View source for Star vampire (Hack'EM)

{{monster
 |name=star vampire
 |difficulty=28
 |level=18
 |experience=750
 |speed=18
 |AC=-5
 |MR=60
 |align=-5
 |frequency=1
 |genocidable=Yes
 |attacks=Tentacles 2d6 physical, Tentacles 2d6 [[drain life]], Tentacles 2d6 physical, Tentacles 2d6 [[drain life]], Tentacles 2d6 physical, Tentacles 2d6 [[drain life]]
 |resistances conveyed=None
 |resistances=sleep, poison, cold, psychic
 |attributes={{attributes|A star vampire|fly=1|breathless=1|humanoid=1|pois=1|regen=1|carnivore=1|vampire=1|stalk=1|hostile=1|strong=1|nasty=1|neuter=1|infravisible=1|traitor=1|nocorpse=1}}
 |size=Large
 |nutr=400
 |weight=1450
 |reference=
}}
{{for|the monster in other variants|star vampire}}

A '''star vampire''', {{monsym|star vampire}}, is a type of [[monster]] that appears in [[Hack'EM]]. The star vampire is a form of [[Vampire (monster class)|vampire]] that is extra-terrestrial rather than [[undead]] like the vampires of ''[[NetHack]]''&mdash;they are still [[strong]] and [[unbreathing]] [[humanoid]]s that share similar traits such as [[flight]] and enhanced [[regeneration]], and as [[Vampire (monster attribute)|vampires]] they also have a [[diet]] of blood and a weakness to [[silver]]. Star vampires can be seen via [[infravision]], can [[follow]] a [[hero]] to other levels if they are adjacent, and are capable of [[flanking]] in combat. [[Tame]] star vampires may turn [[traitor]].

A star vampire has six tentacle attacks, which alternate between dealing physical damage and [[life drain]]ing. Star vampires possess [[sleep resistance]], [[poison resistance]], [[cold resistance]], and [[psychic resistance]], and have a [[vulnerability]] to silver and [[Fire (element)|fire]].

A star vampire is [[poisonous]] to consume, which primarily comes up if they are [[digested]] by another monster.

==Generation==
Randomly-generated star vampires are always created hostile, and are always generated as permanently [[invisible]].

Star vampires can appear among the random {{white|V}} that are part of the second [[quest]] [[monster class]] for [[Undead Slayer]]s and make up {{frac|6|175}} of the monsters randomly generated on the [[Undead Slayer quest]].

Star vampires can appear among the eight random vampires generated in the [[Chaotic Quest]] at level creation.

Despite not being undead, the star vampire is one of the vampires that can be generated by the {{+ of|summon undead}} spell, and can also be generated by [[invoking]] [[The Hand of Vecna (SLASH'EM)|The Hand of Vecna]].

Star vampires [[Corpseless|do not leave a corpse]] upon death.

==Strategy==
Star vampires are very fast at 18 base [[speed]], with an excellent base [[AC]] of -5 and the ability to deal significant amounts of damage, and they are always generated invisible. Fortunately for most heroes, they are also generally not encountered until much later in the dungeon, and do not possess [[death resistance]] or [[drain resistance]] since they are not undead, giving them more weaknesses to exploit&mdash;a hero will usually have a source of drain resistance or at least [[Magic cancellation|MC3]] by the time they run into one, and in a worst-case scenario they can use [[Elbereth]] to drive a star vampire off if their starting [[race]] allows for it.

Star vampires are best fought alone, both to lower the amount of damage potentially taken from their attacks and to avoid losing track of other vital messages in the fray of combat (e.g. from nearby monsters that can [[petrify]] the hero). A hero battling one can also take advantage of their weakness to silver weapons and their vulnerability to fire as well. On the note of messages, though the star vampire's tentacle attacks produce the same message as those of a [[mind flayer]] or [[master mind flayer]], they do not pose a danger to the hero's [[intelligence]] and also cannot be blocked by a [[ring of free action]].

===As a polyform===
For a hero with [[polymorph control]], the star vampire is an excellent form for [[polymorph]] because of the same qualities that make it a fearsome opponent: a high base level, flight, speed, regeneration, flying, unbreathing, powerful attacks, and the ability to wear most non-torso [[armor]].

As their size prevents them from wearing [[suit]]s of armor or [[cloak]]s, a hero looking to become a star vampire should take appropriate precautions and obtain [[magic resistance]] and other necessary properties from a slotless source such as a [[quest artifact]], among other options. Additionally, as a vampire they cannot [[eat]] food normally and must instead obtain [[nutrition]] by draining blood from corpses or else quaffing [[Potion of blood (Hack'EM)|potions of blood]] or [[Potion of vampire blood (Hack'EM)|vampire blood]].

==Origin==
{{wikipedia|The Shambler from the Stars}}
The star vampire is based on a monster that originates from the horror short story "The Shambler from the Stars" by American writer Robert Bloch, which is first published in the September 1935 issue of Weird Tales. Though not a creation of [[H. P. Lovecraft]], the tale is written as part of the [[Cthulhu Mythos]], and Lovecraft would later write [[wikipedia:The Haunter of the Dark|"The Haunter of the Dark"]] as a sequel later that year and dedicate it to Bloch. The original short story was later included in 1945 as part of Bloch's first published book, ''The Opener of the Way'', and he eventually wrote his own sequel "The Shadow from the Steeple" in 1950.

In the story, a nameless narrator seeking forbidden knowledge comes across an occult volume known as ''De Vermis Mysteriis'', said to have been written by a Belgian sorcerer named Ludvig Prinn, who was burned at the stake during the witchcraft trials. Finding it to be written entirely in Latin, and not being able to speak the language, the narrator writes a New England mystic whom he established contact with during his search, and the mystic agrees to aid him in translating the book. While perusing the tome at the mystic's home in Providence, RI, the mystic inadvertently stumbles across a spell or invocation on a chapter dealing with familiars: he believes to be a summoning towards one of the invisible "star-sent servants" spoken of in the frightful stories surrounding Ludvig Prinn, and the narrator makes no attempt to stop the mystic from reading the inscription out loud.

This act is what summons the story's titular monster: the room immediately turns dreadfully cold, and an unearthly wind rushes in through the window, followed by a hideous laughter that heralds the arrival of an invisible vampiric monstrosity&mdash;the star vampire suddenly lifts the mystic into the air and begins feeding off of his blood until he is nothing more than a wrinkled, flabby corpse. As the creature continues to feed, it slowly becomes more and more visible until its monstrous form is fully revealed, causing the narrator to go mad; after the creature retreats back into the nameless cosmic gulfs it had come from, the book mysteriously vanishes, and the narrator sets the mystic's house on fire and wanders out into the streets. The story ends with the narrator struggling to move on from his ordeal, subconsciously fearing that the "shambler from the stars" will one day return for him.

The star vampire seen in variants of ''NetHack'' is obviously modeled after this monster, including its permanent invisibility, though it does not lose this invisibility upon feeding (presumably due to the difficulty involved in coding such a feature).

==Encyclopedia entry==
{{encyclopedia|	A creature from beyond the stars. Invisible, it floats along until it finds something to feed upon and then draws its life energy and blood into itself.  It is said that they become briefly visible just after they have eaten and that this is such a terrible sight it can drive a mortal insane.
}}<!--{{variant-36X}}-->
[[Category:Hack'EM monsters]]