Bill Compton from 'True Blood' (HBO)

 I was made vampire in 1865, when I was thirty human years old.

Bill Compton

 

 

 

 




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

F: Rm (30)
A: Rm (30)/In (40)
S: Rm (30)/Am (50)
E: In (40)/Mn (75)
R: Gd (10)
I: Rm (30)/Mn (75)
P: Rm (30)/Am (50)

Health: 140/195*
Karma: 70/135
Resources: Rm (30)
Popularity: 5/30/40 (In Bon Temps/As the Avatar of Lilith/Spokesperson for

Talents:
Military*
Leadership*
Mystic Origin*
Knowledge: Vampires
Knowledge: Vampire Authority Organization.
Knowledge: Bom Temps area
Knowledge: History
Multi-Lingual*
Politics

Powers:
Vampire: Bill Compton is a relatively young vampire who possesses all of the abilities of a True Blood vampire of his age. Prior to his return as the avatar of Lilith, Bill did not have elder powers, but all of that changed once he drank the blood of Lilith. For Bill’s vampiric ability, please see the write-up on True Blood Vampires. Bill’s abilities as ‘Billith’ included:

• Enhanced FASERIP: While Bill was enhanced by the blood of Lilith, his FASERIP, Health, and Karma increased to the secondary listings. It was stated openly by several of the other characters that Bill had become ‘The strongest creature on Earth’ and was capable of incredibly feats of strength and endurance. Bill could literally tear steel out of place, rending three-foot doors apart with little effort.
• Increased Psionic Abilities: Bill’s hypnotic abilities and the ability to read the minds of those who had tasted his blood increased tenfold, going from their normal attributes to Am (50). Bill also gained telekinesis of Rm (30), able to move things easily with his mind, manipulate simple devices and machines, and use his will to move people and things in conjunction with his strength. Bill also gained a form of precognition allowing him to see and experience possible future events and specifically events involving vampires he was connected to. Bill would need to make a Psyche FEAT to resist the empathic pain from those terrible events or else he would feel the phantom damage as if he were taking it.
• Flight: Bill could fly like an elder vampire with Am (50) airspeed, increasing his levitation skills by +3cs (normally Excellent).
• Enhanced Vampiric Abilities: Bill’s vampiric abilities were incredibly enhanced after taking Lilith’s blood. Bill is considered to have the ‘Ancient’ level of power, making him at one time a rival to the original vampire’s abilities. Bill is also the only vampire to return from staking, regenerating instantly after being staked (which he did himself). Bill no longer suffered the limitations of being a vampire – Sunlight was a discomfort which could be eliminated with faerie blood, Bill no longer required permission to enter locations, and Bill was considered to be immune to most if not all the vulnerabilities that the TB vampire community had while the blood of Lilith was inside of him. In addition, Bill’s command of his progeny Jessica Hambey became a compulsion which Bill could use to cause rank damage to Jessica or any of Lilith’s line if he so chose.
• Immunity: Sunlight: After drinking the blood of the vampire Warlow, Bill was immune from sunlight and could pass this immunity to any vampire that drank his blood. So long as Warlow remained ‘alive’, Bill and whomever drank his blood could remain in the sun indefinitely.
• Enhanced Speed: Bill’s already impressive hyper speed as a vampire was increased to Mn (75) levels, allow him to potentially break the sound barrier and move with such alacrity to seem to be a blur. Other vampires had a hard time keeping up with him.

Vocal Mimic: Bill is able to perfectly mimic any human voice with Ex (20) ability, a power he had that was unique to him apparently and existed prior to his drinking of Lilith’s blood.
Contacts:
Bill’s contacts vary depending on his position and current situation. Bill could reliably call on Jessica Hamby, and was considered to be well entrenched with the Vampire Authority (at one point serving as the King of Louisiana. Bill could also call on Sookie Stackhouse with some regularity (until he took the blood of Lilith) and Eric Northman at different times. During his time as ‘Billith’, Bill’s powers made him capable of commanding any vampire or drawing any resources. Bill’s later time as author and ‘face’ of vampires tempered his disposition and made his contacts more reliable.

Limitations:
Before the blood of Lilith, Bill Compton had all of the limitations of a vampire, and additional ones as well:

• Dark Secret: Bill secretly worked to engineer his meeting and bonding with Sookie Stackhouse.
• Dark Secret: Bill had a dark past that he tried to hide, specifically his time with his maker Lorena, and the role he played during his period with her.
• Public Identity: Bill is the public face at times of the Vampire Authority, and one of the most visible vampires in the world prior to his time as ‘Billith’ and even more so afterwards when he writes the book on the nefarious dealings of Governor Truman Burrell.
• Protective: Bill is extremely protective of Sookie Stackhouse and Jessica Hamby, and will go to great lengths to protect either of them (Such as the time Bill walked into sunlight to try to save Sookie in season 1).
• Villain: Bill’s activities during his first few encounters after becoming ‘Billith’ are villainous – seeking to capture faerie blooded individuals, forcing those to serve him for ‘the greater good’, and generally sharpening Bill’s worst behaviors. Bill is able to regain himself after losing the Blood of Lilith, but it takes some time to convince people he’s back to normal.
• Infected: After Bill loses the blood of Lilith, he becomes infected with the vampiric Hepatitis which advances quickly. Bill is considered diseased and dying until his final destruction at the hands of Sookie Stackhouse.

True Blood (HBO Version)

 

 

 

Based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries, HBO's adaption True Blood represented both a departure from the standard horror fair for television and the constraints of broadcast television. During the course of its seven season run. Both with a serious horror and tongue-in-check vibe, True Blood  competed with its own genre constraints introducing a variety of modern issues cleverly disguised as fiction.

I've done several write-ups on True Blood characters over the the last decade for Halloween, and have a few more lurking:



 

Bill Compton - A vampire who becomes involved with Sookie Stackhouse early on and the main source of her romantic tensions. 

Pam Swynford De Beaufort -  Manager/Co-Owner of 'Fangtasia' - A vampire bar in Shreveport

Russell Edgington - One of the most dangerous vampires encountered and a snappy dresser.

Sookie Stackhouse - The main female protagonist, a telepathic waitress who becomes involved with the vampire world.

True Blood Vampires: How True Blood handles their vampires is very interesting

True Blood Vampires from 'True Blood'

Typical Vampire from True Blood

 

Standard Vampire

F: +1CS (Maximum of Am (50)
A: +2CS (Maximum of Am (50)
S: Rm (30)
E: In (40)
R: Varies
I: +2CS (Maximum of Am (50)
P: +1CS (Maximum of Am (50)

Health: Variable
Karma: Variable
Popularity: 5* (As vampires are generally seen as public, the local vampires are fairly well known when identified and to local law enforcement. Higher placed vampires within the Authority (such as Nan Flanagan or Bill Compton are significantly more popular). After the outbreak of Hep-V, the vampires suffer a popularity of -2, with better known vampires suffering a -10 (except for Compton, who actually gains a popularity increase to 30 due to his book).

Resources: Variable (dependent on age). Most vampires who have amassed great fortunes have lost them due to back-taxes (such as vampire queen Sophie due to avoiding the IRS). Due to the lack of rights for most vampires, they cannot easily transfer resources as they are technically deceased.

Talents: Skills and talents are variable for most vampires, depending on age,experience, and place of origin. There are some common talents that are usually shared between maker and offspring. These talents include:

• Knowledge: Vampire Culture: Most offspring (who have a good maker) are taught the basics of being a vampire, including the hierarchy and some mythology as to the origins. While the knowledge varies between vampires, universally the basics are outlined by the maker.
• Knowledge: Area: Most vampires are intimately aware of their surrounding areas, having specific regions governed by a 'king' or 'queen' and maintained by area 'sheriffs'. As such, most vampires are acutely aware of what areas are throughout the US and who controls what within their region.

Powers:
True Blood Vampirism*: Unlike other forms of vampirism, True Blood vampires have very specific abilities, limitations, and attributes. True Blood vampires can subsist off of artificial blood (True Blood) among other changes, while granting them the following attributes:

• Vampirism*: The TB vampires are bio-vampires, requiring blood to regenerate/nourish. They do not spread vampirism in the traditional means (See making vampires), and do not have greater chance to frenzy (Unless under the effects of Hep-V). TB vampires feed through use of a pair of retractable fangs (which can do Ex (20) edged damage). A TB vampire will 'eat' enough to sate itself (fully regenerated to full health), but can be 'drunk' on drinking too much blood. For every 20 points of blood a TB vampire consumes past their full health score, a negative is applied to their attributes (-1CS to Intuition at +20, -1CS to Psyche at +40, -2CS to Int at +60), -2CS to Psyche at +80 and so forth).
• Inhuman Speed: TB vampires at inhumanly quick ,easily able to dodge automatically weapons fire and being faster as they get older. A TB vampire is considered to have Rm (30) starting Hyper-Speed, gaining a +1CS for every 50 years they exist. The hyper-speed caps at Shift X (150), as example of the three oldest vampires encountered (Russell, Salome, and Lilith) being able to easily move hundreds of miles in minutes. In addition, TB vampires can again additional attacks per round, often being very lethal in their effects.
• Unnatural Durability: The TB vampires simply cannot be harmed in standard traditional means, able to ignore damage below Ex (20) with little issue. TB Vampires are fairly vulnerable to certain effects (See Limitations), but as seen on numerous occasions during the show, ignore most standard weapons and/or effects.
• Unnatural Senses: TB vampires have unnatural heightened senses, able to discern specific scents, body/heat signatures, heartbeats, and in some cases, preternatural senses over long distances. TB vampires are considered to have Ex (20) senses. In combination with their hyper-speed, TB vampires can see objects moving faster than normal and can perceive such attacks and actions with a simple Intuition FEAT.
• (Near)Complete Immunity: TB vampires do not age, need to breathe (but do so for the purposes of speaking/smelling), are immune to most temperature effects, most normal non-blood born diseases, and most standard toxins.
• Glamour: TB vampires have the ability to glamour targets with a variation of Super-Hypnotism*: By making eye contact, the TB vampire can control the actions of an opponent, plant long-term suggestions, memories, or effects, or create simple to complex commands. Most young TB vampires uncover this ability within the first few weeks of being 'made', possessing the ability at Ex (20) ability. As the TB vampire ages, they gain greater control only requiring a single moment and possessing far greater ability (I would say +1CS for every 100 years of age). A target may resist through an opposed Psyche FEAT, suffering penalties if they have drank the vampire's blood (See 'V' below).
• Healing: In addition to the benefits of healing through blood use, a TB vampire can also heal through use of Tru Blood or other artificial means. It is assumed that this healing also the benefits of acquiring the abilities of the individual who has been 'drunk' from, such as protection from sunlight (Faerie Blood) or protection from Hep-V (from Sarah Newlin's blood). The healing regenerates Endurance ranks as well as health.
• Flight: Some of the older vampires have shown the ability to fly with up to Am (50) airspeed depending on the age of the vampire and if they have learned the effect. As Eric Northman noted, not all vampires can fly just as 'All humans can't sing'.

"V":

Vampire Blood, also called by its street name "V" is a highly addictive and potent performance enhancement drug, often used/sold by vampires to make additional money. 'V' usually comes in small vials or ampules, moved much like other illegal substances. "V" has the following benefits/drawbacks:

• V Grants a +1CS to Fighting, Agility, Strength, and Endurance to a maximum of Ex (20). The effects last 1 - 100 turns depending on the amount ingested.
• V acts as a libido enhancer, granting a increased ardor around the individual (similar to a pheromone effect at Fe (2) ability).
• V increases healing in the individual, including being able to heal nearly fatal wounds in seconds and regenerating both damage and Endurance ranks (Considered to have Rm (30) Regeneration* and Recovery
• V grants Astral perception at Gd (10) ability, allowing shared 'hallucinations' between individuals. During these moments, a person can see the astral plane, interact with spirits, and other effects.
• If V is fresh (directly from a vampire), it causes a bond to form between the vampire and the individual, depending on the individual. The vampire gains a form of telelocation: Individual* at Mon (75) range, which includes their emotional state and/or their current status (Alive, wounded, etc). In addition, the vampire occasionally shows up in the dreams of the individual, increasing their ardor with Rm (30) intensity (creating very sexual dreams). Finally, continual use can create a permanent bond between the TB vampire and the human using it.

Making a Vampire
Making a vampire is a fairly serious concept within True Blood and is not usually done lightly. First, the TB vampire must be freed of their Maker/Progeny relationship, allowing them to become Makers (most of the time, but not necessarily). Secondly a maker must drain the target of their blood completely, replacing some of the blood with their own. Finally, the Maker and Progeny must rest a full day and night in fresh earth together. After the period, the Progeny rises as a vampire, under the control of the Maker until released. The Maker and Progeny share a complex relationship, as both are bound to one another until the Maker is either killed or releases the Progeny. The number of Progeny a Maker can have seems to be based around age and adherence to tradition.

The Maker has the following abilities with Progeny:

• Maker's Call: The Maker can summon the Progeny, requiring an opposed Psyche FEAT to resist at -2CS. The range of the call is capable of affecting a progeny on the other side of the world, depending on the age of the Maker. The Progeny is compelled to attend their Maker immediately, knowing exactly where their Maker currently is.
• Empathic Bond: The Maker is always aware of the mental and physical state of the Progeny, their current condition, and if harm has come to them with Mn (75) intensity. Depending on the nature of the relationship between Maker and Progeny, Age of the Maker, and emotional connection, the link may be higher. In addition, even if a Maker releases their Progeny, they will maintain a connection with their 'offspring' for life, allowing them to know if they have been killed, injured, or are in need.
• Control: A Maker controls the actions of their Progeny with an opposed Psyche FEAT at +2CS, forcing their Progeny to do their will. The Progeny is fully aware of the control, and may seek to resist it, but cannot force a re-roll and cannot spend Karma in order to affect the result.
• Release: A Maker can release their progeny at any time by stating the following out-loud: "As your maker, I release you". Once stated, the control power a Maker has over the Progeny disappears, and the connection between the two is no longer as strong, depending on the type of relationship the Maker and Progeny have.

Contacts:
Most TB vampires have connections within their own community (both human and vampire) as well as various connections within the world. As of The Great Revelation, vampires are commonly accepted to have connections through various governments, agencies, and businesses across the globe.

Limitations:

TB vampires have several key limitations including:

• Vampiric Limitations: A TB vampire is like a regular vampire in certain traditional limitations: TB vampires must be invited into a home and cannot enter otherwise. TB vampires require blood to regenerate (although they can use substitutes), TB vampires cannot stand the sunlight (suffering +2CS damage to any UV light, with additional +2CS per every 500 years of age), Have a decreased reaction to garlic (-2CS for all senses and generally avoid it when possible), and a wooden stake (or bullet) to the heart causes an immediate Roll vs Death at -6CS (Yellow or Red required).
• Blood Lust: A TB vampire will go on a feeding frenzy if deprived blood for too long, requiring a Psyche FEAT -2CS to avoid or regain control.
• Faerie Blood: A TB vampire will immediately enter Blood Lust if a faerie or faerie-blooded individual is identified or revealed, and will suffer a -4CS to regain control opposed to the -2CS Psyche FEAT.
• Silver: Silver will incapacitate a vampire, doing +1CS damage to them directly and 'burn' them. Vampires can be restrained with silver chains/cords, which does Typ (6) damage regardless of resistance and up to Gd (10) damage depending on the grade of silver.
• Decapitation: A vampire can be killed permanently if decapitated, regardless of ability or Endurance FEAT result. (Then again, who can't?)
• Disease-Specific Limitation: Vampires can catch any blood-born pathogen, which they can act as carriers of. The greatest two dangers faced by vampires are Hepatitis D and the man-made disease Hepatitis V (Or Hep-V). Hep-V attacks the TB vampire by forcing the vampire to make Endurance FEATS every morning, slowly reducing the Endurance over time while causing the body to reject itself. The Hep-V actually 'starves' the vampire to death while preventing them from healing fully, which forces a Psyche FEAT for each stage of the disease, -1CS cumulative for each of the five stages. The victim vampires begin to show signs of the disease through blackened veins over their bodies, progressively growing more noticeable as the disease progresses. The vampires grow weaker and weaker, beginning at stage 2 to suffer a -1CS to Endurance and Strength, which forces the vampire to hunt more frequently. Pain and a 'fever' intensifies, while the vampire continues to suffer a shutdown of their body until death (see 'Vampire Death'). Hep-V can infect humans, turning them into 'carriers', which does not necessarily harm them but makes them able to infect vampires with their blood. Sookie Stackhouse as example is a Hep-V positive carrier.
• Necromancy: TB vampires in specific show a weakness to necromantic magic (and possibly undead control), granting the necromancer +2CS to their attempts to control, harm,or subvert the will of a vampire. Necromancers are feared/hated by the TB vampire community for this reason.
• Vampire Death: TB vampires for the most part die a violent way, usually exploding in a shower of blood and gore causing a -1CS reaction bonus as well as possibly infecting the individuals exposed to Hep-V/etc. Those in the same area must make a Gd (10) intensity Psyche FEAT or lose a round of action.
• Vampire Authority: Most TB vampires are at the will of the Vampire Authority, a single body of older vampires which oversees the control of most vampire activity. Until season five, the Vampire Authority was the final authority for TB vampires, deciding what justice would be meted out (such as Bill Compton being forced to make Jessica Hamby into a vampire, or banishing Eric Northman and Pam to the video store). After season five, it is assumed the VA has been restructured, but they do not seem to have as much control as they did previously. 
• Publicly Known: Possibly the greatest weakness (or strength depending on your point of view) is that vampires do not rely on remaining secret or hidden - The world knows about vampires, and in some cases, either has moved to embrace them or hate them. Vampire-specific products (such as Tru Blood or Osiris Travel) cater to vampires, while weapons (such as the carbonized bullets and Hep-V) are made specifically to kill them. Vampires don't hide the fact they exist, they usually embrace it. As such, depending on the action/reaction of vampires, they will either suffer a -1CS to reaction bonuses or a +1CS, depending. In addition, since vampires have revealed their existence, governments around the world have debated what to do. The debate on rights has temporarily put vampires in a strange position, voiding many legal rights (and protections) such as property and similar rights. Queen Sophie was forced to pay back-taxes to pay off her IRS debt, while Bill Compton couldn't pass his holdings to his Progeny Jessica and instead had to pass his resources to his oldest living relative (Andy Bellefleur).

Pam Swynford De Beaufort from 'True Blood'

"I am wearing a Wal-Mart sweat suit for ya'll, if that's not a demonstration of team spirit, I don't know what is."

 Pam Swynford De Beaufort

F: Ex (20)

A: Rm (30)

S: Rm (30)

E: In (40)

R: Typ (06)

I:  Rm (30)

P: Ex (20)

Health: 120

Karma: 56

Resources: Gd (10)/Ex (20)/Am (50) (Prior to Fangtasia, During the success of Fangtasia, and as a CEO of Nu-Blood)

Popularity: 0/10/20/40 (Usually encountered, within the greater LA area, within vampire society, and as a CEO of a major corporation).

Talents:

Business/Finance

Knowledge: Beauty, fashion, and cosmetology

Knowledge: Greater immediate area

Knowledge: Vampire culture

Knowledge: Pop Culture/Modern Culture

Crime*

Martial Arts A, E

Firearms

Sharp Weapons

Knowledge: History from 1871 to Present

Multi-Lingual (She speaks a number of languages on the show, include Swedish, English, French, Chinese, and Russian among others).

Powers:

True Blood Vampire

Pam is a fairly powerful vampire, although younger by many on the show. Pam has mastered her abilities and towards the end of the series had begun to master the ‘flight’ abilities that Eric and Russell Edgington possessed. For a full break down of Pam’s abilities as a vampire, please see the True Blood Vampires write-up.

Contacts:

Pam is well-connected within the vampire community through her maker Eric, and as such, has his authority to act. In addition, Pam is connected to her own ‘offspring’ Tara through a powerful psychic connection (while Tara lived).

At the end of the series, Pam is CEO along with Eric of the new Tru-Blood derivative ‘Nu-Blood’ and has multiple contacts throughout business, finance, and the higher echelons of vampire society.

Limitations:

• True Blood Vampire Limitations:  Pam suffers from all limitations that affect TB vampires, including the Hep-V virus and other such limitations. For more information on her limitations, please see write-up of TB vampires listed above.
• Loyal : Pam may never outwardly admit her loyalty to others, but it is clearly stated she is 100% loyal to her maker Eric Northman, and will do whatever he says, even if it is not in her best interests or if it is personal loss to her. Pam is so loyal to Eric she must make a Psyche FEAT to act against his expressed stated wishes. Pam is not blind in her loyalty, but she clearly places her loyalty to Eric above anything else. The only other person Pam has shown similar loyalty to was her progeny Tara, who Pam loved and would go out of her way for, even if she didn’t admit it.
• Vengeful: Pam has an issue at times remaining calm and letting bygones be bygones. Usually it takes a direct command from Eric for Pam to drop things once she’s decided she’s been wronged, otherwise, Pam remains patient and vindictive.
• Reputation: Both Erik and Pam have dubious reputations for previous actions within the vampire community, and Pam specifically has been called out due to her actions which led to the death of other vampires and occasionally cross-purpose work. As such, while Pam has more contacts at the end of the series, many have not forgotten either Pam or Eric’s past.
• Dislike: Although no longer outwardly hostile towards Sookie Stackhouse, Pam harbors great dislike for Sookie, and won’t go out of her way just to help her. This somewhat has found resolution, but in all honesty, Sookie still irks Pam on multiple levels.