Wizards of the Coast has announced new content for Dungeons & Dragons, including a completely new and official class: the Vampire. For MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus, a long-held dream is coming true.
Since I was 12, I have been playing pen & paper in various systems, most frequently of course in D&D – after all, it is the largest tabletop RPG in the world. During that time, I have played over a dozen different characters. Most of the time, they were of course Bards, the best class in the game.
However, I have always had the urge to play a vampire and have tried several times: Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft has introduced Dhampires, or half-vampires. However, the rules of D&D have never really allowed for playing a “true” vampire.
That is about to change. With “Bound by Blood”, an official expansion for the 5th Edition is coming to D&D Beyond and brings with it a brand new vampire class – along with a whole set of new abilities and mechanics:
- Vampires have bloodlines, just like in Vampire: The Masquerade. By the way, this is also where the inspiration for the new D&D vampires comes from.
- To enhance their bloodlines, vampires can spend “blood points.” Whether this works similarly to the ki of monks or metamagic, we don’t yet know.
- Additionally, vampires must always pay attention to their “beast within,” after all, they should not pounce on their companions every time they suffer a cut.
Ravenloft is also the setting of the official D&D participation campaign:
Bound by Blood fulfills a wish I have long given up on
So far, I have always had to cobble together vampires from existing rules and negotiate with my DMs about what I can and cannot do. After all, vampires are undead and technically do not need to sleep, eat, or drink, have certain immunities… You shouldn’t become too powerful, as that would also be boring.
“True” vampires would actually be absurdly strong because they would be nearly immortal, could create new vampires, and more. Count Strahd von Zarovich is not one of the most powerful beings in D&D for nothing and the entire questline about Cazador and Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3 shows what even a higher vampire is capable of.
What do you think about vampires? Are you as excited about the new class as I am? Or would you be more interested in other innovations? Let me know in a comment!
I am curious to see how the vampire class will find its place in D&D and how it will interact with the existing races. After all, Dhampires were also something like a supplementary rule, but not a true class or a true race. Bound by Blood is expected to be released in July 2026. More information about the creators’ projects should be available at Gen Con at the end of July.
While I have quite a bit of experience with D&D and other systems – besides, DSA is my favorite world – creating a new character is always fun. However, one should always keep a few things in mind: Dungeons & Dragons: 6 tips to ensure your character doesn’t annoy you right in the first session
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