Can't seem to find a mention of this anywhere. I've finished the DLC on the Dawnguard side and I've recently encountered a bug that I've occasionally experienced during combat with Serana as my follower. For some reason, she'll perform some action in combat against whomever it is we happen to be fighting that makes me instantly go from human to vampire (kinda). My screen washes in pink, and suddenly I'm as stage one vampire without having contracted sanguinare vampiris first, except...

Except that I'm not quite a vampire. It's very bizarre. I gain the Champion of Night and Nightstalker's Footsteps abilities, but not Vampire's Sight. I gain the weakness to fire and sunlight, but I don't gain the immunities to poison and disease. Additionally, my appearance doesn't change (my eyes remain normal) and nobody can recognize me as a vampire at any stage. Not the Dawnguard members. Not even Serana (as I still retain the option to ask her to transform me into a vampire). I can't even pick up the cure quest from Falion because as far as anyone is concerned, I'm not really a vampire. The only way out of it (apart from reloading) is to ask Serana to turn me into a vampire (even though I already kind of am) which she'll do. At this point I'm recognized as a vampire (and my eyes go yellow as they should) and I can then pick up the quest to cure myself.

It's a bug, obviously, but it's too bad that it isn't bugged the other way around (gaining the immunities but not the weaknesses). If that were the case, I'd just stay that way and be a "Daywalker."

Anyway, has anyone else experienced this?


Edit: I should also add that these occurrences seem to be indefensible. I was wearing a Necklace of Disease Immunity the first time this happened and it did nothing, probably because sanguinare vampiris doesn't even factor into this situation. It's just... boom... suddenly you're a quasi-vampire. Furthermore, it doesn't seem to matter how far away from Serana I happen to be. It appears as though as long as we're occupying the same cell, she can infect me somehow.

The infection is probably coming from her vampiric drain spell. Walking in front of it will give you vamperism, same as if an NPC vampire casting it on you gives you vamperism.

I'm nowhere near her vampiric drain spell when this happens, and it isn't at all the same as what happens with NPC vampires. NPC vampires give me the sanguinare vampiris disease. They don't intstantly turn me into a vampire, which is what Serana seems to be doing (albeit, a somewhat broken form of a vampire).

Yeah i know but what I mean is the bug is probably stemming from here usage of the skill while your not a vampire. It might seem like "instant" vamperism but it could be delayed reaction to an earlier usage of the skill by her.

I can already tell it's a result of an action she's performing in combat as I pointed out in my initial post-- likely her vampiric drain spell as you've indicated, but it's no delayed reaction. It's both instant and seemingly random. I can tell from reloading and playing out the combat again.

And why would I go from human to vampire without contracting the disease first? I've deliberately picked a fight with Serana before and all she's ever done in direct combat against me was given me sanguinare vampiris. But when she's fighting someone else, she can turn me into a full vampire (with missing effects)?

The exact same thing happened to my girlfriend. Serana was her companion and they were in a fight with some falmer. Her screen went pink and she had some vampiric powers, but no facial change. She reloaded, checked for Sanguinare Vampiris but did not have it. She carried on playing and then it happened again two or three times on different occasions (She kept reloading whenever it happened.)

I wonder if it has something to do with vampiric drain. Perhaps since Serana's vampirism passes directly without the sanguinare vampiris stage, when you catch it from her vampiric drain you get a glitched/bugged version of her vampirism?

It is really odd, but since I've seen it happen I can tell you that it happens just like Little Beard described it. The strangest thing is it hadn't ha[[ened at all to either of our characters and then suddenly it happened more than once to my girlfriend's character in the same day.

Except that when I fight Serana directly (i.e. pick a fight with her), her vampiric drain actually does give me sanguinare vampiris as per normal. I've only ever experienced the straight-to-vampirism issue in situations where she's fighting someone else.

I have exactly the same problem (even have the disease immunity medallion on), happened to me fighting the two dragons on Forgotten Vale, and seems to happen every time now I try it again. First time yesterday... Any help/work-around? I hate vampires (except Serena), and dont want to be one Also, does the cure-quest work properly on this one, or does it bug somehow?

If you're having the same issue as mcfishstick's girlfriend and me, then you won't even be able to pick up the cure quest. Only way to get that quest from that point is to ask Serena to turn you into a vampire which will make a you full vampire with all the correct effects applied. Otherwise, reload from a previous save.

I don't understand why she can give sanguinare vampiris normally but then passes this half-vampirism to you when fighting other enemies. Surely she uses the same vampiric drain on enemies that she uses on you?

It also seems to be rare, but when it happens once, it happens again. I never saw this quasi-vampirism in two or three playthroughs of Dawnguard, but now its happened multiple times in the same one. It must be a glitched script to do with her vampire lord form and her vampiric drain, but I don't know why it only activates when she fights other enemies.

Yup, it happened to me. I simply stop & reload a save so I won't be stuck like that. I thought it was a glitch but perhaps it is some blow back from Serana. However, it never happened during the dozens of battles we had during the a DG quests, only after we're all done with everything & simply adventuring together.

Same here. Very odd.

She might have something to do with this, but I am very certain it is not in the way you are suggesting. I had this bug myself and I am very certain it occurs even without Serana as your companion, certainly it is unconnected to her drain spell. I don't want to say it is completely unrelated to her because I travel with her almost constantly so I have trouble remembering if she was with me or not and obviously I just don't know. However, I am 90% certain I didn't have Serana with me the first time I ran into this glitch.

Has happened to me as well, in the exact same situation.

As much as I enjoy Serana for a follower, she's also a highly glitched follower.

I would take advantage of this, and see if you can get lycanthropy,

You mean like get it back? You can only get it back once after you have cleansed yourself (wish I would've known that prior to clearing it a second time) and this glitch doesn't allow you to get it back past that one time, I know I tried.

Somewhere along the way I contracted vampirism while clearing a dungeon (Dawngaurd mission) I contracted vampirisim. I took the cure disease potion and all was fine. By the time i got out of the cave I discovered that I was a level 2 vampire. I immediately went to see falion (I used him to cure me one previous time) and there was no option for him to help. Luckily I hadn't done the companions missions yet so i did all of their mission to become a werewolf. Once I completed this I went outdoors and my vampire blood started boiling...after countless attempts to cure through falion (including asking every shopkeeper of rumors to try and retrigger the option with falion), and trying to recontract vampirism, I am now stuck on level 2 vampire and a lycan. My vampirism won't get any worse but -50% fire resistance and reduced attributes in sun, I'm having trouble defeating easy dragons as a level 49 if they breathe fire...HELP...PLEASE!!! (Xbox)