Though vampires are hardly social creatures there is a social hierarchy in place when you view the species as a whole. Some vampires have more power than others, some vampires resort to desperate measures to satisfy their blood cravings, and others are able to gorge themselves on a seemingly infinite supply of blood.
Vampires fall within the following six roles; Exiled, Loners, Workers, Hunters, Generals, and Lords/Matriarchs. Whereas human classes are largely defined by economic factors, vampires are more predatory creatures so their hierarchy is based on a sort of military structure with Workers and Loners operating at the bottom and Generals and Lords/Matriarchs at the top.
Understanding these classes and what causes a vampire to move up and down the social ladder gives a better understanding of how vampires operate individually and as a collective. It also gives an insight into why broods are so dangerous for humans and not very common.
You can view these six roles as falling into three major societal categories similar to the ones that define humans; Lower class (Exiled and Loners), Middle class (Workers and Hunters), and Upper class (Generals and Lords/Matriarchs).
I’ll be writing posts regarding each of the different classes to go over the details and give examples of each, but for now I’ll provide a summary so you know what to look forward to.
Exiled vampires are those who have been forced out of the brood or chose to leave of their own volition. There are not many vampires in this class as they tend not to live long and most broods prefer to execute over exile in order to prevent exiled vampires from creating rogue factions to oppose them.
Loners are vampires who are in areas that do not have broods or have chosen not to align themselves with a local brood. Some loners can reach decent levels of power and influence by forming their own social groups, but most operate independently in the shadows.
Workers are vampires who have aligned with a brood and serve in menial ways. They maintain the assets of the Lord/Matriach, attend to logistical needs, and provide menial labor. This is the most common class as newer vampires lacking combat abilities are placed in this class.
Hunters are vampires tasked with combat roles. This can range from gathering humans for blood feasts, hunting down rogue vampires, or eliminating human threats. The size of this class largely depends on the brood and where it’s located with broods in third world countries having more hunters than those in more developed countries.
Generals are the vampires who oversee both Hunters and Workers. They fill managerial positions, devise strategies for expansion, growth, and conquest, and are often the Brood Lord’s most trusted allies. There are only ever a handful even in the largest broods and they enjoy a lofty position with many perks and benefits.
Lords/Matriarchs are the upper most class of vampiric society. A vampire can only achieve this status if they form their own brood or dethrone the existing ruler. It’s most common to find male vampires in this class, though some broods have been known to be ruled by female vampires. They hold the greatest power and enjoy the greatest luxuries. Only one lord or matriarch can ever exist in a brood.
The first post regarding the Lower class of vampires will be released on March 13th. Going forward I’m dedicating the first Friday of the month to discuss the new books I’ll be releasing on a monthly basis which is why this will be delayed a week.
In March I’ll be publishing a vampire-based short story called Trial of the Heretic. More details about this short story and where to buy it if you’re interested will be released in the accompanying blog post.
I recommend giving it a try as you’ll see some of the social hierarchy I’ll be taking about in these posts, not to mention it’s an interesting story regarding the dynamic between older and younger vampires.
Thanks for the support as always. Feel free to leave a comment on this post and I look forward to hearing from you.