Jiangshi
by Cab DavidsonFrom the Journal of Averyx
One of the strangest and most enduring lineages of vampires is the Jiangshi. It first arose in Ochalea, shortly after the Alphatian landfall, and it can be traced to a specific infection event. And its the most fascinatingly mundane thing that has happened in the whole history of vampirism. You see, a victim of a perfectly ordinary viral disease that would have caused paralysis and which was already slowing the poor young lady down was the slowest of a group of farm girls all running from a vampire, this she became prey. And by pure chance the vampiric virus copied just a little of that other virus creating something new terrifying. She's still around, as it happens, and she's one of the oldest extant undead creatures on Mystara.
The Jiangshi are rather like vampires in that they prey on the living, but the particularities of their lineage mean that they're incredibly stiff, getting around this with a bizarre hopping motion to move at speed.
The Jiangshi have colonised Ochalea, some parts of the Isle of Dawn, and in recent years have moved through the Thyatian Empire in the Hinterlands and across the north coast of Davania, as well as across the Pearl and Alatian Islands and into the otherwise quiet farmlands of Bellisaria. So far none have been found in mainland Thyatis or the Known World region, but I should think it only a matter of time before some find their way there.
| Stat | Jiangshi* |
| AC: | 2 |
| HD: | 9** |
| Move: | 180’ (60’) |
| Attacks: | 1 touch or special |
| Damage: | 1d10+double energy drain or special |
| Number Appearing: | 1d8 (1d8) |
| Save As: | Fighter 9 |
| Morale: | 11 |
| Treasure Type: | F |
| Intelligence: | 8 |
| Alignment: | Chaotic |
| XP Value: | 2300 |
Jiangshi are a form of vampire. Like vampires, they typically inhabit ruins, and maintain sites with hidden coffins to rest. They are, like all undead, immune to sleep, charm and hold spells, as well as other mind affecting magic. When damaged, they regenerate 3hp per round, unless reduced to 0hp, in which case they must return to a coffin to regenerate until the next sunset. They are typically thin, with somewhat stretched, pale skin, pointed teeth, long finger-nails and white hair. There is frequently a greenish pallor to their skin, as if of a thin layer of mould growing there. Their typical movements are stiff, and to maintain balance they usually walk with their arms outstretched. But they are capable of quite remarkable speed when necessary – this they achieve by hopping, both feet at once, their feet reaching around 4’ from the ground, and form of locomotion they are capable of maintaining for as long as is necessary.
Upon first seeing a jiangshi all characters must make a saving throw vs. fear or run in terror for 3d6 rounds. In combat, a jiangshi strikes once per round with its clawed hands, for 1d10 damage plus two levels of energy drain. A jiangshi may also assume gaseous form, this taking a single round, and travel at 360’ per round as such. Jiangshi may also summon any of the following creatures if within 500’, and they will, if they can, respond and obey to the best of their ability
| Creature | Number | Creature | Number |
| Ghouls | 1d6 | Rust Monsters | 1d4 |
| Black Pudding | 1 | Gelatinous Cubes | 1d2 |
| Carrion Crawlers | 1d4 | Robber Flies | 1d6 |
Jianghshi may be turned by clerics as vampires, however they do not have the same response to holy symbols, which they typically ignore. They do, however, fear their own reflections, and will avoid mirrors if presented visibly. Staking a does not kill a jiangshi, unless with a peach-wood stake, but they may be killed if their coffins are found and the bodies decapitated or burned.
Unusually for energy draining creatures, victims killed by jiangshi do not rise again as the same undead, they merely remain dead. However any victim damaged by a jiangshi will, if not magically cured, slowly transform into a jiangshi over the course of 1 month.