entry. Null Transformation A humanoid killed with your Bloodthirst ability becomes a Vampire Null. Born into ancient servitude and bred to a life of decadent corruption, the vampires of Zendikar feed on the energy in the blood of living creatures-an energy that is particularly strong in times of terror and pain. To members of the other races, vampires are a fearsome mystery and the stuff of nightmares, hunting their prey like beasts or reclining on thrones made of skulls in their moss-draped cities. But few understand how the vampires are locked in a brutal civil war. On one side are those who hold to their traditional ways, desperately battling to remain free. On the other side are those vampires whose legacy reaches back into the deepest recesses of history. Bound once more to the Eldrazi who were their ancient masters, those vampires hunt their kin in an effort to extinguish any dreams of freedom and rebellion. Vampires are associated with black mana. Their existence is predicated on draining the life from others to fuel their own existence, and on putting their own lives ahead of all other concerns. Philosophically, they do not constrain themselves with artificial rules of morality, but believe that the strong can and should take what they need from the weak. Between the Living and the Dead The vampires of Zendikar are not undead. Rather, their unique nature comes from an eldritch disease that turns their flesh cold, makes their gray or purple skin feel dead to the touch, and enables them to drain concentrated magical energy from the blood of other living creatures. They are tall and slender, with long, elegant necks and broad shoulders. Bony horns protrude from their shoulders and elbows, often augmented by the layered plates of their armor and clothing. Their canine teeth are slightly elongated, but not enough to protrude between thei...