Forums of the Megaverse®

To the old question about what happens to a vampire on a planet with no sun/very little sun?

Page 15 of the Nightlands book it says that becuase the nightlands have no sun, vampires are able to operate 24/7 without ill effect.

granted they're also hunted mercilessly there....but that's not the point.

the point seems to be that vampires have no need for sleep or rest for it's own sake, it's mearly a direct reaction to the sun.

So we can have vampires in space for Phase World.

Interesting...

I would say, yes, but under special circumstances;

If inside a ship & not near any outward-facing ports, the vampire is safe. however, if near or in front of a port, the vamp would feel lethargic, as if active during twilight hours on a planet. This is due to the distance between stars & the relative location of the ship to those stars.

If near an active star & exposed to it via a port, the vamp takes damage relative to the closeness to the star. I'd say within 1 A.U.; full damage, decreasing by 5% for each light minute out from the star. This is because the port 'window' also filters the incoming light much like an atmosphere.

I've seen & read plenty of "vampires in space" themed stories where this happens.

life force

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifeforce_%28film%29

Nekira Sudacne wrote:To the old question about what happens to a vampire on a planet with no sun/very little sun?

Page 15 of the Nightlands book it says that becuase the nightlands have no sun, vampires are able to operate 24/7 without ill effect.

granted they're also hunted mercilessly there....but that's not the point.

the point seems to be that vampires have no need for sleep or rest for it's own sake, it's mearly a direct reaction to the sun.

Good catch on your part from the Nightbane™ Setting.......

...but I already and long ago pointed out a Canon Hook Line & Sinker™ in the Rifts: Phase World Sourcebook about an ever-awake Vampire on a distant Planet that has an extremely long Night Cycle.

BookWyrm wrote:I would say, yes, but under special circumstances;

If inside a ship & not near any outward-facing ports, the vampire is safe. however, if near or in front of a port, the vamp would feel lethargic, as if active during twilight hours on a planet. This is due to the distance between stars & the relative location of the ship to those stars.

Counterpoint, by your logic, vampires would feel sluggish all the time, in any reality with stars.

If near an active star & exposed to it via a port, the vamp takes damage relative to the closeness to the star. I'd say within 1 A.U.; full damage, decreasing by 5% for each light minute out from the star. This is because the port 'window' also filters the incoming light much like an atmosphere.

I don't think scientific analysis is really good for what's basically a supernatural reaction to a mystical element, especially if you get down to a percentage formula for the precise distance from a star (and if you were doing that, then logically you'd use an inverse square rule rather than a linear decrease). I'd rule that being on the surface of a planet that's at the right distance from the sun causes normal damage, being on the surface of more distant planets will cause half damage, and being on the surface of closer planets will cause whatever insane level of damage the GM deems fit. And being far enough away to effectively not be part of the solar system means you can kiss the sun goodbye and ignore all penalties whatsoever.

And being in space at the equivalent distances causes the equivalent damage, with the added problem that there is no elemental link with the earth to keep vamps active. If they're not in the shadow of a planet (or at least a large moon) and they're relatively close to a system's sun, then they're gonna act like its daytime. And if they've got no soil of the homeland, that means they're gonna go **** insane and got nuts until the ship either goes somewhere sheltered or gets far enough away.

Good point, Rallan.

Nekira Sudacne wrote:To the old question about what happens to a vampire on a planet with no sun/very little sun?

Page 15 of the Nightlands book it says that becuase the nightlands have no sun, vampires are able to operate 24/7 without ill effect.

granted they're also hunted mercilessly there....but that's not the point.

the point seems to be that vampires have no need for sleep or rest for it's own sake, it's mearly a direct reaction to the sun.

Problems with that assessement:

The Nightlants are likely a pocket dimension. A pocket dimension has it's own laws of physics and metaphysics. If the creators of the pocket dimension decide that the sun is too weak to harm vampires (and yes there is a sun, there are descriptions of shadows moving in relation to it's passing, it's light just does not harm vampires and it is not visible in the sky) then the sun is too weak to harm vampires. This does not necissarily apply in the three galaxies (in other words, GM call).

There is never a mention that other than being able to bear the light of the hidden sun, that the vampires are fully functional during "daylight" hours. so we can draw no conclusions about that.

Oh and IIRC, Palladium Vampires must sleep in the soil of their homeland every 24 hours or begin to develop insantity similar to that of blood starvation - another knock against the space borne vampire.

Braden, GMPhD wrote:So we can have vampires in space for Phase World.

Interesting...

Would exposure to starlight in space qualify as "Sunlight" as there is no atmosphere or physical obstruction to stop the light.

Jefffar wrote:

Nekira Sudacne wrote:To the old question about what happens to a vampire on a planet with no sun/very little sun?

Page 15 of the Nightlands book it says that becuase the nightlands have no sun, vampires are able to operate 24/7 without ill effect.

granted they're also hunted mercilessly there....but that's not the point.

the point seems to be that vampires have no need for sleep or rest for it's own sake, it's mearly a direct reaction to the sun.

Problems with that assessement:

The Nightlants are likely a pocket dimension. A pocket dimension has it's own laws of physics and metaphysics. If the creators of the pocket dimension decide that the sun is too weak to harm vampires (and yes there is a sun, there are descriptions of shadows moving in relation to it's passing, it's light just does not harm vampires and it is not visible in the sky) then the sun is too weak to harm vampires. This does not necissarily apply in the three galaxies (in other words, GM call).

There is never a mention that other than being able to bear the light of the hidden sun, that the vampires are fully functional during "daylight" hours. so we can draw no conclusions about that.

Oh and IIRC, Palladium Vampires must sleep in the soil of their homeland every 24 hours or begin to develop insantity similar to that of blood starvation - another knock against the space borne vampire.

there's no more reason to assume their a pocket dimension as opposed to a simple alternate or mirror dimenison.