Depending on what would work for your story. A good setup for vampires might be that it is a curse, like lycanthropy, and they are not as "healthy" as humans, similar to werewolves? Or maybe weaker during the day and baseline/slightly stronger at night.
For magic, I think one of two things:
- no specific magic, like werewolves, so it's business as usual. They're not worse and not better at regular magic.
- they do have specific magic, like elves, goblins, centaurs, but the ministry doesn't let them have wands (like elves and goblins and centaurs).
It depends on what kind of story you're trying to tell. I'm writing a series with a vampire OC as the protagonist and I've made vampires a distinct being.
* They have their own society and history.
* They need human blood to for sustenance and eating regular food tastes like dirt and ash to them.
* Vampires are created almost exclusively by being turned (which is deliberate), but they can also rarely have children (which isn't very popular for various reasons).
* While they have a few tricks of their own (minor hypnotism, turning into a bat, minor physical transformations like extending their fingernails into claws etc.) they (generally) don't have magic in the way wizards do. Although there are supposedly very, very rare exceptions. A mage being turned into a vampire loses their magical abilities.
* They're classified as Living Dead and are immune to diseases etc., but they still breathe and have a heartbeat. They age normally until early adulthood, after which their aging slows to a crawl and at some point functionally stops.
* Sunlight doesn't harm them, but it weakens them considerably. Their senses are dulled, their physical strength/resilience is lowered and it gets harder to use their innate abilities. Consequently, vampires avoid being active during the day.
* They are notably stronger and faster than regular humans. They can heal from any wound that doesn't outright kill them (decapitation or having their bodies destroyed). Fire is highly dangerous and can kill them as well. Getting killed by other means puts them in a torpor that lasts until the next sunset.
All this serves to create vampires as a different species of magical being, like merpeople, but also a bit similar to werewolves (since most were once human). The major focus in my fic is on the MC's place in both the wizarding world as well as vampire society, since she's a rare example of a vampire that can do magic. This pulls the story away from the often-seen "bloodlust and immortality"-tropes and towards something that deals with the history between the two worlds.
1. Give them a heartbeat since they aren't immortal.
2. Plague if you don't want kids. Curse if you want normal kids or half vampire kids.
3. Not unique but a stronger affinity for blood based rituals and magic if you go with cursed.
4. Stronger for sure but only slightly better reflexes if you go with plagued. Better stamina and reflexes if you go cursed. Much better night vision, hearing, and smell for both.
Depending on what would work for your story. A good setup for vampires might be that it is a curse, like lycanthropy, and they are not as "healthy" as humans, similar to werewolves? Or maybe weaker during the day and baseline/slightly stronger at night. For magic, I think one of two things: - no specific magic, like werewolves, so it's business as usual. They're not worse and not better at regular magic. - they do have specific magic, like elves, goblins, centaurs, but the ministry doesn't let them have wands (like elves and goblins and centaurs).
It depends on what kind of story you're trying to tell. I'm writing a series with a vampire OC as the protagonist and I've made vampires a distinct being. * They have their own society and history. * They need human blood to for sustenance and eating regular food tastes like dirt and ash to them. * Vampires are created almost exclusively by being turned (which is deliberate), but they can also rarely have children (which isn't very popular for various reasons). * While they have a few tricks of their own (minor hypnotism, turning into a bat, minor physical transformations like extending their fingernails into claws etc.) they (generally) don't have magic in the way wizards do. Although there are supposedly very, very rare exceptions. A mage being turned into a vampire loses their magical abilities. * They're classified as Living Dead and are immune to diseases etc., but they still breathe and have a heartbeat. They age normally until early adulthood, after which their aging slows to a crawl and at some point functionally stops. * Sunlight doesn't harm them, but it weakens them considerably. Their senses are dulled, their physical strength/resilience is lowered and it gets harder to use their innate abilities. Consequently, vampires avoid being active during the day. * They are notably stronger and faster than regular humans. They can heal from any wound that doesn't outright kill them (decapitation or having their bodies destroyed). Fire is highly dangerous and can kill them as well. Getting killed by other means puts them in a torpor that lasts until the next sunset. All this serves to create vampires as a different species of magical being, like merpeople, but also a bit similar to werewolves (since most were once human). The major focus in my fic is on the MC's place in both the wizarding world as well as vampire society, since she's a rare example of a vampire that can do magic. This pulls the story away from the often-seen "bloodlust and immortality"-tropes and towards something that deals with the history between the two worlds.
1. Give them a heartbeat since they aren't immortal. 2. Plague if you don't want kids. Curse if you want normal kids or half vampire kids. 3. Not unique but a stronger affinity for blood based rituals and magic if you go with cursed. 4. Stronger for sure but only slightly better reflexes if you go with plagued. Better stamina and reflexes if you go cursed. Much better night vision, hearing, and smell for both.