Interlude with a Vampire [Staking]

[Maerok]

Is there a ruleset for staking a vampire? Or any homebrew stuff? What I'm considering now is:

You have to grapple the sucker and pin them. On the following round, you have to make a melee touch attack (with a -10 penalty by yourself, or a -5 penalty if you bring a friend and they pin it while you stake it) to impale the vampire.

[hamishspence]

d20 modern had one (score natural 20 with wooden piercing weapon) and Munchkin (hit ac, adjusted for 3 sizes smaller, must get through DR) if you want a more buffyish game.

[mostlyharmful]

Given how a vampire'd resist staking and the rolling around in a grapple I'd just rule that you can apply the Coup de Gra rules to a vampire if you use a wooden weapon. That'd do much the same given an undead fort save and it demands a helpless condition, something that's already clearly established. Sod the fluff in the MM.

[Iku Rex]

Buffy: "Why don't I just put a stake through her heart?"
Giles: "She's not a vampire."
Buffy: "Well, you'd be surprised how many things that'll kill."
-- The Wish

The point being that any mechanic involving staking has to consider what happens when players use the same technique on a non-vampire.

My take: In order to kill a vampire you have to make an attack with a wooden weapon that would have killed the vampire had it been mortal. That includes the -10 hit points. An additional attack penalty to represent the lack of options compared to a regular attack is also appropriate. (This won't matter on a CdG.) Say a +4 size bonus, with additional AC bonuses thrown in if the DM wants it to be extra hard.

You may or may not allow the vampire's DR to take off damage. Depends on how you see it working - supernatural toughness or instant regeneration. The DMG suggests it's the latter.

You can even get a virtual critical hit like this, but if the staking attempt is unsuccessful the attack is treated as a regular attack instead.

Example: The party has been beating on the vampire for a while to wear it down, Buffy style, and the archer decides it's time to go for the kill. The vampire has 4 hit points left. The arrow hits despite the heart's +4 size bonus and deals 18 damage. (DM not counting DR.) The vampire is dead. 13 damage and the vampire survives and instantly regenerates 10 damage. Heart missed. 1 HP left.

A helpless vampire is easier. Perform a coup de grace. It's an automatic virtual critical hit and the vampire has to make a Fort save based on the damage or die even if the damage is insufficient to kill it. However, if the vampire survives (the would-be vampire slayer lacked the skill or strength to do it properly) the attack was just a regular hit.

[Swooper]

There was a question about this on Ask Wizards a few weeks ago, I think. Basically, the answer was that it can only be done when the vampire is Helpless.

[Tsotha-lanti]

There was a question about this on Ask Wizards a few weeks ago, I think. Basically, the answer was that it can only be done when the vampire is Helpless.

I'd agree with that, yeah. It's a coup de grace, basically. Traditionally in AD&D and D&D, you stake vampires when you catch them in their coffins, not in the middle of a fight. First you beat them, then you track them, then you stake them.

A melee touch attack seems really inappropriate. Wooden stakes penetrate armor and natural armor completely, now? A regular touch attack against a pinned opponent seems more reasonable (no Dex bonus, etc.). You have to be kind of crazy to grapple a vampire anyway, considering that a few bad rolls will result in negative levels and / or Con damage.