Drivethru RPG

Historia Vampiri isn’t your average vampire sourcebook. It’s a historical horror roleplaying experience that drags you through the darkest corners of vampire myths and legends, whether you’re ready or not. This isn’t a casual evening spent chucking dice. This is gritty, terrifying, and steeped in folklore, where every decision can either save you or plunge you deeper into the shadows.

Imagine a setting where you’re facing creatures not bound by sparkly modern nonsense but by centuries of fear and superstition. Your characters aren’t just survivors; they’re part of the myth, trying to outsmart ancient evils while the line between predator and prey blurs. Will you be the hunter or the hunted? You decide. The choices you make will ripple through your story, shaping not just your character’s fate but the entire narrative. No two campaigns will play out the same way.

But what really sets Historia Vampiri apart is the emphasis on imagination and collaboration. This isn’t a combat grind where you're just rolling to hit, it's a story-driven experience where agency matters. You and your fellow players shape the tale together, weaving a narrative that's as much about survival as it is about moral dilemmas. Does your character sacrifice a village to save a loved one? Does the priest trust you, or is he hiding a darker secret? Your decisions, your consequences.

Let’s not kid ourselves, this isn’t just for folks who want to be scared. It’s for fans of vampire lore who can appreciate a nod to historical accuracy while craving the creativity that comes from diving into the what-ifs of legends. You’ll find familiar figures from vampire lore, Dracula’s shadow lurks, but so do lesser-known terrors from across the globe. From Eastern European strigoi to the Chinese jiangshi, you’re not just limited to the “classics.” There’s a whole world of nightmares waiting to be explored.

Whether you’re a gamemaster who loves digging into folklore or a player who wants more than hack-and-slash, Historia Vampiri offers a fresh take that still feels familiar. It’s a vampire sourcebook for those who want depth, creativity, and a touch of history that refuses to stay buried.

Ready to get started? Well, keep your wits about you because once you step into Historia Vampiri, you’ll quickly learn that the dead don’t always stay that way.

A Universal Sourcebook

This sourcebook is 100% optional. You don’t need it to play any of our games using The Simple Approach, but it’s here to spice things up if you want. It’s also written to be functionally system-agnostic, so feel free to throw its elements into any other roleplaying system your chouce.

If you’re looking to use it with a different roleplaying system, don’t worry. There are notes at the end to help with conversion, and if you’re need more advice in translating material between systems, grab the Lightspress Handbook, available wherever you found this book.

Navigating This Book

Here’s what you’ll find within:

What is a Vampire?: Vampires are more than just creatures with sharp teeth and a taste for blood. This section digs into the very essence of what a vampire is, across different cultures and eras. You'll find how vampires are portrayed in various mythologies, what makes them so terrifying, and why they’ve remained a staple in horror. From the blood-drinking undead to demonic spirits feeding on energy, this chapter lays the groundwork for all the vampiric creatures that have stalked humanity’s nightmares throughout history. Spoiler alert: It’s more than just pale guys in capes.

Excommunication: You’d think being excommunicated from the Church would just mean you’ve lost some social standing and can’t take Communion anymore. Wrong. Excommunication, in certain vampire legends, comes with far darker consequences. In many cultures, it’s believed that those who are excommunicated can’t find peace in death, which leaves them vulnerable to becoming vampires. This chapter breaks down how religious condemnation intertwines with the fear of the undead, and how communities used to deal with those they feared might return from the grave after being denied a proper burial. Spoiler: It’s a lot worse than being unfriended.

Babylonia, Assyria, & Greece: Think vampires are a recent phenomenon? Think again. This chapter examines the ancient myths of Babylonia, Assyria, and Greece, where vampires took the form of restless spirits and blood-drinking demons. You’ll encounter ekimmu, one of the oldest recorded forms of vampire-like creatures, and the lamia, who feasted on children. In these cultures, the line between spirit and physical being was thin, and that’s where the vampires lurked. You'll see how these ancient civilizations dealt with the undead and how those early fears laid the groundwork for modern vampire legends.

Great & Greater Britain: The rolling hills and misty moors of Britain are home to more than a few ghost stories, but this chapter focuses on the vampires lurking in those shadows. Vampires in Britain’s folklore come in various forms, from blood-sucking ghouls to the spirits of the unburied dead. You'll dive into chilling tales from remote villages to grand estates, exploring the unique twists that British culture put on vampiric myths. Expect a few eerie revelations about how these creatures were feared to disrupt entire communities, and how Britain’s religious and superstitious practices played into vampire legends.

Germany: Germany’s dark forests are more than just fairy-tale settings, they're the birthplace of some of the most terrifying vampire stories. This chapter digs into Germanic folklore, where the Nachzehrer, a vampire-like creature, rises to prey upon family members, often due to improper burial or unsolved grudges. You'll also learn about the Blutsauger, or "bloodsucker," a figure that shaped the concept of the vampire in modern media. Germany’s legends are filled with grisly details of exhumed bodies, suspicious deaths, and brutal superstitions. Vampires in this region aren’t just misunderstood monsters, they’re personal threats that bring terror right to the doorstep of the bereaved.

Hungary, Bavaria, & Silesia: If you’re a fan of traditional vampire lore, then this is the chapter for you. Hungary and its neighboring regions are vampire central, where the modern-day vampire legend really took root. This section dives deep into the rituals and fears that dominated these lands. Here, the dead were staked, beheaded, and even cremated in an effort to keep them from rising. You’ll also encounter historical figures like Elizabeth Báthory, whose real-life horrors only added fuel to the vampire mythos. Every village had its stories, and the fear of the undead was so potent it shaped both culture and law.

Servia & Bulgaria: In the southeastern reaches of Europe, vampires take on a particularly violent and fearsome form. This chapter explores how Slavic folklore molded the idea of the vampire, intertwining with local beliefs about the dead. In these regions, vampires weren’t just a threat to the living, they could also possess livestock, ruin crops, and generally bring destruction. You’ll learn how villagers protected themselves from these creatures, with specific focus on the rituals, talismans, and superstitions that kept the vampires at bay. From blood-drinking to shape-shifting, these vampires are some of the most dangerous in folklore.

Russia: Russian vampire legends blend old pagan beliefs with Orthodox Christianity, creating some of the most chilling and mystical tales of the undead. This chapter explores the folklore surrounding Russian vampires, known as upyri or vurdalaki, who are feared for their ability to return from the grave with malevolent intent. Vampires in Russia weren’t always human spirits, either, they could be witches, werewolves, or even demons. The chapter uncovers how different these creatures were compared to their Western counterparts and how local religious practices shaped the efforts to contain them. Get ready for some seriously spooky tales.

Miscellanea: This section brings together a wide range of vampire stories and legends from around the world. From the peasant villages of Eastern Europe to the ancient cities of the Middle East, every culture has had its own take on the vampire myth. You'll discover some lesser-known vampire lore that never made it into popular media, and how the common thread of death and fear runs through them all. It’s a collection of odds and ends, strange facts, and creepy myths that don’t quite fit anywhere else but are too good to leave out.

Living Vampires: Vampires don’t always have to be dead to be a threat. This chapter focuses on living vampires, individuals who were cursed or otherwise damned while still alive and turned to vampirism. In some legends, these people are able to drain life force or blood from others while walking among the living, hiding their monstrous nature until it’s too late. You’ll learn about the fear these creatures caused in their communities and the ways people tried to protect themselves. These living vampires blur the line between man and monster, making them even more terrifying than their dead counterparts.

The Vampire in Literature: Vampires might be creatures of folklore, but literature is where they became legends. This chapter takes you through the development of vampires in fiction, from John Polidori’s The Vampyre to Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and beyond. You’ll see how literature not only reflected but shaped cultural fears surrounding death, disease, and the unknown. You’ll also get a look at how vampire fiction evolved over the centuries, influencing everything from Victorian horror stories to modern pop culture phenomena.

Fact or Fiction?: Do vampires really exist? Or are they merely the product of superstition and fear? This chapter tackles the question head-on, exploring historical accounts of vampirism, scientific explanations for some of the more bizarre cases, and the blurred line between fact and fiction. From the medical conditions that might explain vampire-like symptoms to the rituals performed on suspected vampires, you’ll come away wondering if maybe, just maybe, some of these stories were true after all.

110 pages. PDF and epub files included.

Big Cities With Bad Vibes is a collection of random tables to quickly generate a setting for horror adventures or spooky stories set in the modern era, in which a paranormal investigator would uncover a mystery in a city tense with a sense of dread, corruption, and conspiracy.

All tables use only a d6, a d20, or both and the results are unrelated to any statistics or gameplay mechanics so they should work with any game systems.

Tables include inspirations for:

• The features of a city block and the people on the street there
• The name the police or media use for the serial killer still at large
• The nature of an occult conspiracy to be uncovered
• The description of a psychic reader
• The names of the street gang in the area
• The headlines in the newspaper of what is going on in the world

And more. 18 pages in total.