Bloodfiends
Bloodfiends (혈귀, Hyeolgwi) are a unique, blood-dependent species of monster with a history that goes back for centuries.
Although formerly an obscure and esoteric phenomena as a result of in-group policing, Bloodfiends have become a more well-known monster following the Blood-red Night's public ascension to Star of the City shortly before the events of Library of Ruina. In modern day, the average citizen is familiar with the idea of Bloodfiends, and there are even Fixers who specialize in Bloodfiend hunting.
They are directly inspired by vampires in modern literature, and much of their existence revolves around blood.
Overview
Bloodfiends are City monsters that are visually reminiscent of humans yet fundamentally different. To become a Bloodfiend means to be infected with an illness, afflicted with an enormous thirst that can only be sated by feeding on fresh, flowing blood.[1] They are virtually immortal and immune to aging so long as they are provided with enough of it.[2] Together with their thirst for blood, Bloodfiends are also afflicted with the instinct to propagate their Family by creating further Bloodfiends.[3]
Bloodfiends are known to originate in three ways: turned Kindred by a higher Bloodfiend, through the Distortion Phenomenon, or by receiving blood in a "certain mansion".[4] Bloodfiends have adopted an intense hierarchy based on the degree of separation from the species' original progenitor. Despite not being related in the traditional sense, they refer to each other with familial terms, and possess genuine familial bonds.[5]
Those who were turned by the original Bloodfiend progenitor are called the "First Kindreds": there is a First Kindred in each District of the City, each of which has formed their own Family, made up of their "Children" and "descendants" separate from the others. The First Kindred serves as the Elder of their Family, which the other Kindreds of the same Family are compelled to obey. Each Family has settled into a different District (for 25 Families in total),[4] made it into their territory, and "culled their kin" until they were able to live quiet lives.[4] However, Bloodfiends who defy this expected lifestyle emerge on occasion, such as the Blood-red Night, whose excessive and attention-drawing actions eventually led her to become a Star of the City.
Following the White Nights and Dark Days, it became common for people to turn into Bloodfiends upon distorting, as a "stereotyped form of Distortion".[6] These newborn, independent Bloodfiends lack any knowledge of the prior group's rules, and don't know how to control their powers. As Bloodfiends are widely ostracized by humans, enough for the City to have Fixers who specialize in hunting and killing them, these independent Bloodfiends have only increased the infamy of the race as a whole.[4] Though not all Bloodfiends originate from the Distortion Phenomenon, they are considered closest to Distortions as a whole.[1][7]
Bloodfiends are nearly identical to ordinary people most of the time. The most obvious indicator is the black and red patterned crystalline growths that can appear during combat, usually on one half of the face. All Bloodfiends have red eyes; however, red eyes are not a surefire indicator of a Bloodfiend, as the color can be produced, and is the most common color chosen for eye augmentations.[4] Additionally, Bloodfiends and their Bloodbags appear to be constituted mostly of blood,[8][9] and possess high regenerative capabilities as long as they are able to consume blood[1][10] to reconstruct their bodies and empower themselves.[11]
Most Bloodfiends also have an irrational fear of water, though those of an high enough generation have the ability to overcome this phobia.[12] Bloodfiends also have a tendency to keep count of things.[13]
Occasionally, people may not even be consciously aware that they are Bloodfiends.
Kindreds
A Bloodfiend may "embrace" (bite) another human to convert them into a fellow Bloodfiend,[14] a Kindred of a generation below theirs. Aside from the first Bloodfiend (the "primogenitor"), Bloodfiends can only create a maximum of two Kindreds in their lifetime.[14]
Kindreds behave as independent Bloodfiends while inheriting the abilities of their "Parent" to a degree. However, higher-generation Bloodfiends have a large degree of control over the actions of lower-generation Bloodfiends, due to an intense psychological barrier preventing lower Bloodfiends from revolting against the higher generations. The generation a Bloodfiend belongs to is denoted by their title: a "First Kindred" is a Bloodfiend created by the primogenitor, and serve as the Elder of their own Family in a Nest. The Elders' direct "descendants" are "Second Kindreds", their descendants "Third Kindreds", and so on.[14] Any Kindred can create their own descendants. However, due to the policies instated by the Bloodfiend Elders of each Nest, Bloodfiends may have to gain permission before they can convert any humans into their Kindred.[15]
Upon the death of a Bloodfiend's Parent, said Bloodfiend may ascend in the hierarchy of their Family and become a higher Kindred.[16][17] However, this sudden ascension may lead to an increased pressure toward creating new Kindred should the ascended Bloodfiend lack any Children of their own.[18]
Thirst for Blood
Bloodfiends are highly defined by a persistent desire for blood. Although Bloodfiends only require a minimal amount of blood for survival, the combined mental state of an entire Family relies heavily on a steady source of freshly-drawn human blood.[19] For a Bloodfiend, the process of consuming blood is fundamentally different from the human process of feeding and consuming nutrients: blood is the embodiment of a Bloodfiend's emotions, their purpose of existence.[20] For this reason, in the absence of it, Bloodfiends and Bloodbags can no longer maintain their sanity and struggle to keep their physical form.[21]
Bloodfiends do not feel a craving for the blood of animals or fellow Bloodfiends, and cannot sate themselves on it. Instead, Bloodfiends crave the blood of humans to the point of being incoherent in its presence.[22][23] They typically feed by biting into a live human subject, which is then either turned into a Kindred or into a Bloodbag, irreversibly condemning them to becoming a mindless thrall and effectively killing the subject in the process.
When a Bloodfiend does not have any Family, they are psychologically responsible for the bloodthirst of all non-existent lower Kindreds.[24] It is only when a Bloodfiend actually extends their Family that this burden begins to wane, as the thirst imprinted into their Familial bloodline is shared amongst them.[24] This conundrum is the source of the Bloodfiend instinct to propagate their Family with Children. It is only with this shared burden that Bloodfiends earn the power to think rationally, as the weight of an entire Family's Bloodthirst on one Kindred's back causes extreme distress and auditory hallucinations, resulting in nothing but an animalistic hunger;[24] despite this, the First Kindred Don Quixote seems to go against these stated rules, as he is depicted as perfectly sane and rational on the day he made Sancho his Kindred.
Personal willpower is a considerable—albeit imperfect—factor in how long a Bloodfiend can go without blood. Even the most strong-willed Bloodfiends become more on edge, if not outright insane over long periods of abstinence. For instance, extended time without blood was enough to make the La Manchaland Bloodfiends commit filial impiety against their Father, despite Bloodfiend loyalty to their higher Kindred being imprinted into their very being.[14] This abstinence also causes weakness and withering to both their physical appearance and bodily strength.[25] However, certain Bloodfiends such as Don Quixote and Sancho are shown to negate the mental effects of abstinence, potentially as a result of fixating on a "purpose" to live for. Dante also notes that a cure for a Bloodfiend's thirst is to forget one's nature as a Bloodfiend.[1]
Alternatives
Instead of feeding directly from a live human being, Bloodfiends may feed on human blood stored into blood packs. However, this causes the blood to lose its freshness, making it "stale" and unappealing for consumption. In La Manchaland, a system of consensual blood exchange was set up to allow the Bloodfiends to feed without hurting humans, but the blood packs ultimately proved insufficient in meeting the Family's high demand for blood. As an alternative, The Barber created hemobars, which compressed human and animal blood. Yet this diluted form of blood was not sufficient to sate the Family's thirst either, having only the benefit of remaining fresh for longer than blood packs.[22] To sate the thirst of the Second Kindred Don Quixote, the LCE plans on supplying her with artificial blood packs, made up of a substitute with a similar composition to human blood; it is currently unclear whether these might present a different result compared to the blood packs previously used in La Manchaland.[26][27]
Abilities
In addition to their position in the Family hierarchy, a Bloodfiend's power is dependent on their access to blood. By drinking blood, their physical abilities are sharply enhanced, and by limiting their access to blood, their abilities are instead tanked. Bloodfiends have a large degree of control over both their own and human blood, with the ability to shape it into weapons, armor, or even architecture through crystallization. They can also draw blood directly to themselves from their Bloodbags and Kindred. Most Bloodfiends seem to use physical gestures to wield their blood-based powers, whether by necessity or as a simple flourish. There is no known limit to a Bloodfiend's gain of power beyond access to blood.
Don Quixote is an impressive example of the sheer amount of power First Kindreds possess. In battle, he is shown to use complicated blood manipulation while barely moving a finger. Additionally, La Manchaland itself was built entirely out of human blood.[28] Another of his creations was Rocinante, a pair of running shoes with transformative abilities and a level of sentience said to have taken a very large amount of his blood to create,[29] with the inexplicable power to suppress the characteristics and powers of a Bloodfiend. Rocinante does not manage to fully suppress the desire for blood, however.[30][31]
Different families of Bloodfiends focus on different aspects of blood manipulation. For example, the P Corp. Family focuses mostly on blood crystallization and the usage of hardblood in creating weapons. Other powers mentioned to belong to different Families include the ability to increase in size and sprout additional appendages by drinking large quantities of blood (as seen with the giantkin fought by the Manchegans during the Bloodfiend war),[32][33] or the expertise in manipulating victims through their blood vessels (as seen with Elena).
Bloodbags
Humans directly bitten by Bloodfiends are, depending on the Bloodfiend's choice, transformed into their Kindred or a Bloodbag. When converting humans into Bloodbags, Bloodfiends have the ability to decide how much time it takes for the process to complete, with higher Kindreds being able to give a longer delay. It is also possible for some Bloodfiends to form Bloodbags from fresh corpses, as seen with the Blood-red Night. Bloodfiends are also able to both puppeteer victims by manipulating the blood in their veins, and through crystalline growths of blood.
Bloodbags share most of the abilities and bloodthirst of normal Bloodfiends, but they do not retain any sapience or personal memory. Instead, they are driven primarily by orders from the Bloodfiend who created them, or primal instincts of bloodlust. They need to "consume a minuscule amount of blood to maintain their forms."[34] However, similar to Pallidified Things, abilities acquired prior to Bloodbag conversion appears to be still extant, evidenced by Bloodbag Cleanup Agents and Prosthetic Fixers still using 
Charge ChargeResource used by certain skills for additional effects. Its Count can go up to 20. Count lowers by 1 at the end of each turn.-related Skills.
Due to Bloodbags' lack of intelligence, Parent Bloodfiends have a higher degree of control over Bloodbags than their Kindred, and thus usually use them as minions or tools in collecting blood.
Enemies
Cassetti's Kindred
For more combat information about Cassetti's subordinates, see Cassetti's Kindred.
Bloodbags created by Cassetti can be divided into three major categories: the Bloodbag Passengers, the Bloodbag Cleanup Agents, and the Bloodbag Prosthetic Fixers.
All three categories of Bloodbags have Skills that focuses on the application of 
Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage., with the Bloodbag Cleanup Agents and Prosthetic Fixers also utilizing Charge ChargeResource used by certain skills for additional effects. Its Count can go up to 20. Count lowers by 1 at the end of each turn. buildup and release, similarly to their respective factions prior to Bloodbag conversion. All Bloodbags converted by Cassetti also take reduced damage from Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage., and gains Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage. Count on self when hit, which they then convert to 
Coagulated Blood Coagulated BloodGain Offense Level and Defense Level equal to the value (max 5) on Turn End.
Manchegan Bloodfiends
For more information about the Manchegan Bloodfiends, see La Manchaland.
The Manchegan Bloodfiends also focus on the application of Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage. and the usage of Coagulated Blood Coagulated BloodGain Offense Level and Defense Level equal to the value (max 5) to enhance themselves. Unlike Cassetti's Bloodbags, however, the Manchegan Bloodfiends primarily uses 
Bloodfeast Bloodfeast- Max Value: 999
- Stores all Bleed damage dealt in this zone
- Resets when moving to a different zone
- This value is shared by all characters
- Among allies, if there is a higher Kindred who also consumes Bloodfeast in the same turn, this unit cannot consume Bloodfeast until that ally consumes it first., which increases based on Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage. damage taken by onfield units, as a resource for enhancing Skill effects. As a result, they do not take reduced damage from Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage..
The specific fighting style of Manchegan Bloodfiends depends on the Area of La Manchaland that they staff. Area 1 Bloodfiends and Bloodbags use 
Blood-tinged Scissorblades Blood-tinged Scissorblades- Max Value: 10
- Stage 1 Blood-tinged Scissorblades
- Used for special skills as a resource, Area 2 use 
Bloodied Hand Bloodied Hand- Max Value: 10
- Base Value: 0
- At 10 Stack: inflict +1 additional Rupture On Hit with this unit's Skill for 
Rupture RuptureThe next Y time(s) the unit is hit, take X fixed damage. application enhancement, and Area 3 uses both 
Festive Fever Festive Fever- Max Value: 10
- Turn Start: gain 1 Offense Level Up per 3 Stack (max 3)
- Used for special skills (a resource + 
Offense Level Up Offense Level UpOffense Level +X for this turn.) and 
Blooming Thorn Blooming Thorn- Max Value: 10
- When taking damage from Skills, inflict Bleed equal to half of this effect's Stack against the Attacker (rounded up) (Bleed BleedThe next Y time(s) this unit tosses an attack skill Coin, take X fixed damage. application on attackers).
Known Bloodfiends
Limbus Company
- Manchegan Family
- Don Quixote (First Kindred of the Primogenitor, P Corp. Elder)
- Sancho (Second Kindred of Don Quixote, presumed First Kindred as of Don Quixote's death)
- Dulcinea (Second Kindred of Don Quixote)
- Nicolina (Third Kindred of Dulcinea)
- Curiambro (Third Kindred of Dulcinea)
- Cassetti (Sixth Kindred)
- Sasha (Seventh Kindred of Cassetti)
- Lorenzo (Unknown Kindred, mentioned)
- Unknown Family
- Sansón (Unknown Kindred, presumably of high rank)
- Other
The Distortion Detective
- Larierre (First Kindred of the Primogenitor, L Corp. Elder)
- Rusk (Unknown Kindred)
Library of Ruina
- Elena (Unknown Kindred, The Blood-red Night)
Gallery
Bloodbag
Bloodbag Story Log Portrait
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Dante's Notes (Bloodfiends, Record #1)
- ↑ Canto 8-10 - Faust: "Bloodfiends may appear to have truly attained freedom from 'aging'… However, as we are now all aware, Bloodfiends can grow old and weak after a prolonged period of blood deprivation."
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-11 - Hohenheim: "The weight of that thirst is far too heavy for any individual to bear—which is why they propagate. To bear the unbearable burden together."
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Distortion Detective Chapter 42
- ↑ Canto 7-7 - Moses: "Considering that they even call one another with familial terms such as 'Father', 'Mother', and 'Child'… it is no mere metaphor."
- ↑ Distortion Detective Chapter 41
- ↑ Canto 7-7 - Moses: "I used to be able to state with absolute certainty that the Bloodfiends weren't special, that they were no different from the Distortions I'd faced in the past. (…) Their essence is similar to that of Distortions, yes. However, we eventually drew the conclusion that the Bloodfiends cannot be filed under that category."
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-22 - Ryōshū: "I smelled blood, so that's likely what they're made of."
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-29 - "Cassetti's body begins liquefying into a slick stream of blood, his form curdling and crumbling, then dripping to the ground."
- ↑ Recurring in gameplay, such as Cassetti's
Stored Blood Stored Blood- Max Value: 10
- Lose 1 value every time this unit loses 5% HP.
- On Hit, heal 1% of this unit's HP status effect. - ↑ Intervallo 6.5-28 - Faust: "… It appears that he has empowered himself by reaping their blood."
- ↑ Canto 7-7 - Moses: "I once heard that some Kindreds higher up the bloodstream have overcome their fear of water."
- ↑ Canto 5-1 - Sancho, as Don Quixote: "'Twas one of mine humble eight-hundred-and-sixty-three old dreams to sail the Great Lake as an adventurer, like a challenger of storms, a queller of rogue waves!"
Intervallo 6.5-28 - Cassetti: "Couldn't even keep count…? Oh no, no… but the count is so important! I have to keep count of our visitors! Oh yes, of course! I do remember to keep count of our dearest visitors! Yessir, I do!"
The Tale of a Great Fixer Who Once Reached for The Dream - Don Quixote: "When I could no longer count the number of stakes that have broken my flesh… when the counting itself lost its meaning…"
Library of Ruina Binah, Episode V - Elena: "It’s the boudoir of four thousand one hundred seventy-two people, if you want the exact number." - ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Canto 7-7
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-28 - Cassetti: "Unbelievable… I make myself my first-ever Kindred, without authorization at that, and… it's this bumbling fool…?"
- ↑ The Prince of La Manchaland Meursault/Identity Story - "The moment maman ceased to exist, my very instincts alerted to my ascension in the hierarchy."
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-11 - Don Quixote: "It seems that I was, against my own desire, made to ascend to my Father's seat. Perhaps I always was, ever since then."
- ↑ The Prince of La Manchaland Meursault/Identity Story - "And with it, a sudden pressure sliced through me—the inescapable responsibility to propagate the Family, as I had no Children of my own."
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-11 - Hohenheim: "This desire of their kind… this 'thirst', is something that may as well be imbued and imprinted on the Familial bloodline. Normally, the weight of that thirst is far too heavy for any individual to bear—which is why they propagate. To bear the unbearable burden together."
- ↑ Canto 7-23 - Sansón: "The king's family had to give up so many things. Happiness. Joy. Ecstasy. Pleasure. Hope. Anticipation…"
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-23 - Faust: "[Bloodbags'] existence hinges on supplying themselves with the blood of their victims. And it is said that they must consume a minuscule amount of blood to maintain their forms. (…) To [Bloodfiends and Bloodbags], blood is a culmination, an entailment of something that forms the self. (…)
Ishmael: "If that's the case, then the very blood that's supposed to bind these chunks of flesh together will also evaporate, which means that they can't be pieced back together." - ↑ 22.0 22.1 The Priest of La Manchaland Gregor/Identity Story
- ↑ The Tale of a Great Fixer Who Once Reached for The Dream - Corroded Bloodfiend: "The day when we had our first accident at La Manchaland… The blood dripping from one of our guests… We crawled on all fours on the floor just to have a taste of it…"
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Intervallo 7.5-11
- ↑ La Manchaland Bloodfiends'
Starved and Withered Starved and Withered- Lose 10 Base Offense Level
- Lose 10 Base Defense Level Passives and Status Effects, which greatly lower their Offense and Defense Levels. - ↑ Intervallo 7.5-11 - Hohenheim: "The higher office will now be regularly supplying you with artificial blood packs."
- ↑ The Priest of La Manchaland Gregor/Identity Story, Outis: "It's always teeming with guests paying hundreds upon hundreds of blood packs (…) This stagnant, unmoving blood… will never be enough to sate us all! Never! No matter how much we drink!"
- ↑ Canto 7-6 - Alessio: "The raw material that makes up every structure within La Manchaland… is human blood. Human blood dating back over two-hundred years in the past."
- ↑ Rocinante is shown to be able to transform between the form of shoes and a horse. In one flashback, Sancho mentions it having the ability to speak. Similarly, Rocinante slipping off of Don Quixote's feet in Murder on the WARP Express is attributed to Rocinante's "will".
- ↑ Canto 7-32 - Faust: "As long as Rocinante remains on her feet, Don Quixote loses all characteristics and powers of a Bloodfiend save for her desire for blood."
- ↑ Dante's Notes (Bloodfiends, Record #1) - "Rocinante disguises Don Quixote's more obvious Bloodfiend features and partially suppresses her bloodthirst."
- ↑ Canto 7-36 - Don Quixote: "Our foes were… Bloodfiends who had grown to the size of giants. Those who had drunk so much human blood that it was boiling, overflowing out of their bodies."
- ↑ Canto 7-36 - Sancho: "… The Bloodfiends of the Family with many arms, like windmills?"
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-23
- ↑ The Tale of a Great Fixer Who Once Reached for The Dream - Sancho: "… Yes, I will prepare cookies baked with cinnamon. The venerated Elder of B Corp. can't seem to stop coughing upon ingesting one of those."
- ↑ The Tale of a Great Fixer Who Once Reached for The Dream
- ↑ Canto 8-31 - Xianren Elder: "I was aware that the Bloodfiends are imbued with rather unique powers… yet it was most enticing to witness the manifestations of their might myself. Even I did not know that a higher Kindred commands such overwhelming might. His abilities were quite distinguished from that of the Bloodfiend Elder of Hongyuan."
- ↑ Intervallo IV - 6.5-23 - Ryōshū: "There was a "Bloodfiend" among the ranks of the Fingers, too. But the things that "Bloodfiend" commanded weren't rubber-glove looking like these."
