Playing Skyrim as a Vampire Lord is not only an incredibly fun experience but a challenging and rewarding one. Knowing how to successfully feed as a vampire and suppress the natural negative effects will be key in playing as a vampire.
In the following article, we will be going over everything as it relates to playing as a vampire, from the basics down to what to do if feeding on your victim is not working.
In order to play as a vampire in Skyrim, you will first need to begin the Dawnguard DLC. Play the beginning of it until you get to lord Harkon’s castle, Volkhithar.
Doing so is relatively easy and will not require much effort. Once you get to this point in this addon quest, you can continue with the main questline as a vampire or with the DawnguardDLC.
There are certain perks and equipment to receive with continuing the DLC, but it is not necessary.
There are multiple perks available when leveling up your Vampire Lord skill tree, such as a huge defense against frost attacks and a drain life spell.
In order to level up this skill tree, you will need to be in the Vampire Lord form and feed on your victims.
Why you need Vamp Seduction
Vampire’s Seduction is a type of power available once per game day that will essentially charm your opponent for up to 30 seconds and is obtained once the Dragonborn achieves stage two of Vampirism.
However, this only works for opponents at the maximum specified level of the spell. This is one way you will be able to feed as a vampire; just make sure you feed within 30 seconds of using the power.
There are several useful ways to incorporate this into your gameplay, such as if you need to recover health or magicka or did not mean to attack an NPC. Sometimes, your vampirism will cause an NPC to be hostile towards you, and this is when this power especially comes in handy.
Because this power is only available once per day, relying too heavily on this to feed will not be ideal, and you may still need to find a sleeping victim to prey upon. Additionally, using this power at point-blank range is recommended only to avoid missing your target.
List of Feeding Mod for your Vampire
If you have the PC version of Skyrim, there are multiple mods you can install that will either enhance your overall experience as a vampire or make it easier to feed as one.
For instance, the mod Better Vampires has great customization options and will allow you to feed on your followers, giving you an unlimited blood supply. Additionally, this mod will allow you to feed on dead bodies, which will make it much easier when trying to avoid the sickness from the sun and daylight.
Another great “overhaul” type of mod for Skyrim is Vampiric Thirst. This allows you to walk in the sun after a certain point and adds some realism to the Vampiric lifestyle in Skyrim. This mod has even added hunting and feeding game mechanics that rely on different playstyles, from stealthy to brutal.
What is Vampire Cure Shrine & Potion
When you first contract Sanguine Vampires or Vampirism, you will be able to cure the disease as long as you act fast. To do so, you must use a cure disease potion or pray at a shrine. Alternatively, you may opt to become a werewolf, removing the Vampiric curse.
Thinking about becoming a werewolf instead of a vampire? Here are all the reasons why a werewolf is a lot better than a vampire in this fast-paced article.
Once you become a vampire, finding a cure is significantly harder but not impossible. There is a way to cure it if you have a black soul gem. You must travel to Morthaland and talk with Fallon. This will start a quest that will have a ritual to cure your Vampirism.
Alternatively, the before-mentioned mods and other mods available will have an easier way to cure Vampirism.
Feeding Not Working? – Quick Fix Here
Playing Skyrim as a vampire successfully and getting the most out of your experience relies heavily on being able to feed. In some rare cases, the game will not let you do so. This can be attributed to several factors, and in this section, we will go over possible fixes and common issues.
Sometimes, when attempting to feed as a vampire, the only option when hovering over your sleeping victim will be to pickpocket them. This can be frustrating, especially when you have chosen the perfect spot and victim to avoid unwanted attention from others, guards in particular. The following has seemed to fix this known issue:
In most cases, a mod will interact negatively with your Vampirism, especially if you have any race-changing mod installed. When attempting to feed on your sleeping victim, the option should read pickpocket/feed.
In some cases, choosing to cure your Vampirism and havingSeranaturn you again seems to have fixed this issue.
If you are unable to feed, there may be a bug associated. Reloading a save before you become a vampire and then becoming one again may help this issue.
There are some known issues when using console commands and if using a PC while playing as a vampire. It is not recommended to use console commands to make yourself a vampire or alter your character. This can cause issues to your character and may make feeding unavailable.
What to do when Blood Starved
When the Dawnguard DLC came out for Skyrim, the option to become a vampire lord became available. This DLC came with many perks, but unfortunately, this feature also had a few downfalls.
Generally, before the Dawnguard, if you were infected with Vampirism, you would not be attacked once you got to level 4 Vampirism. In Dawnguard, villagers and guards would attack you on-site once you became blood-starved or advanced as a vampire lord.
Thankfully, Bethesda released an update that took this feature out, making it easier to stay as a vampire. That being said, if you transform into a vampire lord in town, you will still be attacked by any and all NPCs.
It is still important to feed as a vampire, even if you have completed the Dawnguard quest line and received Auriels’ Bow, which will block out the sun if Blood-soaked arrows are fired from this weapon.
I hope this guide was helpful and that you are able to fully enjoy your experience when playing Skyrim as a Vampire Lord.
There are so many rewarding benefits to playing this style, and it makes it for completely new gameplay for even those veteran Elder Scroll gamers.