rs2excelsior
2014-02-27, 03:05 PM
So, regarding how vampires work in OOTS. (Spoilers from the most recent strip, but you all should have read it by now.)
We know, from the most recent update, that Durkon's soul is trapped within his body. He has not moved on to the afterlife, but he has no control over the actions of his body anymore. We know that some sort of pure evil spirit was sent by Hel to take control of the vampire. We know, or at least can assume based on what we see, that Durkon can try to fight the vampire's influence, though any kind of resistance seems to be difficult (based on the fact that Durkon has not, that we have seen, managed to regain control even for an instant since his vampirization).
We also know that Malack believed staking him would destroy the person he had become. We also can suppose that Malack believed there would be at least something of the original Durkon left. Of course, based on what he said, it's entirely possible he never suspected anything of the sort, and he certainly expected the vampire to be different; his comment about "the Durkon that was" (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0879.html) shows that.
So, assuming Malack really did expect something of Durkon to be left, and assuming Durkula isn't a special case and all vampires work like that, how do we reconcile these things?
Here's what I'm thinking: when a person becomes a vampire, a dark energy spirit enters the body and binds the original soul. That soul can struggle against the vampire, but I would assume it is only in rare cases of extreme willpower that the soul could actually win. Then, as time goes by (more time if the soul is fighting the vampire, less if it actively approves--there are evil people in the world, after all), the separation between the two grows less distinct. I imagine that the Lizardfolk shaman that became Malack had, over the course of two centuries, merged with the vampire, due to the corruption of sharing a body with a spirit of pure evil.
Upon resurrection, should it occur, I would assume (and this is even more conjecture than the above) that the soul and vampire spirit would be separated. Some degree of the corruption would remain, but it could be atoned for--more easily the less the person had given in, and the less time spent as a vampire.
This is all purely conjecture, and word of Giant or future updates may disprove any or all of it, but I think it's a theory that fits all of the evidence. Thoughts?
We know, from the most recent update, that Durkon's soul is trapped within his body. He has not moved on to the afterlife, but he has no control over the actions of his body anymore. We know that some sort of pure evil spirit was sent by Hel to take control of the vampire. We know, or at least can assume based on what we see, that Durkon can try to fight the vampire's influence, though any kind of resistance seems to be difficult (based on the fact that Durkon has not, that we have seen, managed to regain control even for an instant since his vampirization).
We also know that Malack believed staking him would destroy the person he had become. We also can suppose that Malack believed there would be at least something of the original Durkon left. Of course, based on what he said, it's entirely possible he never suspected anything of the sort, and he certainly expected the vampire to be different; his comment about "the Durkon that was" (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0879.html) shows that.
So, assuming Malack really did expect something of Durkon to be left, and assuming Durkula isn't a special case and all vampires work like that, how do we reconcile these things?
Here's what I'm thinking: when a person becomes a vampire, a dark energy spirit enters the body and binds the original soul. That soul can struggle against the vampire, but I would assume it is only in rare cases of extreme willpower that the soul could actually win. Then, as time goes by (more time if the soul is fighting the vampire, less if it actively approves--there are evil people in the world, after all), the separation between the two grows less distinct. I imagine that the Lizardfolk shaman that became Malack had, over the course of two centuries, merged with the vampire, due to the corruption of sharing a body with a spirit of pure evil.
Upon resurrection, should it occur, I would assume (and this is even more conjecture than the above) that the soul and vampire spirit would be separated. Some degree of the corruption would remain, but it could be atoned for--more easily the less the person had given in, and the less time spent as a vampire.
This is all purely conjecture, and word of Giant or future updates may disprove any or all of it, but I think it's a theory that fits all of the evidence. Thoughts?