Vampires in the Wold Newton Universe are human beings who have died and been brought back to life via some form of magic, but must drink blood in order to sustain this "undeath". In general vampires also suffer from different weaknesses. Most are harmed by direct sunlight. Many cannot enter a private residence without first being granted permission. Often, signs of religious faith are repellant to them, as are certain herbs (like garlic or wolfsbane). Some exhibit various degrees of obsesssive compulsive behavior.
A vampire is created through the bite of such a creature. Sometimes this bite is extremely virulant and creates a vampire almost instantly. In other cases, however, the victim must actually die from the blood loss and will rise again later--or sometimes they must also ingest the blood of a vampire to be "turned."
Most vampires exhibit superhuman strength and stamina. Other powers include mesmerism (by eye or voice contact), shapeshifting (into bats, wolves or mist usually), flight, super-speed, telepathy, etc. Killing a vampire generally requires either a wooden stake to pierce the heart, decapitation and/or burning. Mystical means can be used to resurrect some vampires so dispatched.
The origins of vampires are a matter of some debate.
Well-known vampires include Dracula and Vampirella.
External Links[]
- Wikipedia article on Vampires
- Wikipedia article on Vampires in Marvel Comics (i.e. The Tomb of Dracula, Dr. Strange, etc.)
- Wikidedia article on Vampires in Buffy The Vampire Slayer
- Vampirism in the WNU by Dennis Powers
- Children of the Night by Charles Loridans