Classifications and Guide

[Spike]

This is where you need to look in order to make sure that if you would like to be a vampire, werewolf, slayer, demon, etc., this is the criteria we are using. We are NOT using the Twilight type of vampire where sunlight doesn't destroy them and under NO circumstances will they EVER sparkle.

SLAYERS
A Slayer is a young female bestowed with mystical powers that originate from the essence of a pure-demon, which gives her superhuman senses, strength, speed, endurance, agility, and healing in the fight against forces of darkness. She occasionally receives prophetic dreams in the few hours that she sleeps. The powers that are bestowed upon the Slayer are mostly physical enhancements.

The Prophecy of the Slayer states, "Into each generation a Slayer is born: one girl in all the world, a chosen one. She alone will wield the strength and skill to fight the vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness; to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their numbers. She is the Slayer." While they are commonly referred to as "Vampire Slayers", even by Watchers and vampires themselves, the Slayer may operate as a defender against any and all supernatural threats.

Slayers are endowed with strength greater than that of regular humans, some demons and the majority of vampires. The Slayer's strength appears to be largely metaphysical, as it does not seem to add to their body mass and they remain buoyant enough to swim.

Slayers are able to move faster and react more quickly than normal human beings. A Slayer is capable of superhuman feats of agility.

A Slayer's body is substantially more durable and resistant to blunt force trauma than an ordinary human's and there is evidence of an incredibly high pain tolerance. It is difficult, though not impossible, to bruise them, break their bones or strain their joints.

Despite these feats, the Slayer is far from invulnerable. For instance, the Slayer can be injured by conventional bullets, bladed weapons, and more advanced weaponry (such as the energy weapons commonly used by the Initiative) just as easily as an ordinary human can, but they can recover from even very severe injuries in remarkably short periods of time.

Slayers possess a heightened awareness of their surroundings. This heightened awareness can, with experience, allow the Slayer to know the position of an attacker and fight them blindfolded or in the dark. This is not a constant ability, however. This skill must be honed through practice and the Slayer usually must focus to achieve the full benefit. A Slayer also has the limited ability to detect the presence of vampires (and presumably other demons). This power must be honed as with the heightened awareness, and the Slayer must focus to achieve the full effect. This does not prevent Buffy (and other Slayers) from being ambushed by vampires.

All Slayers through the ages share a psychic link, manifested in dreams. A Slayer will frequently dream of herself as a Slayer in another time and place. These dreams are usually vague, but can also be prophetic. Dreams exist in their own mystic plane or "dreamscape" where for a Slayer, precognitive sense and the inherited memories of other Slayers can manifest themselves. Also, Slayers have been shown to appear in each other's dreams.

A Slayer naturally has formidable fighting skills. The Slayer's Watcher trains her to hone these talents, and to teach her specific fighting skills, such as various martial arts. The training helps her to battle the occasional demon whose physical strength outclasses her own. For most situations, however, her strength suffices. To test a Slayer's natural ingenuity and practical capability, the Watcher's Council administers a test known as "the Cruciamentum" if/when they turn eighteen, which strips the Slayer of her powers and forces her to fight a powerful vampire without them. It should be noted that the compound used to weaken the Slayer makes her typically weaker than most normal humans. This renders a Slayer who would still normally be physically fit without her powers remarkably feeble even for a human. This forces the Slayer to rely solely on her intellect and wit.

Overall, the Slayer's abilities seem to be enhancements of normal human attributes, rather than extra abilities garnered from a magical source. A "normal" workout routine that would enhance a regular human's strength and speed increases her abilities much faster and at greater magnitude. Also, regular illnesses such as the flu were shown to have effects on the Slayer not greatly different from its effects on humans; once again the handicap is more noticeable given the Slayer's usually enhanced abilities.

VAMPIRES
Vampires are demons inhabiting human corpses; when the ancient demons known as the Old Ones were banished from Earth, the last one fed on a human and mixed their blood, creating the first vampire. Vampires possess supernatural physical abilities such as enhanced strength, speed, agility, hearing, smell, and healing. They also possess the ability to drain a human of every last drop of its blood in but a few seconds. A few vampires (the Master, Drusilla, Dracula) show hypnotic power over humans; this ability is very rare in the modern world. They live on a diet of blood (preferably human though that of other mammals will do). They require no other food or drink, and although they can ingest it, they experience a much duller sense of taste. Prolonged deprivation of blood can impair a vampire's higher brain functions and they become "living skeletons". They also do not need air, though they can breathe to speak or smoke. They are shown to be affected by various drugs.

Vampires can change at will between human appearance and a monstrous form with a pronounced brow ridge, yellow eyes, and sharp teeth. They make a roaring sound when angered, much like lions or tigers. In human form, they can still be detected by their lack of heartbeat and body heat. They do not cast reflections, although they can be photographed and filmed.

Vampires cannot be killed except by beheading, fire or other burning, or penetration of the heart by a wooden object. A vampire explodes in a cloud of dust when killed; the act of slaying a vampire is often referred to as "dusting". They heal quickly from most injuries, but do not regrow lost limbs. Their flesh burns in direct sunlight, and on contact with blessed objects such as holy water, recently consecrated ground, or a Cross. They can enter consecrated buildings but appear to feel ill at ease.

They cannot enter a human residence without having been invited once by a living resident; however, once given, such an invitation is revocable only by a magic ritual. If all living residents die, vampires can also enter freely.
In order to reproduce, a vampire must drain a human being of much of their blood, before forcing them to drink some of the vampire's blood. This process is known as "siring", and the vampire who does so is referred to as the newborn vampire's "sire" (along with the vampire which sired the sire, etc). Because of their partly human nature, vampires are considered impure by other demons, who sometimes call them "blood rats." The amount of time it takes for a new vampire to rise seems to vary. Sires often act as mentors to their 'children' and form small covens of related vampires for various purposes. Vampires cannot reproduce sexually.

Vampires do not have souls and therefore lack a conscience. Angel and Spike, vampires who have their souls returned to them, are shown to feel remorse for their previous actions. However, soulless vampires are not without feelings, including love

There are different variations of vampires. In the parallel world, Pylea, regular vampires are not harmed by sunlight, but when they attempt to take their "vamp face", they instead become a "Van-Tal" demon: green-skinned, spiny and bestial.

Buffy's seventh and final television season introduces the Turok-Han, an ancient species of vampire analogous to Neanderthal man. These Turok-Han, colloquially referred to as "über-vamps", are stronger and harder to kill than common vampires, usually able to withstand a stake to the chest without dusting, but unable to survive when beheaded. Like the Van-Tal of Pylea, the Turok-Hans show very little intelligence and are incapable of language.

The idea of the "vamp faces" — to have vampires' human features distort to become more demonic — was implemented for a number of reasons. Firstly, Whedon wanted normal high school students that the other characters could interact with normally, only to have them turn out be vampires, therefore creating a sense of paranoia. Secondly, he was conscious to make the vampires look physically demonic, stating, "I didn't think I really wanted to put a show on the air about a high school girl who was stabbing normal-looking people in the heart. I thought somehow that might send the wrong message, but when they are clearly monsters, it takes it to a level of fantasy that is safer."

Vampires Can Be Killed By
Wooden stake through the heart
Extensive exposure to sunlight (in Earth's dimension only)
Extensive exposure to fire
Decapitation
Holy Water (ingestion)

Vulnerable to
Exposure to Holy Water
Physical contact of a Christian Crucifix
Highly limited exposure to sunlight
Highly limited exposure to fire

Other
Must be invited into the home of a living human soul before entering
Have no reflection
Superhuman Strength, Constitution, Speed, and Senses.
Have no soul, with exception to Angel and eventually Spike.
Cannot have children, with exception to Angel and Darla's son Connor.
Bullets cannot kill vampires but can cause them extreme pain.
In the first episode, garlic is seen in Buffy's trunk along with stakes, crosses, and holy water. It is also used by Buffy in "Wrecked" to repel Spike.
They can be tranquilized.

DEMONS
A Demon is a kind of nonhuman life form generally believed to be evil due to its lack of a human soul.
The definition raises complex issues. Roughly speaking, the series uses demon to describe any creature that isn't a god, robot, unmodified human, or standard terrestrial animal. Thus, the category ''demon'' includes independent self-reproducing species, former humans that have been parasitically possessed via mystical or pseudo-biological processes, non-sentient species from adjacent dimensions, life forms that have been created or modified to serve some specific purpose, self-modifying individuals of indeterminate origin, and the hybrid offspring of any or all of the above.

Many demon species are native to Earth. Many more had their origin in other dimensions. Long before mankind made its appearance, Earth was dominated by purebred demons, the most powerful of whom are known as Old Ones. Though individual Old Ones constantly made war with one another, rising and falling in power within the group, the overall dominance of the Old Ones was absolute. Over time, however, they gradually lost their hold on this reality. Some individuals, such as Illyria, were ''killed'', but did not "die" in the human sense; many such demons were confined in the Deeper Well, a hole running through the center of the world. They continued to be feared for their ability to cheat death. Others escaped to other dimensions, and became unable or unwilling to return to Earth in their true forms. Among these were the cabal known as the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart. Demons are not affected by Sunlight or other ways of killing Vampires. Many Demons have a distinct method of killing and are only killed in a certain way.

Though Earth was now under the rule of humanity, the Old Ones had left behind many descendants and former servitors. These demons, far smaller and less powerful than the Old Ones, were usually the product of crossbreeding with humans and other mortal animals. Many of these hybrid species retained some ability to crossbreed with humans and each other.

Demonic reproduction is thus a diverse and complex subject. Some species, including vampires, Wraithers, and Werewolves, reproduce by infecting humans and then inhabiting and using their bodies. Others, such as Haxil Beasts and Skilosh demons, infect humans in order to use their bodies to gestate their young. Some demon species reproduce via sexual intercourse. Some indeterminate number of these species, for instance Brachen and Ano-Movic demons, are cross-fertile with humans. Some demon species reproduce via asexual methods, such as budding. Still other sorts appear to have been created or manufactured by some other entity (magician, Old One, Power), and do not reproduce on their own.

Little is known about the origin and evolution of demon populations in other dimensions. Some dimensions appear to be home to large populations of entirely non-human demonic species. Others, such as Pylea, have significant indigenous human populations. Despite the obviously humanoid appearance of many demon species, some demon groups, most notably the Scourge, deny that they share any biological heritage with humans. This view may have more to do with ideology than biology, although they were unaffected by a machine designed to eliminate anyone with human blood.

The number of demon species is evidently vast. More than 200 of them have appeared on screen or in canonical comics, and many other species and individuals have been referenced in dialogue. Their forms are likewise variable. While the majority have been humanoid, others more resemble various animal species, and still others are almost amorphous. Some have mammalian or reptilian features, or a combination of the two.

The vast majority of demons are inherently evil and interested in causing suffering, death, and harm. The Judge, for example, derives pleasure and sustenance from burning all humanity out of a creature, and numerous demons are shown to attempt to bring about the end of the world. Others show a strong predisposition to violence coupled with a lack of empathy that leads to their performing evil acts, or are biologically required to kill humans in order to survive or reproduce. In addition, there are a large number of demons such as hellhounds which are simply nonsentient, man-eating predators with unsavory dietary requirements. However, this generalization of "demon equals evil" is challenged constantly in both series. Angel is the first example of this; vampires, demonic spirits possessing and animating the corpse of a human, are considered to be inherently evil, but Angel has had his human soul forcibly returned to him. Many demons have human characteristics and personalities.

The next example of a good demon is in the second season Buffy episode "Becoming, Part One", which introduces Whistler, a demon who tells Angel that not all demons are bad and helps set Angel on his heroic path. At the end of season three, Wesley Wyndham-Price informs Buffy that the Council of Watchers will not help her save Angel from a deadly poison on the grounds that he is, in fact, a vampire; this leads to Buffy breaking ties with the Council for over a year. Spike begins as a major villain, is restrained by The Initiative to be unable to harm humans (by means of a chip in his brain), then later becomes heroic in his own right, to the point of successfully undertaking a trial to return his soul and sacrificing himself to save the world. Another popular demon character, Clem, actually aids Buffy in training potential slayers.

WEREWOLVES
Werewolves are a type of demonic humanoid. Their characteristics are similar to the werewolves of folklore, but rather than being included only as brutish monsters, they appear as characters who suffer from lycanthropy, and whose animal side either complements or clashes with their human side.

Werewolves are usually afflicted with lycanthropy through a bite. It's never confirmed that anyone is born with lycanthropy, though it is possible.

Werewolves turn into wolf form at sunset on the three nights when the moon is nearest full (called "wolf nights"), and revert to human form at dawn. In wolf form, they are immensely strong and hungry for human flesh, but tend to fall asleep before dawn, and often do not recall the events of the previous night when they wake (always naked, as their clothes do not survive the transformation). They show some animal characteristics at all times, such as a keen sense of smell and an ability to sense other werewolves. Sometimes their wolf appearance resembles their human appearance (e.g. Veruca is blonde both as a human and as a wolf), and male werewolves may have animal-like qualities to their human appearance, such as excess body hair.

Werewolves may be killed by silver bullets or silver weapons, as well as mauling by other werewolves. If killed in wolf form, a werewolf reverts to human form, although this may only be true in some species.

The physical appearance of werewolves is retconned in between "Phases" and "Beauty and the Beasts"; originally, Oz's wolf form was more humanoid, able to walk on two legs with a wolflike snout, but it was changed to a quadripedal look with a more humanoid face; the former of these looks is possibly the inspiration for the Lycanthropus Exterus introduced in Angel season five.

The way people see werewolves in the Buffyverse varies:
Gib Cain hunts and kills werewolves for their teeth and pelts, and a gourmet club is shown eating werewolf flesh, both indifferent to the fate of the human aspect.
The Scoobies and Angel's crew do not hold werewolves responsible for their actions in bestial form, provided that they make reasonable efforts to restrain themselves during the full moon.
Many werewolves believe the wolf to be their true self, and relish in their condition, even if it means killing someone.
McManus, Nina's attacker in "Unleashed", originally attempted to live in permanent solitude, but eventually went back to populated areas. Unlike Oz and Nina, he did not have the support to hold on to his humanity.

WATCHERS
A Watcher is a member of a secret organization, the Watchers' Council, which seeks to prepare the Slayer to fight demonic forces. The Watchers' Council historically offers guidance to the Slayer, assisting them by supervising their training and by researching existing and possible demonic or supernatural threats.They are devoted to tracking and combating malevolent supernatural entities (particularly vampires), primarily by locating individuals with the talents required to fight such beings and win. More specifically, Watchers are assigned to Slayers, girls that are part of a succession of mystically powered individuals who are destined to face said foes. Upon a Slayer's demise, the next Slayer is called into duty and is assigned a Watcher.

The Watchers' Council trains new Watchers in a private school of some kind. In "Never Kill a Boy on a First Date", Giles implies that Watchers are, to a certain extent, "called" or assigned to become Watchers before going to university. This idea is supported by Watcher families such as the Giles and Wyndam-Pryces.

Notable Watchers include Rupert Giles and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. Giles was Buffy's official Watcher in the beginning of the series and, after being fired by the Council for what was considered an emotional attachment to the Slayer, became her unofficial Watcher for most of the story's remainder. After being fired, Giles was replaced by Wesley Wyndam-Pryce who became Buffy and Faith's Watcher for a short period of time but is eventually fired by the Council after Faith turned rogue and Buffy "quit".

A standard Watcher has at least some proficiency in the use of magic with certain individuals being more powerful than others. Numerous members of the board of directors are alchemists. They are students of demonology and as such have a wide knowledge of various incarnations of evil, but their expertise is usually the vampire. They are also highly educated and can speak a wide variety of languages, both human and demonic in nature. Watchers are typically well versed in hand-to-hand combat techniques, though they generally confine themselves to training Slayers or supporting them in battle, as their relative strength limits their effectiveness in directly engaging vampires.

In ancient times, a group known as the Shadow Men used magic to infuse a captive girl with the essence of a demon, thereby creating the First Slayer, whom they use to fight demonic forces. The descendants of the Shadow Men go on to form the Watchers' Council.

The Watchers' Council of Britain is an organization dedicated to finding, training, and supervising Slayers in the fictional Buffyverse. Over the years however The Council had become increasingly arrogant and egocentrical, believing themselves to be the supreme authority while the Slayers were just their tools.

The Council eventually bases its headquarters in London, England. It tries to locate potential Slayers and then send Watchers to inform and train them. It is not always successful in doing so, and therefore some Slayers are fully trained when they are called, while others know nothing of the heritage or purpose of their power. Each potential Slayer is assigned her own Watcher – a Council employee who is responsible for training the Slayer in combat techniques as well as researching demons, vampires, and magicks. Watchers also maintain diaries chronicling the lives of the Slayers under their charge.

The Watchers' Council has been known to use ethically questionable methods to accomplish its goals. The Council employs a trio of operatives known as the Special Operations Team. This team is responsible for some of the more unsavory aspects of the Council's work, such as interrogations, smuggling, and, if necessary, assassinations. When Faith Lehane stakes and kills a human, the Special Ops Team was dispatched to retrieve the rogue Slayer, circumventing local and international authorities.

The Council is also known for placing its principles and perceived goals ahead of the well-being of the Slayer. A test known as the Cruciamentum involves suppressing the Slayer's natural abilities with a drug and pitting her against a particularly dangerous vampire on the Slayer's eighteenth birthday in order to test the Slayer's intelligence and practical capabilities. When one particular Watcher, Rupert Giles, defies the rules of the test and interferes in the Cruciamentum of his Slayer – Buffy Summers – he is dismissed from his position immediately.

The Guardians are an organization of long-lived women who developed parallel to the Shadow Men and Watchers. They forge a weapon, the Scythe, for the Slayer to use. They are apparently mistrustful of the Shadow Men and Watchers who followed, as they keep this weapon, along with their very existence, a secret. They allow the Watchers to observe and manage the Slayer for centuries, but all the while the Guardians are watching the Watchers. They remain in hiding until Buffy Summers discovers the Scythe and tracks its origin to an Egyptian-style tomb, where the last Guardian waits. Immediately after explaining herself to Buffy, the Guardian is killed by Caleb, putting an end to the organization.

WITCHES
A Witch is a person who has great knowledge and power over the use of mystical forces, commonly known as "magic" and colloquially referred to as "mojo" and "the whammy", to perform various feats that defy the laws of nature. The term "witch" is commonly used to refer to female magic-users. Male witches are known as warlocks. In the Buffyverse the term magic is commonly used as "Magicks".

As portrayed in Buffy and Angel, becoming a witch involves a great deal of practice and work. Even those gifted with an unusually high ability (Willow Rosenberg, for example) can take several years to perfect their powers.

Spells can be performed by anyone by use of magical items while saying particular incantations (often in Latin). However witches have greater knowledge and power over the use of magic.

While most every being seen on the show, from demon to human, is capable of performing magic, there are natural witches with whom the talent for the harnessing and manipulation of mystical forces appears to be a genetic trait. This talent is inherited from mother to daughter. Examples:
Catherine Madison and Amy Madison
Tara Maclay and her mother
While these witches do tend to be extremely powerful, ordinary people without the genetic boost, such as Willow, demonstrate that they can be surpassed.

The shows portray magic as capable of being used as a force for good and evil. Willow and Tara use magic to support Buffy in the fight against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. However the growth of power can also become corrupting. Catherine Madison used magic to take over the life of her daughter's younger body. Willow gradually began to use magic in every part of her life, until she was addicted to it. Later, after the death of Willow's girlfriend Tara Maclay, Willow sought revenge which resulted in dark magicks taking control of her, becoming what is known as "Dark Willow".

A witch can be identified by using various ingredients; some of their hair, a little quicksilver (mercury), some aqua fortis (nitric acid), and "eye of toad". The ingredients are heated then applied to the possible-witch. If a spell has been cast in the previous 48 hours, the witch's skin turns blue where the substance comes in contact with it.

The real-life belief of Technopaganism is also present in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, although they are not mentioned beyond season two and with Jenny Calendar as the only one seen on-screen. She is seen as a low-level practitioner of magic and does not consider herself a witch. Even so, technopagans of the Buffyverse are not portrayed that differently from witches, they are just more familiar with modern technology and its relation to the black arts. Although not specifically addressed, the implication is that there is a difference in power levels between a technopagan and a witch, as Jenny states in the season one episode "I, Robot... You, Jane" in which Giles asks if she is a witch. Jenny's answer, "I don't have that kind of power" indicates that witches are able to perform greater feats of magic than other, more casual practitioners of magic.

Willow could be seen sometimes using modern technology and contacts to further her witchcraft (e.g. the internet). However she identifies herself as a witch rather than a technopagan.