| “ | At approximation, the creature is 8 feet tall, bipedal, winged. Wing webbing appears to be affixed to its forelimbs and to the digits of its hands. | ” |
– Eric during autopsy | ||
Vampires are the main antagonistic forces in The Dark Pictures Anthology's third installment, House of Ashes. They are dead bat-like aliens or humans controlled by a race of extraterrestrial parasites.
Near the end of the game, it is revealed that the bat-like vampires are representatives of a race of space-faring "cosmic nomads" whose ship picked up the alien parasites and ended up crashing into Earth millions of years ago.
Appearance[]
Alien Vampires[]
Alien vampires are bipedal humanoids about 8 feet tall, remotely resembling bats. Their skin is dark gray smothered in excretion, while their wings and gills are dark pink. They display a large muscle mass, especially in their legs. They have four claws on the hands and three claws on the feet. Vampires have no eyes (but still possess eye sockets), which are replaced by three pairs of gills stretching to the back of the head. They also have two pairs of wings, with the main wings united with the arms and the small wings are in the middle of the back. Some parasite's tentacles stick out of the body as a few spines in the shoulder blades and a pair of elongated fangs in the top central incisor area of the mouth.
Human Vampires[]
Human vampires retain their appearance unchanged except for getting pale gray skin with swollen black-blue veins and milky white eyes. Like alien vampires, human vampires receive elongated fangs, spines on their back, as well as two small spines on the forehead that look like horns.
Biology[]
Physical Characteristics[]
Alien Vampires[]
Alien vampires display excellent predatory skills, effectively hunting both alone and in packs. While bipedal, they are capable of moving on four legs and are very agile despite their size. Though the note states that vampires are clumsy flyers, they are skilled at flying, albeit confined to narrow caves most of the time. Vampires are incredibly strong, able to easily grab humans and tear them apart with sharp claws. They have very durable skin withstanding bullets from assault rifles and pistols. Even large, heavy objects, such as the truck, can't crush them to death, only stunning them.
From the aliens, vampires inherited the ability for echolocation to compensate for their lack of eyes. With their gills, they make clicking sounds to navigate in space. For the same reason, vampires possess extremely sensitive hearing, able to hear even the dripping of blood.
Human Vampires[]
After transformation into a vampire, humans become wild monsters with an uncontrollable thirst for blood, no longer recognizing their loved ones and perceiving them only as food. Despite the ferocity, they can submit to superior vampires, as seen in case of The Ancient One and Rachel.
Human vampires, while not as strong and agile as alien vampires, still surpass the average person in all aspects. For example, Clarice, being physically weak, was able to overpower the trained protagonists after her transformation. Human host bodies retain their normal vision which makes it harder to hide from them.
The Ancient One[]
The Ancient One is unique among alien and human vampires. Unlike both species, he shows signs of intelligence and acts more like a human among his kin. Thus, he learned to wield a spear masterfully and was able to give a decent fight back to the protagonists. Also, unlike most vampires, The Ancient One has more control over its desire to feed and tends to infect or simply kill its prey instead of attempting to feed on it.
Weaknesses[]
The main weakness of all vampires is sunlight or UV light, direct exposure to which causes them to immediately ignite. Their sensitivity is so strong that even moonlight can harm them, since it reflects sunlight. The only occasions when vampires are able to move on surface are during an eclipse. Although both alien and human vampires are vulnerable to UV light, The Ancient One is an exception, as the light, for unknown reasons, causes him discomfort instead of burning. Fire is also effective against vampires and easily incinerates them.
Another effective way to kill a vampire is by disrupting the connection with the parasite that controls them. This can be done by either killing the parasite directly, stabbing the vampire with a sharp object through the chest where the parasite is located, or by destroying the brain or head, causing the parasite to lose control over body.
Thanks to the vampires' durable skin, ordinary bullets are useless against them. Heavier rifle rounds, however, such as those fired by the Vickers gun, have proven far more effective, and while they can't kill vampires, they can certainly stun them for a while.
Saliva and Adrenaline[]
Vampire saliva is black in color and has a poisonous effect, according to Science Notes. When biting or inhaling the substance, the victim experiences heightened sense of fear and terrifying hallucinations, which increases the rate of blood circulation. Autopsy Notes reveal that vampires intimidate their prey to pump out as much adrenaline as possible, which is the parasite's main food.
Cocoons and Alien Fluid[]
When not hunting, alien vampires cocoon themselves with a special substance preventing decay and aging, as Salim points out, it also smells like formaldehyde. They can hibernate for millennia in this manner, only emerging during hunger or due to external factors. Secretions from the cocoons have been shown to have effects on humans as well; thus, Balathu/Kurum was found still alive, with the left side covered with fluid and perfectly preserved for 4,000 years, while the right half was completely decomposed to a skeleton. The fluid is also capable of slowing or completely stopping the growth of the parasite, allowing the infected Rachel to last long enough for help to arrive without transforming into a vampire.
Transformation Process[]
According to the Creature Life Cycle note, the process of becoming a vampire consists of 5 stages:
- The vampire hunts down prey for parasite implantation.
- The vampire implants the parasite into the victim's body through the mouth. During the process, the victim loses consciousness.
- This confirms that there can be several parasites in one vampire - one controls the corpse and the others are used to infect victims.
- The parasite gestates in the host's body. The process is very painful for the victim and alters their physical state, giving them a sickly look.
- A couple of hours before the transformation, the victim experiences a number of symptoms, including sweating, coughing, fainting, fever, headache, dizziness, nausea, pain, and visions of the vampires and their origins.
- The host dies.
- The parasite connects to the brain and takes control over host's corpse, reanimating it as a vampire. The time of transformation depends on the status of the body, taking 5-6 hours if the victim was alive and 1-2 hours if the victim was dead.
- The rate of development of the parasite can be slowed to a few days, presumably by medication, as Mary Hodgson was infected on December 28 and died on December 31.
If the brain of the infected has been damaged or destroyed, the parasite loses its ability to control the body and leaves the host through its mouth. The only way to get the parasite out without killing the host is through surgery or the use of UV light.
Biography[]
Millions of years ago, bat-like aliens were traveling through space from the constellation of Cetus when their ship was infested by parasites. They began to infect the crew and as the aliens tried to resist, the ship crashed on Earth, in the Zagros Mountains. After the crash, the surviving aliens, now turned vampires, went into hibernation for several millennia while spaceship was completely buried underground.
During the times of the Akkadian Empire, vampires came out hunting multiple times during an eclipse, one of which ended in a massacre during the Akkadian-Gutian War. Later on, the Akkadians began to associate the eclipse with an omen of disaster and considered vampires as underworld demons, particularly Pazuzu.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, vampires began to surface on moonless nights and prey on the live cattle of local farmers, sowing panic in the mountains. Farmers tried to hunt vampires, believing they were a pack of wild dogs, only to go missing themselves. Years later, some tourists and travelers went missing as well, which the police suspected to be a case of serial killers. In fact, the murders belonged to shepherds who worshipped the vampires and sacrificed people so that they stopped hunting them and their livestock. This resulted in the vampires ceasing to surface for several decades.
In 1946 - 1947, the creatures reawakened when their space ship was found by a British expedition team led by archaeologist Randolph Hodgson. As it is revealed in his diaries, they were lured to the vampires by Agnes Bradshaw, who knew of their existence and wished to learn their secret of immortality. Subsequently, the vampires attacked the expedition when they attempted to destroy the temple and bury the creatures underground forever, and slaughtered them all.
Chapter Appearances[]
| Cursed | Debut | Absent |
| The Briefing | Absent | Absent |
| The Raid | Absent | Absent |
| Underworld | Appears | Absent |
| Pazuzu | Appears | Absent |
| The Temple | Appears | Absent |
| Breaking Up | Absent | Absent |
| After the Fall | Mentioned | Absent |
| Slayer | Appears | Absent |
| The Truce | Appears | Absent |
| Bloodbath | Appears | Debut |
| The Signal | Appears | Absent |
| The Assault | Appears | Mentioned |
| The Horror | Appears | Appears |
| Enemy of My Enemy | Appears | Absent |
| The Well | Appears | Absent |
| The Ancient One | Absent | Appears |
| Brothers | Absent | Absent |
| The City | Appears | Absent |
| Strange Aeons | Mentioned | Absent |
| The Vault | Appears | Appears |
| Semper Fi | Appears | Determinant |
| Daylight | Appears | Determinant |
| The End | Appears | Determinant |
House of Ashes[]
Prologue[]
As a bloody battle breaks out between the Akkadians and the Guthians in front of the temple of Naram-Sin, the vampires awaken from their slumber and rise to the surface as the solar eclipse begins. They stage a massacre, killing everyone on both sides, and infiltrate the temple. There, they catch up with the survivors of the massacre on the surface, Akkadian General Balathu and Gutian soldier Kurum, and attack the two as they try to escape through the catacombs, leaving the fate of the warriors unknown. As it turns out later in the main game, one of them is turned into a vampire while the other is left alive, preserved in fluid, making them unable to die for 4000 years.
Main Story[]
The vampires are reawakened during a shootout between the American forces and the Iraqi patrol and begin hunting both sides as they fall underground in an earthquake.
The first to encounter the vampires are Nick, Jason, Clarice, and Merwin. While the boys try to help Merwin, who was severely injured in the fall, Clarice is suddenly dragged away into the darkness, prompting the others to flee. Despite the extended chase, Nick and Jason manage to get away from the vampires, though Merwin is possibly killed, either when the guys fail to save him or are forced to abandon him to go to Rachel and Eric's rescue. Meanwhile, Salim also encounters a vampire as he investigates a dead Iraqi soldier in the ruins. During the chase, the vampire is crushed by a falling truck after another tremor, only to stir and attack Salim again when he decides to inspect. Trying to escape, Salim climbs a rock in the sunlight, allowing him to learn of the vampire's weakness for it. Salim then kills the vampire by stabbing him with a stake or escapes when it's distracted by a group of American marines, who are then slain.
Later in the caverns, Nick and Salim accidentally encounter each other when they spot another vampire feeding on a dead Iraqi soldier. With the creature not noticing them, the guys team up to get past it or try to kill it. If they kill the vampire and Eric is alive, the Americans take the creature's body to their base at the temple. Conducting an autopsy, Eric uses a UV lamp to examine the vampire, unknowingly setting it on fire and learning of their weakness. Inspecting the temple, Jason and Nick are suddenly attacked by Joey, who has become a vampire. The boys manage to throw him into the abyss, only to find out about a swarm of vampires on the bottom. At the same time, Rachel, who fell into the abyss during her and Eric's escape from Dar, tries to get out of the pit when she is attacked by a vampire. Fortunately, she is rescued by Clarice, but when the girls try to return to the temple it is revealed that Clarice is infected, causing Rachel to possibly abandon her as they attempt to cross the chasm.
When the group at the temple tries to use the radio, it begins to make a continuous loud noise, attracting the vampires. As the boys and girls reunite and hide in the temple, the vampires ambush them, potentially killing and infecting Rachel. Even though the main group manages to escape into the catacombs while simultaneously detonating the charges, the vampires still catch up with the Americans and Iraqis in the sacrificial chamber. With the arrival of The Ancient One, the vampires overpower both groups while Clarice dies and turns into a vampire, leading to Dar's death and the possible deaths of Eric (if Clarice stayed with the group to the end) and Rachel, the latter can also be infected.
Jason and Salim continue to flee deeper into the catacombs, where they encounter another vampire, whom they can successfully kill. After using an elevator in the caves to escape, the pair discover a massive alien structure underground and a gigantic cocoon vault. While exploring the spaceship, the guys are attacked by vampires awakened from the cocoons, but saved by the rest of the protagonists, who had earlier confronted The Ancient One. The survivors congregate in the location known as the Star Chamber, where they learn that the vampires are actually aliens who have been infected by parasites and turned into vampires. The group may also be faced with a dilemma about Rachel, who, if infected, will be on the verge of turning into a vampire. Depending on the group's decisions and knowledge, Rachel is either killed, cocooned to stop the growth of the parasite, or uses UV light to get the parasite out.
Deciding to destroy the vault, or at least cause enough of a diversion to facilitate an escape, Nick goes out to mine the mounds. Having mined the smaller mounds, Nick can choose to destroy the largest one as well, which however may lead to his death. As the mounds burn, the group runs to the elevators when Salim and Jason find themselves ambushed by vampires; the two may die unless they are the only survivors. Aditionally, if Clarice/Rachel turned into vampire, she will attack the protagonists in the caves.
Having finally made it to the surface, the group is relieved, only to be horrified by the eclipse. Then, a horde of vampires and potentially The Ancient One, make their way to the surface and attack the survivors who fortify the shepherds' huts. Each of the five can die as they desperately try to hold out for six minutes before the eclipse ends, using the last of their ammunition and a cache of flares that they found to ward off the vampires. As the eclipse ends, the vampires retreat back underground while the survivors are picked up by air support.
The End[]
Back at base, AEGIS agents examine the vampire's corpse, the parasite discovered in it, and fluid samples from the cocoons while interrogating the surviving protagonists about what happened underground. Discussing all this, Agents Miller and Brooke conclude that they must understand what happened while covering up the events to the masses.
Switchback VR[]
Vampires appear as enemies in House of Ashes themed levels, being Ancient Temple and Into the Abyss. Vampire Clarice and alien vampires serve as regular enemies in the temple/catacomb and spaceship sections respectively while The Ancient One (Balathu) acts as the boss.
Known Human Vampires[]
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Possible Deaths[]
This section only lists the deaths of alien vampires. To see deaths of The Ancient One, check The Ancient One#Possible Deaths.
| Chapter | Mechanism of Kill | Caused by | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slayer | Impaled by stake | Salim | Salim completes QTE to impale the vampire. |
| The Truce | Nick and Salim | Salim decided to kill the vampire; Nick and Salim complete every QTEs. | |
| The Assault | Blown up by grenade | Jason | Rachel is grabbed by a vampire; Rachel completes QTEs to fend it off. |
| Burned by generator explosion | Eric | Jason and Nick triggered Dar's tripwire OR Eric/Nick fails QTE to hold the door; Rachel fails to start the generator; Eric isn't aware about the vampires' weakness; Eric shoots the generator when Rachel is grabbed by a vampire (Shared Story). | |
| One of themselves (Indirect) | Always happens. | ||
| Explosion | Jason and Nick | The Americans manage to go pass by the tripwires. | |
| The Horror | Burned by UV wand | Rachel | Eric is alive; Rachel chose to save Eric; Rachel completes QTE to grab the UV wand on the ground. |
| Enemy of My Enemy | Unknown | Jason | Always happens. |
| Stabbed by stake | Salim | Salim completes QTE to impale the vampire. | |
| The Vault | Burned by UV wand | Nick | Eric is alive; Nick is injured; Nick has high relationship with Eric; Nick fails Keep Calm segment while hiding from a vampire; Nick retreated; Nick fails to fight the vampire back on his way. |
| Eric | Certain - Eric has the UV wand and is the only protagonist alive other than Jason and Salim. | ||
| Explosion AND/OR burning | Jason | Always happens. | |
| Semper Fi | Impaled by stake | Salim | Salim succeeds to fight the vampires. |
| Struck by lightning | Lightning discharge | Jason chooses to save Salim; Jason completes QTE to reload his gun; Salim fails to throw the stake at a vampire behind Jason. | |
| Daylight | Burned | The Sun | The protagonists survived 6 minutes of eclipse. |
Killed Victims[]
This section only lists the deaths caused by alien vampires. To see deaths caused by human ones, check Rachel Kills, Clarice Kills, and The Ancient One Kills.
| Chapter | Character | Mechanism of Kill | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| N/A - Prior to events of game | Numerous travellers and visitors including Marie Vinay and Yves Paugam | Killed off-screen | Certain. |
| Numerous members of The Hodgson Expedition | |||
| Mary Hodgson | Infection | ||
| Cursed | Numerous Akkadian and Gutian soldiers | Mauled | |
| Naram-Sin | |||
| Balathu | Infection | Whichever character that died last. | |
| Kurum | |||
| Pazuzu | A marine | Mauled | Certain. |
| An Iraqi soldier | |||
| The Temple | Merwin | Crushed | Merwin is alive; Jason and Nick went around the rubble; Jason or Nick fails Keep Calm segment. |
| Decapitated | Merwin is alive; Jason and Nick went through the rubble; Jason or Nick fails QTE to fight the vampire. | ||
| Mauled | Jason and Nick decide to leave Merwin behind. | ||
| Slayer | 3 marines | Slaughtered | Certain. |
| The Truce | An Iraqi soldier | Mauled | |
| Bloodbath | Clarice | Infection | Rachel abandons Clarice OR Clarice refuses to swing pass the chasm. |
| The Assault | Rachel | Stomach ripped out | Rachel fails QTEs to fend off the vampire which grabbed her AND Clarice is absent. |
| The Horror | Clarice | Infection | Clarice is brought from the temple; Clarice will always be infected regardless if she is abandoned or stays. |
| Dar | Blood drained | Clarice is not brought to the sacrificial chamber. | |
| Strange Aeons | Rachel | Infection | Rachel is infected; Rachel survived the ordeal; Rachel refuses to be cocooned OR Nick and Jason fails QTEs to get Rachel to the cocoon (Shared Story). |
| The Vault | Nick | Torn apart | Nick advanced to the motherlode; Nick fails Keep Calm segment. |
| Eric didn't give Nick the UV wand OR Eric is dead; Nick failed Keep Calm segment while hiding from a vampire; Nick retreated; Nick fails to fight the vampire on his way. | |||
| Semper Fi | Jason | Head crushed | Jason chose to save Salim; Jason and Salim fail to fight the vampires. |
| Salim | Salim fails to fight the vampires. | ||
| Mauled | Jason left Salim behind; Jason did not wait at the elevator. | ||
| Daylight | Eric | Impaled | Eric fails to fight the vampire in the hut. |
| Head crushed | |||
| Jason | Head crushed | Jason fails to fight the vampire in the hut OR The Ancient One killed two protagonists in the hut. | |
| Dropped from great height | Jason fails QTE to release himself from a vampire grabbing him through the roof. | ||
| Nick | Eyes gouged out | Nick fails to fight the vampire in the hut. | |
| Head crushed | The Ancient One killed two protagonists in the hut. | ||
| Dropped from great height | Nick fails QTE to release himself from a vampire grabbing him through the roof. | ||
| Rachel | Throat ripped out | Rachel fails to fight the vampire in the hut. | |
| Head crushed | |||
| Salim | Salim fails to fight the vampire in the hut OR The Ancient One killed two protagonists in the hut. | ||
| Dropped from great height | Salim fails QTE to release himself from a vampire grabbing him through the roof. |
Trivia[]
- The vampires are the first real non-human threat presented in the anthology.
- The vampires depicted in the game are largely based on stereotypical vampires. Both are nocturnal predators resembling bats, whose main food source is blood. They also share a weakness for light and generally killed by a stake through the heart.
- There appearance is also very similar to Count Orlok from Nosferatu and Kurt Barlow from Salem’s Lot.
- Vampires from House of Ashes also share many parallels with the Wendigos, the main antagonists of Until Dawn, and have some similarities with various creatures from other media including Xenomorphs from Alien, Cave Demons from Lost Tapes and bioraptors from Pitch Black.
- Before the official name was revealed in the game, vampires were called Underworld Creatures in promotional materials.
- The vampires have their own special feature in the game, Interview with a Monster Maker.
- In the early concept art, vampires had a different head shape. It looked more like a wildebeest rather than a bat, with eyes instead of gills, a row of sharp teeth in addition to fangs, and horns, giving the vampires a more demonic look.[3]
- To create a clicking sound, the developers combined the sounds of a scooter fender, a taser used on a bunch of meat, and a fishing line stretched between a small drum and a rod.[3]
- The vampires' saliva's ability to cause hallucinations and panic attacks is very similar to the Manchurian Gold, a chemical bio-weapon featured in Man of Medan.
- Joey is the only character who can't be killed by vampires as he always dies before falling underground. Ironically, he is always turned into a vampire.
- Despite the vampires have the ability to infect people, it is unknown by what characteristics they select victims, as very few people are transformed in the game while the rest are simply killed.
- The vampires make an appearance in Dark Deception multiplayer spin-off, Monsters & Mortals as bosses.
Gallery[]
References[]
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| Protagonists |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antagonists | Alien Parasites • The Ancient One • Vampires | ||||||
| Supporting Characters |
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