Why vampires in ES are not like other vampires?

reften

it's a video game. Who the hell is the authority on how all vampires across every game/movie/book/kids play are supposed to be.

FreedomDude

MornaBaine wrote: »

You could as easily ask why the Elves of ESO differ so dramatically from the Elves in the mythology of the British Isles. The answer is simple: This is a fantasy setting. It draws upon various "real world" mythologies, as do most fantasy settings such as the works of Tolkien and RE Howard but reworks them in ways that "work" for this particular fantasy setting.

As an aside for those who insist that vampires must burn to death in the sunlight... No real world actual folklore supports this. It is not even a literary invention. Both Dracula and Carmilla appeared during the day, albeit they appeared to be reduced in power and vitality and therefore were nocturnal by nature. The whole "burns in the sun" thing developed as a MOVIE trope, first seen in Nosferatu, which, while a blatant rip-off of Dracula, varied in some pretty significant ways, the burning in the sun thing being the most glaring.

Wait... There were myths of British elves?

smeeprocketnub19_ESO

AlienSlof wrote: »

Evandus wrote: »

firstdecan wrote: »

Blackwing_Soul wrote: »

From a pure Elder Scrolls Lore perspective the way I understand it is this: Vampirism is a kind of disease that spreads through your body making you less and less human and more monstrous. The more you feed as a vampire the more pure human blood you put back into your body thus lowering the amount of tainted blood in your system. The longer you go without feeding the more time the disease has to spread through your system making you more powerful and less "human."

Edit: Spelling/ Clarification

It's something like this, and it aligns with a lot of other popular vampire lore.

The whole "disease" part of it aside (Vampirism is a disease in ESO but not so much in other lores), the longer you go without feeding, the more "feral" the vampire becomes. It becomes less human \ civilized and more predatory. It's usually described as a "hunger" or a "thirst" and the longer that need goes unabated, the more fixated the Vampire becomes on feeding.

In ESO, this is represented by the differences in Health Regen vs cost to cast Vampire abilities. They go up and down in an inverse relationship (penalties to health regen vs reduced casting cost in varying stages). Your health recovers faster when you feed and are more in control, whereas your vampire abilities \ predatory powers are easier to cast as the hunger overpowers you.

You see the same thing in Anne Rice's Novels, as well as White Wolf's Vampire RPG (I'm talking about the P&P version, please don't edit my thread). I'm not as familiar with some of the more traditional Vampires, like Bram Stoker's Dracula or Nosferatu, I think they focus on the vampire more as a predatory monster than a predator forced to feed on humans (very subtle difference if you can get it).

As an aside, if you're really into Vampires I would check out White Wolf's Vampire series (again, the Pen & Paper version . They have a very in depth lore on their take of vampires that involves biblical \ pseudo biblical figures Cain, Adam \ Eve, and Lillith. I won't go further than that because it's not ESO related, but mention it just to point out that ESO's interpretation of vampires very much aligns with other vampire lores.

You're the first person I've seen mention the White Wolf P&P RPG interpretation of the Vampire. Excellent *rubs hands together* as I loved that game. Even if my fellow players hated me, as I was an Assimite.

Gave you an awesome for referencing something aside from that played out garbage, Twilight.

Hear Hear!

Gave you both an awesome!

(I played an insane Tremere lol!)

White Wolf was awful and helped dumb down tabletop rpgs in general. You should both be ashamed of yourself!

Evandus

smeeprocketnub19_ESO wrote: »

AlienSlof wrote: »

Evandus wrote: »

firstdecan wrote: »

Blackwing_Soul wrote: »

From a pure Elder Scrolls Lore perspective the way I understand it is this: Vampirism is a kind of disease that spreads through your body making you less and less human and more monstrous. The more you feed as a vampire the more pure human blood you put back into your body thus lowering the amount of tainted blood in your system. The longer you go without feeding the more time the disease has to spread through your system making you more powerful and less "human."

Edit: Spelling/ Clarification

It's something like this, and it aligns with a lot of other popular vampire lore.

The whole "disease" part of it aside (Vampirism is a disease in ESO but not so much in other lores), the longer you go without feeding, the more "feral" the vampire becomes. It becomes less human \ civilized and more predatory. It's usually described as a "hunger" or a "thirst" and the longer that need goes unabated, the more fixated the Vampire becomes on feeding.

In ESO, this is represented by the differences in Health Regen vs cost to cast Vampire abilities. They go up and down in an inverse relationship (penalties to health regen vs reduced casting cost in varying stages). Your health recovers faster when you feed and are more in control, whereas your vampire abilities \ predatory powers are easier to cast as the hunger overpowers you.

You see the same thing in Anne Rice's Novels, as well as White Wolf's Vampire RPG (I'm talking about the P&P version, please don't edit my thread). I'm not as familiar with some of the more traditional Vampires, like Bram Stoker's Dracula or Nosferatu, I think they focus on the vampire more as a predatory monster than a predator forced to feed on humans (very subtle difference if you can get it).

As an aside, if you're really into Vampires I would check out White Wolf's Vampire series (again, the Pen & Paper version . They have a very in depth lore on their take of vampires that involves biblical \ pseudo biblical figures Cain, Adam \ Eve, and Lillith. I won't go further than that because it's not ESO related, but mention it just to point out that ESO's interpretation of vampires very much aligns with other vampire lores.

You're the first person I've seen mention the White Wolf P&P RPG interpretation of the Vampire. Excellent *rubs hands together* as I loved that game. Even if my fellow players hated me, as I was an Assimite.

Gave you an awesome for referencing something aside from that played out garbage, Twilight.

Hear Hear!

Gave you both an awesome!

(I played an insane Tremere lol!)

White Wolf was awful and helped dumb down tabletop rpgs in general. You should both be ashamed of yourself!

Actually it was quite complex. I played a campaign that went on for many years using nearly all aspects of the mythos they created.

The die system changes are still heavily debated in some circles. Thanks for the insult anyway

MornaBaine

I miss my Tremere. And I will NEVER buy another game by CCP after what they did!!!!

Talrenos

AshySamurai wrote: »

Hi. I don't ask about changing the current system. I just a little curious and wanted to know, did anyone else notice that?
If you look at common vampire (yep, I know that vampires aren't real), you'll see, that the more vampire feeds, the more powerfull he become. But in ES games (not only ESO) vampires the more powerfull, the less they feed. I always thought, that blood gave them power and satisfies hunger.

Wikipedia wrote:

A Vampire is a mythical being who subsists by feeding on the life essence (generally in the form of blood) of living creatures.

But in ES games you can be a vampire and never feed.

Imagine if vampires need to feed every hour or two. That would be fun with new justice system.

Its par for the course, you can be a werewolf and not change when the moons are out, you can be a player that never plays the game, a developer that never fixes the game,.....

GnatB

Evandus wrote: »

The sunlight thing they explained pre launch though. Wish I could find the reference.

I'd assume they were worried about all the twilight babies complaining that their beloved vamps were almost unplayable. Since at least in this game, you can't simply enter the nearest inn and sleep until dusk, taking massive damage when outside in the sunlight would be a serious issue. (You'd practically have to just do delves or something during daytime. All quest progression would pretty much come to a screeching halt.)

Personally, I say too bad. Vampirism should be, on the whole, something you want to get cured of as soon as possible. (or do only after you're pretty much "done" with the game) Only people who should be vampires are RP'ers and some very niche builds where it works *just* right.

(That said, perhaps "massive damage" may be a *bit* too much. I'd say temporarily reducing max HP up to 85% over 10 minutes would work. Not fatal in and of itself, but make fighting outside during the daytime extremely difficult. You'd have to pretty much entirely rely on your sneak skills to avoid enemies (or 1-shot them) to do quests during daylight hours)

UrQuan

Evandus wrote: »

Heishi wrote: »

@AshySamurai‌ Something else to keep in mind is that in ES lore, there are multiple types of vampires. Technically there should be a lot more difference between vampires in one part of the world vs another. It's the fall back reasoning they gave for Skyrim vampires being way different from Cyrodill (Oblivion) vampires

It's worth note that this is far from the first time less feeding=more power. That was typically an Ann Rice convention. In World of Darkness relm (Vampire the Masquerade) The longer you go without feeding the closer you come to the "beast". Certain bloodlines (Gangrel in particular) like to flirt with the "beast" and go into frenzies faster than the others.
Info on Gangel if you want to read. This goes a little too deep into it, but plenty of info.

Diseases causing vampirism
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Sanguinare_Vampiris (Skyrim)
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Porphyric_Hemophilia_(Oblivion) (Obvlivion and Morrowind)

Bloodlines and clans (This is long, but a good read)
Lore:Vampire Wiki

The vampires of Tamriel are commonly grouped by their territory and "bloodline". A vampire's bloodline is determined by the vampire who infected it, which in turn affects its abilities. Some vampires have created clans according to bloodline and territory. These clans normally consist of vampires of the same bloodline, or who share the same feeding grounds. Some clans are powerful enough to have established strongholds and regularly feed off captured "cattle": prisoners, or thralls, who they feed off of regularly without turning them into vampires.[20]

Black Marsh
The Whet-Fang vampires of Black Marsh are known to capture victims alive and keep them in a magicka-induced coma, allowing the vampires to extract blood at their own leisure. The Order vampires of Cyrodiil believe the Whet-Fang vampires to show "signs of enlightenments", regarding them as more intelligent than the other "barbaric" tribes. For this reason, the Order considers them a possible threat to their dominance in Cyrodiil.[21]

Cyrodiil
Only one known tribe exists in Cyrodiil; they are experts of concealment, and their true name has been lost to history. Much like the Imperials, they ousted their competition. Indistinguishable from the living if well-fed, these Cyrodiilic Vampires are cultured and more civilized than vampires of other provinces, using their stealthy abilities to feed on the sleeping and unaware.[4] Calling themselves the Order, these vampires follow the Daedric Prince "Kin-father" Molag Bal, like many other vampires, but they also consider Clavicus Vile their patron. Members are bound never to reveal themselves or the Order, and to procure power, stature, and wealth whenever possible.[21]

Iliac Bay
The Iliac Bay region hosts nine bloodlines of vampires, each with their own special abilities: the Anthotis, Garlythi, Haarvenu, Khulari, Lyrezi, Montalion, Selenu, Thrafey, and Vraseth.[1] The clans inhabit their own regions, and a strong sense of rivalry is present. At least some vampires, however, became soldiers in an army of undead which ruled over the Barony of Dwynnen around 3E 253.[22]
The Glenmoril Wyrd vampires live in the Breton cities of High Rock, though no information about their abilities or feeding habits is known. It is known, however, that they are one of the tribes considered more intelligent (and threatening) by the Order vampires of Cyrodiil; possibly implying that, like the Order, they live disguised among the normal population as stealthy manipulators.[21]

Morrowind
The Dunmer are strongly opposed to any form of necromancy, thus vampires are largely unknown in their land of Morrowind.[2][23][24] The Tribunal Temple has some control over the public knowledge of vampires, but cannot keep it completely unknown. In the past, Ordinators and Buoyant Armigers were in charge of eradicating vampires, leading to their supposed extinction.[24] Thus, the hunting orders that exist in the western Tamriel are unknown.[2]
The vampires of Morrowind are typically in one of three bloodlines, which differ in accordance to their "approach to prey". The Quarra are aggressive and fierce when it comes to hunting, while the Berne clan prefer a stealthier approach. The Aundae bloodline consist of vampiric mages, who use the dark powers associated with vampirism to entrap prey. These vampires not only have their own strongholds, but are also dispersed amongst the Daedric shrines and abandoned Dunmer and Dwemer strongholds.[23] Ironically, these clans show great hostility to new-born vampires, considering them abominations as their living counterparts do.
In the Red Mountain, the Ash Vampire was an immortal magical being of vast power. They were close kin and loyal lieutenants of Dagoth Ur,[25] and thus partook of his supernatural vitality, but they were not related to true vampires - in fact, they are not even undead.[2][24] Near the end of the Third Era, the number of vampires began to rise in Morrowind, leading to renewed calls to exterminate them.[23][24]

Skyrim
Main hall of Castle Volkihar (Skyrim)
The Volkihar vampires of eastern Skyrim live under haunted, frozen lakes and only leave their dens to feed. They have the power to freeze their victims with icy breath, and can reach through the ice of their frozen lake dens without breaking it.[4] They are the earliest known vampire coven in Tamriel. The Volkihar vampires are relatively similar in appearance to those of Cyrodiil and they share some similar powers such as night vision, the ability to turn invisible and the ability to seduce others. Certain Volkihar vampires however appear more monstrous than their Cyrodiilic counterparts- some of them have large brow ridges, slits running through their lips, and bat-like noses, and they have powers which aren't shared by the vampires of Cyrodiil—they can reanimate dead bodies and do not burn when in sunlight (although they are weakened by it). The Volkihar have been known to employ Death Hounds as guardians.[26]
Some of the more ancient Volkihar vampires such as those of the court at Castle Volkihar are pure-blooded and can even transform themselves into a more monstrous form: the large, winged Vampire Lords which were blessed by Molag Bal himself. This gift grants further powers such as the ability to summon gargoyles.[19] It is said that Potema, the Wolf Queen, relied upon vampiric generals in the latter days of the War of the Red Diamond.[27]

Tsaesci
The Tsaesci are the "vampiric Serpent Folk" native to Akavir who, according to legend, long ago ate all the men of that land. It is unknown if their reputation as "vampire snakes" is literal or metaphorical, though like conventional vampires, they are purportedly immortal.[28][29]

Valenwood
In northern Valenwood, there are the Bonsamu vampires which are indistinguishable from normal Bosmer unless seen by candlelight, the Keerilth who can disintegrate into mist, the Yekef who swallow men whole, and the Telboth who prey on children, take their place in the family, and eventually murder all of the family members.[4]

Thought I'd read somewhere pre launch that the version of vampirism they are using for ESO predates any of the permutations we've become familiar with from playing other elder scrolls games. Hence the presence of the ability to not be burned by the sun.

Supposedly all of the other versions are permutations of the form represented in this game.

I'm not sure that's entirely true. The Sanguinare Vampiris version of vampirism that was in Skyrim: Dawnguard began with Lord Harkon, and while we don't know the exact date that he received this "gift" from Molag Bal, we do know that his daughter, Serana, has been imprisoned since the First Era, so that variety of vampirism has been around since long before the time of ESO.

purple-magicb16_ESO

.

Blackwing_Soul wrote: »

From a pure Elder Scrolls Lore perspective the way I understand it is this: Vampirism is a kind of disease that spreads through your body making you less and less human and more monstrous. The more you feed as a vampire the more pure human blood you put back into your body thus lowering the amount of tainted blood in your system. The longer you go without feeding the more time the disease has to spread through your system making you more powerful and less "human."

Edit: Spelling/ Clarification

Lol! Don't think that's quite how a transfusion works tho. It's probably much more complicated than just drinking blood. ;-)

Evandus

UrQuan wrote: »

Evandus wrote: »

Heishi wrote: »

@AshySamurai‌ Something else to keep in mind is that in ES lore, there are multiple types of vampires. Technically there should be a lot more difference between vampires in one part of the world vs another. It's the fall back reasoning they gave for Skyrim vampires being way different from Cyrodill (Oblivion) vampires

It's worth note that this is far from the first time less feeding=more power. That was typically an Ann Rice convention. In World of Darkness relm (Vampire the Masquerade) The longer you go without feeding the closer you come to the "beast". Certain bloodlines (Gangrel in particular) like to flirt with the "beast" and go into frenzies faster than the others.
Info on Gangel if you want to read. This goes a little too deep into it, but plenty of info.

Diseases causing vampirism
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Sanguinare_Vampiris (Skyrim)
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Porphyric_Hemophilia_(Oblivion) (Obvlivion and Morrowind)

Bloodlines and clans (This is long, but a good read)
Lore:Vampire Wiki

The vampires of Tamriel are commonly grouped by their territory and "bloodline". A vampire's bloodline is determined by the vampire who infected it, which in turn affects its abilities. Some vampires have created clans according to bloodline and territory. These clans normally consist of vampires of the same bloodline, or who share the same feeding grounds. Some clans are powerful enough to have established strongholds and regularly feed off captured "cattle": prisoners, or thralls, who they feed off of regularly without turning them into vampires.[20]

Black Marsh
The Whet-Fang vampires of Black Marsh are known to capture victims alive and keep them in a magicka-induced coma, allowing the vampires to extract blood at their own leisure. The Order vampires of Cyrodiil believe the Whet-Fang vampires to show "signs of enlightenments", regarding them as more intelligent than the other "barbaric" tribes. For this reason, the Order considers them a possible threat to their dominance in Cyrodiil.[21]

Cyrodiil
Only one known tribe exists in Cyrodiil; they are experts of concealment, and their true name has been lost to history. Much like the Imperials, they ousted their competition. Indistinguishable from the living if well-fed, these Cyrodiilic Vampires are cultured and more civilized than vampires of other provinces, using their stealthy abilities to feed on the sleeping and unaware.[4] Calling themselves the Order, these vampires follow the Daedric Prince "Kin-father" Molag Bal, like many other vampires, but they also consider Clavicus Vile their patron. Members are bound never to reveal themselves or the Order, and to procure power, stature, and wealth whenever possible.[21]

Iliac Bay
The Iliac Bay region hosts nine bloodlines of vampires, each with their own special abilities: the Anthotis, Garlythi, Haarvenu, Khulari, Lyrezi, Montalion, Selenu, Thrafey, and Vraseth.[1] The clans inhabit their own regions, and a strong sense of rivalry is present. At least some vampires, however, became soldiers in an army of undead which ruled over the Barony of Dwynnen around 3E 253.[22]
The Glenmoril Wyrd vampires live in the Breton cities of High Rock, though no information about their abilities or feeding habits is known. It is known, however, that they are one of the tribes considered more intelligent (and threatening) by the Order vampires of Cyrodiil; possibly implying that, like the Order, they live disguised among the normal population as stealthy manipulators.[21]

Morrowind
The Dunmer are strongly opposed to any form of necromancy, thus vampires are largely unknown in their land of Morrowind.[2][23][24] The Tribunal Temple has some control over the public knowledge of vampires, but cannot keep it completely unknown. In the past, Ordinators and Buoyant Armigers were in charge of eradicating vampires, leading to their supposed extinction.[24] Thus, the hunting orders that exist in the western Tamriel are unknown.[2]
The vampires of Morrowind are typically in one of three bloodlines, which differ in accordance to their "approach to prey". The Quarra are aggressive and fierce when it comes to hunting, while the Berne clan prefer a stealthier approach. The Aundae bloodline consist of vampiric mages, who use the dark powers associated with vampirism to entrap prey. These vampires not only have their own strongholds, but are also dispersed amongst the Daedric shrines and abandoned Dunmer and Dwemer strongholds.[23] Ironically, these clans show great hostility to new-born vampires, considering them abominations as their living counterparts do.
In the Red Mountain, the Ash Vampire was an immortal magical being of vast power. They were close kin and loyal lieutenants of Dagoth Ur,[25] and thus partook of his supernatural vitality, but they were not related to true vampires - in fact, they are not even undead.[2][24] Near the end of the Third Era, the number of vampires began to rise in Morrowind, leading to renewed calls to exterminate them.[23][24]

Skyrim
Main hall of Castle Volkihar (Skyrim)
The Volkihar vampires of eastern Skyrim live under haunted, frozen lakes and only leave their dens to feed. They have the power to freeze their victims with icy breath, and can reach through the ice of their frozen lake dens without breaking it.[4] They are the earliest known vampire coven in Tamriel. The Volkihar vampires are relatively similar in appearance to those of Cyrodiil and they share some similar powers such as night vision, the ability to turn invisible and the ability to seduce others. Certain Volkihar vampires however appear more monstrous than their Cyrodiilic counterparts- some of them have large brow ridges, slits running through their lips, and bat-like noses, and they have powers which aren't shared by the vampires of Cyrodiil—they can reanimate dead bodies and do not burn when in sunlight (although they are weakened by it). The Volkihar have been known to employ Death Hounds as guardians.[26]
Some of the more ancient Volkihar vampires such as those of the court at Castle Volkihar are pure-blooded and can even transform themselves into a more monstrous form: the large, winged Vampire Lords which were blessed by Molag Bal himself. This gift grants further powers such as the ability to summon gargoyles.[19] It is said that Potema, the Wolf Queen, relied upon vampiric generals in the latter days of the War of the Red Diamond.[27]

Tsaesci
The Tsaesci are the "vampiric Serpent Folk" native to Akavir who, according to legend, long ago ate all the men of that land. It is unknown if their reputation as "vampire snakes" is literal or metaphorical, though like conventional vampires, they are purportedly immortal.[28][29]

Valenwood
In northern Valenwood, there are the Bonsamu vampires which are indistinguishable from normal Bosmer unless seen by candlelight, the Keerilth who can disintegrate into mist, the Yekef who swallow men whole, and the Telboth who prey on children, take their place in the family, and eventually murder all of the family members.[4]

Thought I'd read somewhere pre launch that the version of vampirism they are using for ESO predates any of the permutations we've become familiar with from playing other elder scrolls games. Hence the presence of the ability to not be burned by the sun.

Supposedly all of the other versions are permutations of the form represented in this game.

I'm not sure that's entirely true. The Sanguinare Vampiris version of vampirism that was in Skyrim: Dawnguard began with Lord Harkon, and while we don't know the exact date that he received this "gift" from Molag Bal, we do know that his daughter, Serana, has been imprisoned since the First Era, so that variety of vampirism has been around since long before the time of ESO.

Interesting. I'll have to take a look at it. I really liked the graphics in Skyrim, but was so turned off by the hand holding issues the game had that I never bothered to finish it. Hence my understanding of Lord Harkon is somewhat limited.

Thanks for pointing that out.

UrQuan

Evandus wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

Evandus wrote: »

Heishi wrote: »

@AshySamurai‌ Something else to keep in mind is that in ES lore, there are multiple types of vampires. Technically there should be a lot more difference between vampires in one part of the world vs another. It's the fall back reasoning they gave for Skyrim vampires being way different from Cyrodill (Oblivion) vampires

It's worth note that this is far from the first time less feeding=more power. That was typically an Ann Rice convention. In World of Darkness relm (Vampire the Masquerade) The longer you go without feeding the closer you come to the "beast". Certain bloodlines (Gangrel in particular) like to flirt with the "beast" and go into frenzies faster than the others.
Info on Gangel if you want to read. This goes a little too deep into it, but plenty of info.

Diseases causing vampirism
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Sanguinare_Vampiris (Skyrim)
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Porphyric_Hemophilia_(Oblivion) (Obvlivion and Morrowind)

Bloodlines and clans (This is long, but a good read)
Lore:Vampire Wiki

The vampires of Tamriel are commonly grouped by their territory and "bloodline". A vampire's bloodline is determined by the vampire who infected it, which in turn affects its abilities. Some vampires have created clans according to bloodline and territory. These clans normally consist of vampires of the same bloodline, or who share the same feeding grounds. Some clans are powerful enough to have established strongholds and regularly feed off captured "cattle": prisoners, or thralls, who they feed off of regularly without turning them into vampires.[20]

Black Marsh
The Whet-Fang vampires of Black Marsh are known to capture victims alive and keep them in a magicka-induced coma, allowing the vampires to extract blood at their own leisure. The Order vampires of Cyrodiil believe the Whet-Fang vampires to show "signs of enlightenments", regarding them as more intelligent than the other "barbaric" tribes. For this reason, the Order considers them a possible threat to their dominance in Cyrodiil.[21]

Cyrodiil
Only one known tribe exists in Cyrodiil; they are experts of concealment, and their true name has been lost to history. Much like the Imperials, they ousted their competition. Indistinguishable from the living if well-fed, these Cyrodiilic Vampires are cultured and more civilized than vampires of other provinces, using their stealthy abilities to feed on the sleeping and unaware.[4] Calling themselves the Order, these vampires follow the Daedric Prince "Kin-father" Molag Bal, like many other vampires, but they also consider Clavicus Vile their patron. Members are bound never to reveal themselves or the Order, and to procure power, stature, and wealth whenever possible.[21]

Iliac Bay
The Iliac Bay region hosts nine bloodlines of vampires, each with their own special abilities: the Anthotis, Garlythi, Haarvenu, Khulari, Lyrezi, Montalion, Selenu, Thrafey, and Vraseth.[1] The clans inhabit their own regions, and a strong sense of rivalry is present. At least some vampires, however, became soldiers in an army of undead which ruled over the Barony of Dwynnen around 3E 253.[22]
The Glenmoril Wyrd vampires live in the Breton cities of High Rock, though no information about their abilities or feeding habits is known. It is known, however, that they are one of the tribes considered more intelligent (and threatening) by the Order vampires of Cyrodiil; possibly implying that, like the Order, they live disguised among the normal population as stealthy manipulators.[21]

Morrowind
The Dunmer are strongly opposed to any form of necromancy, thus vampires are largely unknown in their land of Morrowind.[2][23][24] The Tribunal Temple has some control over the public knowledge of vampires, but cannot keep it completely unknown. In the past, Ordinators and Buoyant Armigers were in charge of eradicating vampires, leading to their supposed extinction.[24] Thus, the hunting orders that exist in the western Tamriel are unknown.[2]
The vampires of Morrowind are typically in one of three bloodlines, which differ in accordance to their "approach to prey". The Quarra are aggressive and fierce when it comes to hunting, while the Berne clan prefer a stealthier approach. The Aundae bloodline consist of vampiric mages, who use the dark powers associated with vampirism to entrap prey. These vampires not only have their own strongholds, but are also dispersed amongst the Daedric shrines and abandoned Dunmer and Dwemer strongholds.[23] Ironically, these clans show great hostility to new-born vampires, considering them abominations as their living counterparts do.
In the Red Mountain, the Ash Vampire was an immortal magical being of vast power. They were close kin and loyal lieutenants of Dagoth Ur,[25] and thus partook of his supernatural vitality, but they were not related to true vampires - in fact, they are not even undead.[2][24] Near the end of the Third Era, the number of vampires began to rise in Morrowind, leading to renewed calls to exterminate them.[23][24]

Skyrim
Main hall of Castle Volkihar (Skyrim)
The Volkihar vampires of eastern Skyrim live under haunted, frozen lakes and only leave their dens to feed. They have the power to freeze their victims with icy breath, and can reach through the ice of their frozen lake dens without breaking it.[4] They are the earliest known vampire coven in Tamriel. The Volkihar vampires are relatively similar in appearance to those of Cyrodiil and they share some similar powers such as night vision, the ability to turn invisible and the ability to seduce others. Certain Volkihar vampires however appear more monstrous than their Cyrodiilic counterparts- some of them have large brow ridges, slits running through their lips, and bat-like noses, and they have powers which aren't shared by the vampires of Cyrodiil—they can reanimate dead bodies and do not burn when in sunlight (although they are weakened by it). The Volkihar have been known to employ Death Hounds as guardians.[26]
Some of the more ancient Volkihar vampires such as those of the court at Castle Volkihar are pure-blooded and can even transform themselves into a more monstrous form: the large, winged Vampire Lords which were blessed by Molag Bal himself. This gift grants further powers such as the ability to summon gargoyles.[19] It is said that Potema, the Wolf Queen, relied upon vampiric generals in the latter days of the War of the Red Diamond.[27]

Tsaesci
The Tsaesci are the "vampiric Serpent Folk" native to Akavir who, according to legend, long ago ate all the men of that land. It is unknown if their reputation as "vampire snakes" is literal or metaphorical, though like conventional vampires, they are purportedly immortal.[28][29]

Valenwood
In northern Valenwood, there are the Bonsamu vampires which are indistinguishable from normal Bosmer unless seen by candlelight, the Keerilth who can disintegrate into mist, the Yekef who swallow men whole, and the Telboth who prey on children, take their place in the family, and eventually murder all of the family members.[4]

Thought I'd read somewhere pre launch that the version of vampirism they are using for ESO predates any of the permutations we've become familiar with from playing other elder scrolls games. Hence the presence of the ability to not be burned by the sun.

Supposedly all of the other versions are permutations of the form represented in this game.

I'm not sure that's entirely true. The Sanguinare Vampiris version of vampirism that was in Skyrim: Dawnguard began with Lord Harkon, and while we don't know the exact date that he received this "gift" from Molag Bal, we do know that his daughter, Serana, has been imprisoned since the First Era, so that variety of vampirism has been around since long before the time of ESO.

Interesting. I'll have to take a look at it. I really liked the graphics in Skyrim, but was so turned off by the hand holding issues the game had that I never bothered to finish it. Hence my understanding of Lord Harkon is somewhat limited.

Thanks for pointing that out.

Do note, however, that I'm not saying that Lord Harkon's Sanguinare Vampiris is definitely older than the version of vampirism that we see in ESO. We know that by the time of ESO Lord Harkon's version of vampirism has been around for many centuries, which would suggest that it may be older, but as far as I know we have no indication of how long the ESO vampirism strain has been around, so it's also possible that it originated before Lord Harkon's version.

Also, while we know that Harkon (and his immediate family) got his vampirism directly as a gift from Molag Bal, that doesn't necessarily preclude it being a variant on the ESO version of vampirism. After all, it's entirely possible that each different strain of vampirism began as a gift from Molag Bal, with each new strain being a variant on the original gift that he gave the first vampire. Molag Bal seems like the kind of daedric prince who is willing to take a useful tool (the gift of vampirism) and refine it over time as it suits his plans, after all.

FreedomDude

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@AshySamurai‌ Something else to keep in mind is that in ES lore, there are multiple types of vampires. Technically there should be a lot more difference between vampires in one part of the world vs another. It's the fall back reasoning they gave for Skyrim vampires being way different from Cyrodill (Oblivion) vampires

It's worth note that this is far from the first time less feeding=more power. That was typically an Ann Rice convention. In World of Darkness relm (Vampire the Masquerade) The longer you go without feeding the closer you come to the "beast". Certain bloodlines (Gangrel in particular) like to flirt with the "beast" and go into frenzies faster than the others.
Info on Gangel if you want to read. This goes a little too deep into it, but plenty of info.

Diseases causing vampirism
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Sanguinare_Vampiris (Skyrim)
http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Porphyric_Hemophilia_(Oblivion) (Obvlivion and Morrowind)

Bloodlines and clans (This is long, but a good read)
Lore:Vampire Wiki

The vampires of Tamriel are commonly grouped by their territory and "bloodline". A vampire's bloodline is determined by the vampire who infected it, which in turn affects its abilities. Some vampires have created clans according to bloodline and territory. These clans normally consist of vampires of the same bloodline, or who share the same feeding grounds. Some clans are powerful enough to have established strongholds and regularly feed off captured "cattle": prisoners, or thralls, who they feed off of regularly without turning them into vampires.[20]

Black Marsh
The Whet-Fang vampires of Black Marsh are known to capture victims alive and keep them in a magicka-induced coma, allowing the vampires to extract blood at their own leisure. The Order vampires of Cyrodiil believe the Whet-Fang vampires to show "signs of enlightenments", regarding them as more intelligent than the other "barbaric" tribes. For this reason, the Order considers them a possible threat to their dominance in Cyrodiil.[21]

Cyrodiil
Only one known tribe exists in Cyrodiil; they are experts of concealment, and their true name has been lost to history. Much like the Imperials, they ousted their competition. Indistinguishable from the living if well-fed, these Cyrodiilic Vampires are cultured and more civilized than vampires of other provinces, using their stealthy abilities to feed on the sleeping and unaware.[4] Calling themselves the Order, these vampires follow the Daedric Prince "Kin-father" Molag Bal, like many other vampires, but they also consider Clavicus Vile their patron. Members are bound never to reveal themselves or the Order, and to procure power, stature, and wealth whenever possible.[21]

Iliac Bay
The Iliac Bay region hosts nine bloodlines of vampires, each with their own special abilities: the Anthotis, Garlythi, Haarvenu, Khulari, Lyrezi, Montalion, Selenu, Thrafey, and Vraseth.[1] The clans inhabit their own regions, and a strong sense of rivalry is present. At least some vampires, however, became soldiers in an army of undead which ruled over the Barony of Dwynnen around 3E 253.[22]
The Glenmoril Wyrd vampires live in the Breton cities of High Rock, though no information about their abilities or feeding habits is known. It is known, however, that they are one of the tribes considered more intelligent (and threatening) by the Order vampires of Cyrodiil; possibly implying that, like the Order, they live disguised among the normal population as stealthy manipulators.[21]

Morrowind
The Dunmer are strongly opposed to any form of necromancy, thus vampires are largely unknown in their land of Morrowind.[2][23][24] The Tribunal Temple has some control over the public knowledge of vampires, but cannot keep it completely unknown. In the past, Ordinators and Buoyant Armigers were in charge of eradicating vampires, leading to their supposed extinction.[24] Thus, the hunting orders that exist in the western Tamriel are unknown.[2]
The vampires of Morrowind are typically in one of three bloodlines, which differ in accordance to their "approach to prey". The Quarra are aggressive and fierce when it comes to hunting, while the Berne clan prefer a stealthier approach. The Aundae bloodline consist of vampiric mages, who use the dark powers associated with vampirism to entrap prey. These vampires not only have their own strongholds, but are also dispersed amongst the Daedric shrines and abandoned Dunmer and Dwemer strongholds.[23] Ironically, these clans show great hostility to new-born vampires, considering them abominations as their living counterparts do.
In the Red Mountain, the Ash Vampire was an immortal magical being of vast power. They were close kin and loyal lieutenants of Dagoth Ur,[25] and thus partook of his supernatural vitality, but they were not related to true vampires - in fact, they are not even undead.[2][24] Near the end of the Third Era, the number of vampires began to rise in Morrowind, leading to renewed calls to exterminate them.[23][24]

Skyrim
Main hall of Castle Volkihar (Skyrim)
The Volkihar vampires of eastern Skyrim live under haunted, frozen lakes and only leave their dens to feed. They have the power to freeze their victims with icy breath, and can reach through the ice of their frozen lake dens without breaking it.[4] They are the earliest known vampire coven in Tamriel. The Volkihar vampires are relatively similar in appearance to those of Cyrodiil and they share some similar powers such as night vision, the ability to turn invisible and the ability to seduce others. Certain Volkihar vampires however appear more monstrous than their Cyrodiilic counterparts- some of them have large brow ridges, slits running through their lips, and bat-like noses, and they have powers which aren't shared by the vampires of Cyrodiil—they can reanimate dead bodies and do not burn when in sunlight (although they are weakened by it). The Volkihar have been known to employ Death Hounds as guardians.[26]
Some of the more ancient Volkihar vampires such as those of the court at Castle Volkihar are pure-blooded and can even transform themselves into a more monstrous form: the large, winged Vampire Lords which were blessed by Molag Bal himself. This gift grants further powers such as the ability to summon gargoyles.[19] It is said that Potema, the Wolf Queen, relied upon vampiric generals in the latter days of the War of the Red Diamond.[27]

Tsaesci
The Tsaesci are the "vampiric Serpent Folk" native to Akavir who, according to legend, long ago ate all the men of that land. It is unknown if their reputation as "vampire snakes" is literal or metaphorical, though like conventional vampires, they are purportedly immortal.[28][29]

Valenwood
In northern Valenwood, there are the Bonsamu vampires which are indistinguishable from normal Bosmer unless seen by candlelight, the Keerilth who can disintegrate into mist, the Yekef who swallow men whole, and the Telboth who prey on children, take their place in the family, and eventually murder all of the family members.[4]

Thought I'd read somewhere pre launch that the version of vampirism they are using for ESO predates any of the permutations we've become familiar with from playing other elder scrolls games. Hence the presence of the ability to not be burned by the sun.

Supposedly all of the other versions are permutations of the form represented in this game.

I'm not sure that's entirely true. The Sanguinare Vampiris version of vampirism that was in Skyrim: Dawnguard began with Lord Harkon, and while we don't know the exact date that he received this "gift" from Molag Bal, we do know that his daughter, Serana, has been imprisoned since the First Era, so that variety of vampirism has been around since long before the time of ESO.

Interesting. I'll have to take a look at it. I really liked the graphics in Skyrim, but was so turned off by the hand holding issues the game had that I never bothered to finish it. Hence my understanding of Lord Harkon is somewhat limited.

Thanks for pointing that out.

Do note, however, that I'm not saying that Lord Harkon's Sanguinare Vampiris is definitely older than the version of vampirism that we see in ESO. We know that by the time of ESO Lord Harkon's version of vampirism has been around for many centuries, which would suggest that it may be older, but as far as I know we have no indication of how long the ESO vampirism strain has been around, so it's also possible that it originated before Lord Harkon's version.

Also, while we know that Harkon (and his immediate family) got his vampirism directly as a gift from Molag Bal, that doesn't necessarily preclude it being a variant on the ESO version of vampirism. After all, it's entirely possible that each different strain of vampirism began as a gift from Molag Bal, with each new strain being a variant on the original gift that he gave the first vampire. Molag Bal seems like the kind of daedric prince who is willing to take a useful tool (the gift of vampirism) and refine it over time as it suits his plans, after all.

From what I know vampirism starts with Molag Bal, so all pure blood vampires (mortals who received the gift direcly from Molag Bal) are "Vampire Lords". The Volkihar vampire bloodline (Sanguinare Vampiris) is presumed the most true to what Molag Bal first created.

That being said Lamae Bal should in theory be a Vampire Lord herself considering she was the first vampire and directly recieved her "gift" from Molag Bal. It has also been said that different bloodlines have been modified by different deadric princes like the vampirism from Cyrodiil. I have no idea how or why Noxiphilic Sanguivouria (ESO vampirism) is so vastly different to any other type of vampirism in TES...

In the end of the day the "different bloodlines/types of vampirism" only exist because in each new TES the developers try a new approach with vampirism.

BloodStorm

ZoS should make me a vampire gargoyle form open world raid boss and if found and killed all players lose vampirism and cycle to find it starts over.