Creating vampires with spells (3.5)

[flappeercraft]

Simple question, is there a way to create a vampire with spells that do not require epic magic and how? All 3.5 is allowed including dragon/dungeon magazine and 3.0 sources that have not been updated are allowed. No PF backporting

[KillingAScarab]

Simple question, is there a way to create a vampire with spells that do not require epic magic and how? All 3.5 is allowed including dragon/dungeon magazine and 3.0 sources that have not been updated are allowed. No PF backportingYou could just rule that create greater undead can do it at caster level 20th or higher instead of making a devourer. After all, a devourer is supposed to be extraplanar and nothing else lets you create things from another plane.

[Malimar]

You could just rule that create greater undead can do it at caster level 20th or higher instead of making a devourer. After all, a devourer is supposed to be extraplanar and nothing else lets you create things from another plane.

Create lantern archon (Champions of Valor) does.

But I might agree with letting create greater undead do it. By CL 20 at the latest -- it can create things stronger than vampires before then.

Might also let bestow greater curse (Spell Compendium) do it, perhaps requiring a minimum caster level.

[Jack_Simth]

Simple question, is there a way to create a vampire with spells that do not require epic magic and how? All 3.5 is allowed including dragon/dungeon magazine and 3.0 sources that have not been updated are allowed. No PF backporting
Eschew Materials + Simulacrum (or Ice Assasin) + a suitable living victim to turn. Alternately, of course, you can skip Eschew Materials by pretty much any method for skipping material components.

[Ruethgar]

Wish can of course do it explicitly via Savage Species as can the rituals from the same book(though not actual spells).

[Jowgen]

Flesh of Orcus from Ghostwalk p. 71 is a 6000 gp 1-shot item that grants either the vampire or monstrous vampire template. It does have Create Undead and a CL of 11th as its prerequesite, so that lines up with the thread suggestions so far.

[Nettlekid]

In the vein of using an item, the Cursed item Necklace of the Vampire from the Arms and Equipment Guide page 147 will turn the wearer into a Vampire once they use its Finger of Death ability ten times. So just grab ten unimportant Commoners as sacrifices and maybe a Charm or Dominate effect to force the wearer to use Finger of Death (though the item description suggests it encourages the wearer to do so on its own.) It's pretty pricey, 90k, and requires CL 20 and Create Greater Undead, Finger of Death, and Vampiric Touch to craft. It's also effectively a one-use item since it burrows into the user's heart to turn them into a Vampire, though I suppose nothing forbids you from cutting your new Vampire open, retrieving it, and letting them Fast Heal that damage off. So if all options are available then Jowgen's suggestion of Flesh of Orcus is more efficient by a long shot, but if a necromantic ritual to create it is a little iffy then the Necklace of the Vampire is a decent backup.

[flappeercraft]

Flesh of Orcus from Ghostwalk p. 71 is a 6000 gp 1-shot item that grants either the vampire or monstrous vampire template. It does have Create Undead and a CL of 11th as its prerequesite, so that lines up with the thread suggestions so far.

Is there a way that the corpsecrafter line of feats could be applied to someone who uses this though?

[zergling.exe]

In the vein of using an item, the Cursed item Necklace of the Vampire from the Arms and Equipment Guide page 147 will turn the wearer into a Vampire once they use its Finger of Death ability ten times. So just grab ten unimportant Commoners as sacrifices and maybe a Charm or Dominate effect to force the wearer to use Finger of Death (though the item description suggests it encourages the wearer to do so on its own.) It's pretty pricey, 90k, and requires CL 20 and Create Greater Undead, Finger of Death, and Vampiric Touch to craft. It's also effectively a one-use item since it burrows into the user's heart to turn them into a Vampire, though I suppose nothing forbids you from cutting your new Vampire open, retrieving it, and letting them Fast Heal that damage off. So if all options are available then Jowgen's suggestion of Flesh of Orcus is more efficient by a long shot, but if a necromantic ritual to create it is a little iffy then the Necklace of the Vampire is a decent backup.

I think the more powerful function of this necklace is the 'killing them forever' part. Even when the vampire is destroyed, they cannot be raised to life afterward.

Also, the caster level is the item's caster level, not the caster level needed to create it. That would be specified in the prerequisites section.

[WhatThePhysics]

Polymorph Any Object cast onto a zombie could do it.

[atemu1234]

Polymorph Any Object cast onto a zombie could do it.

I like the way you think.

BRB, making a vampire army out of zombies.

[Jack_Simth]

Polymorph Any Object cast onto a zombie could do it.
PaO theoretically inherits the restriction against templates from earlier down the chain.

[ShurikVch]

Back in 3.0 time, Create Greater Undead was able to create Vampire at CL 18-19

Shrouds of the Unholy (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/dx20021031x) is able to create any Undead, period.

[KillingAScarab]

Back in 3.0 time, Create Greater Undead was able to create Vampire at CL 18-19

Shrouds of the Unholy (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/dx20021031x) is able to create any Undead, period.I could see some DM discretion at play regarding liches. I wonder why they decided to to change that spell from vampires and ghosts to wraiths and devourers. Were they worried about spreading the templates too much?