Vampires are creatures with a complex and very long mythology. However, there are a few basic rules that never change and that are part of the very essence of vampires. If you have decided to include these characters in your novel, as part of a cosplay or in an RPG, then you must know the fundamental techniques to be able to kill them. While there are a considerable number of variations on the theme, there are some ground rules that you should adhere to in order to get rid of vampires. You can even modify some of these techniques using clever puns or modern technology to broaden the possibilities of your vampire story.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: in a Novel
Step 1. Identify the vampire
Audiences need to know that a certain character is actually a creature of the night. You can state this from the start or, if you want to be more sneaky, you can provide some clues to the reader (and perhaps the other characters) to find out for themselves. If you want to create some suspense and mystery, which is always a good idea when it comes to vampires, then you should make sure that your character's true nature unfolds as the story unfolds, rather than pointing it out immediately.
- Feel free to ignore certain rules. If you want your work to stand out from other novels, you can ignore or change some typical vampire characteristics. Unpredictability is always a well-appreciated quality in fictional writing. Just remember to explain these choices to the reader at some point in your essay.
- If killing the vampire is central to the story, then there must be a way to do it. If this creature is the hero and cannot die, then there will be little narrative tension. If, on the other hand, he is the villain, but also in this case he cannot die, then you will have given your heroes an impossible task and the story will only end in failure.
Step 2. Keep the vampire away
The main character may not have to kill him immediately, especially if the vampire is the main antagonist. You have to make sure that the hero keeps his distance from the enemy, while looking for what he needs to get rid of them. Here are some suggestions:
- Grasp sacred objects such as a crucifix or the Bible. Vampires are creatures of evil, so they are typically repelled by sacred objects. Likewise, they avoid religious places, such as churches or other similar buildings, so you can consider them as safe havens. These don't have to be places of Christian worship, so symbols of Judaism, Islam, or other faiths are also effective. Remember that the symbol itself is not as important as the faith of the character who is using it.
- Sprinkle small grainy items such as salt or sand. Traditionally vampires are obsessed with counting the items they come across, so if you have large quantities of something small that you can drop anywhere, you can waste your enemy's time. Small grains like oats and rice are perfect.
- Just like small grains, vampires also count the knots of a fishing net. If you hang one above the doors and windows, you can buy time before the creature enters the dwelling.
- Own some plants. Vampires are held back by certain types of plants that symbolize new life, such as roses, holly or hawthorn. Other cultures use the ramno, the juniper trunks, the wild blackthorn or the rowan of the fowlers. Your main character should have these plants in the house or take them with him.
Step 3. Behead the vampire
An effective technique for killing this and many other creatures is to cut off their heads. In some literary genres, the writer decides to fill the vampire's mouth with garlic, to prevent him from coming back to life.
Step 4. Attach it with other objects
There are some objects, such as bullets or wooden stakes, that can be used to pierce the vampire's heart or chest to kill him.
- Wooden stake. The wood should be special, such as coming from a particular tree or specifically carved (like a cross), but you may decide that a pointed piece of wood is sufficient. Some modern vampire stories use common wooden objects, such as pool cues and coat hangers.
- Just like wooden stakes, bullets also need to have special characteristics in most cases for them to kill vampires. For example, they could be silver (like werewolves) or blessed by a priest to become sacred objects.
Step 5. Spray the creature with holy water
Vampires are evil beings and do not react well to contact with sacred objects. If you spray them with holy water, you can scald them and even burn them. You will have to decide whether to completely submerge the enemy in this liquid or if a splash is enough.
Step 6. Expose it to sunlight
According to some traditions, vampires must avoid daylight, otherwise they turn to dust. In other novels, however, these creatures move in broad daylight without any problems. If you have decided that sunlight is an element of destruction for vampires in your novel, remember that these characters will have to act most of the time at night or in dark places.
Step 7. Provide the hero with the right tools
Characters who kill the vampire must be able to complete their task, so they need to find the right items for the purpose. If holy or blessed tools are needed, the protagonist must have access to a church or contact a priest. If the weapons are to be made of special wood, then the trees that supply it should grow in the place where you set the novel.
Method 2 of 3: Kill the Vampire in a Role Playing Game
Step 1. Define valid techniques with the other players
Both the people who play the vampires and the people who will be the hunters have to agree on the "battle" and "kill" scenes in advance, to make them more realistic and at the same time make sure that no one gets hurt.
Step 2. Bring garlic heads
One of the most effective ways to get rid of the vampire (and any other creature) is beheading. However, you should eventually fill his mouth with garlic. Since no heads are actually cut off during an RPG, it's worth having some garlic to prove you can kill these creatures.
Step 3. Have a wooden stake handy
If you manage to stick it into the vampire's chest (sometimes, but not always, it is necessary to pierce the heart), you can kill the latter according to tradition. You can decide that the stake has special characteristics, for example it should come from a particular tree or it should be blessed by a priest. Just be very careful not to actually stab the other person.
Step 4. Use holy water
In role-playing games or in disguises, all you need is a small bottle with some water in it. If you want to create a better scenic effect, you can add some glitter to make it "special". Not all vampires die from holy water, some are just repelled, so you need to know how the vampire character will react.
Step 5. Prepare tools to hunt the vampire
If you're playing a vampire hunter or hitman, then you need to have items with you that won't be lethal, but can weaken the creature. These are:
- Sacred items such as a cross or a Bible. Vampires are creatures of evil and are usually repelled by elements of this type. They don't necessarily have to belong to the Christian cult, so you can also use symbols from Judaism, Islam or other faiths.
- Small granular objects such as salt or sand. Traditionally, vampires obsessively count everything they come across, so large amounts of small items can slow your enemy down.
Method 3 of 3: Alternative Methods
Step 1. Shoot a wooden bullet
In many countries they are used during training and weapons training, although they are believed to be designed to fragment within the victim's body; there is therefore the possibility that a vampire will die if the splinters of wood hit his heart.
Step 2. Use a stun grenade
The explosion certainly doesn't kill the vampire, but it produces enough light to disintegrate it.
Step 3. Turn on an artificial light
If the vampire doesn't like light and you're stuck in a dark environment, then you can use technology to create a powerful beam of light.
- An ultraviolet laser uses UV rays to create a glow. This is even more useful for the vampire killer, as the creature of the night cannot see the direction the light beam is coming from, making it vulnerable on all sides.
- If your goal is to harness light, then a battery-powered torch or lantern can be effective. A military type flashlight is certainly more suitable for your purpose, but you will have to decide how powerful or concentrated the light beam should be.
Step 4. Build an artificial cross
Since this object is important mainly for symbolic reasons, any element or arrangement of elements that resemble a cross (reminiscent of the shadow of the windmill in the movie "The Brides of Dracula") is capable of defeating the vampire.
