Once Dracula forced Mina to drink his blood, she was affected by holy symbols like vampires were, and Van Hesling suspected she'd rise if she died before he did. So there's half state in that sense; it didn't give her any abilities or impose any bloodthirst though, so it's hard to see what the tattoos would be needed to guard against.
Regardless, a bedridden, non-lucid, dying character is not really in need of tattoos or even very playable. - The Mighty BlizzardMina wasn't either of those things; that was Lucy.
Mina wasn't either of those things; that was Lucy.
We don't have any canon examples of how someone is turned into a blampire, do we? (Though, I'll admit that I may not have read their entry in OW well enough... Will fix that now)
What about the white Court? As I see it, many of those who grow up like normal mortals should have ethics and morals like a normal mortal. So, at least for some of them becoming a mindsucking monster isn't really an option - if only they have a chance to resist. Sure, some of them try, more or less successful.But I'm sure that a competent wizard or some sponsoring source could provide further assistance, be it with tattoos or something else.
I don't think they're necessary.This is a case where to be sure we'd really need jims word on how much of Dracula was made up to increase sales in the dresdenverse. As already pointed out in the book blampires are said to be able to sorta infect others with drinking their blood. In theory this sounds like an important delibertatly included fact. on the other hand blampires are dried and emacicated, do they actually have any blood left to give?....or is that what the black fluid from one ear in BR was?
Blampires have to be dead. If you've been bitten, keep from dying and you won't turn.
There is no cure known to mortals for Red Court Infected but there is one for White Court Virgins - and manipulating them into loving someone for that first time would be much easier than creating a treatment.
^Needs an 'other Houses may vary' caveat.
'Manipulating' someone into experiencing True Hope or True Courage might be a bit trickier even than manipulating two people (because, remember just manipulating the WCv isn't good enough) into simultaneously experiencing True Love. Regular old love is, at least, something the general populace routinely puts substantial effort into obtaining.
My thoughts:
Since the fiction as good as says that Bram Stoker's "Dracula" is the manual of how Black Court Vampires work, and is so effective that the Black Court is all but extinct, then I'm going to side with whatever is established in that source.
In the book, he wasn't all that attractive, although he definitely looked human. He talked a good game, and had a certain amount of charisma, but relied on threats and mind control to get the girls.
Even beyond the "pre changed" White Court, considering Thomas's struggle with his Hunger, I don't see why something like Tattoos couldn't exist to help full-on White Court Vampires. It's probably just that the setup of the Houses has meant that there weren't enough trying to fight their nature for any such thing to be developed.
They probably could but you'd bring the WC down on your head if you tried. Well, their cat's paws du jour anyway. Expect pain if anyone finds out a character is researching, attempting, or has done it.
Other than Thomas and a few other freaks, White Court Vampires are in tune with their hunger. They have made friends and embraced their demon side - why would they want something that weakens it?
Thomas fights his nature and thus starves himself, but that's just because he hasn't accepted his role of predator over the cattle... Um, make that 'the human race'. Other White Court Vampires manage their hunger the same way Red Court Vampires and Black Court Vampires do - feeding discreetly when necessary and having fun in private.
On the other hand, a wizard who has researched the inner nature of the White Court Beast well enough to control it? To weaken or enslave it? Killing him is worth paying a weregild to the White Council - that is it is, if the White Council can trace that junkie who surprised and killed the wizard (or whichever pawn they used) back to the White Court.
Richard
Clearly there are two halves in a struggle with WCV's who fight their Hunger, psychologically. With RCV's, I'd call it a physical need to feed and RCI have their bodies altered to desire blood, in order to complete the mystical transformation into a monster.
Perhaps the imagery we have of WCV's and their Hunger, as a personified/antropomorphic demonic entity 'living in their heads' is wrong, but it is what we have, plus: Thomas clearly fights his Hunger and gets mental consequences because of it. Following through on that logic, any magical tattoos would probably have mind magic woven into them. Beyond what that might mean for the one who creates them, consider what such magic would do to the vamp's mind: it might calm the Hunger, but at the cost of them becoming psychopathic sociopaths?
So, simply put: in my mind the difference between RCV and RCI, when compared to WCV is body vs mind (apart from the supernatural aspects, of course). Reds' needs are physical and the tattoos the Infected get, inhibit those physical reactions. Whites' needs are psychological, so logically, their tattoos would need to affect their minds. And we all know how good mind magic is for our sanity, now don't we kids? :p
Lara (in Turn Coat) explicitly denounces the abandon with which some members of her Court feed (though I can't, for the moment, recall the name of the specific WCV that inspired her comment: the female that showed up at Zero). I have no doubt that she would be accepting of a certain amount of restraint being enforced on their ilk.
Lara (in Turn Coat) explicitly denounces the abandon with which some members of her Court feed (though I can't, for the moment, recall the name of the specific WCV that inspired her comment: the female that showed up at Zero). I have no doubt that she would be accepting of a certain amount of restraint being enforced on their ilk..