Vampire Diaries: Steps to turning into a vampire explained

Transitioning is the term used to describe the action of turning into a vampire in The Vampire Diaries, which requires moderately different steps to be successful

Overview

The Vampire Diaries first premiered on The CW in 2009, and the teen-drama instantly became a hit with viewers. The series would run for eight years until it concluded in 2017

Due to its popularity, the channel created spin-offs which expanded the The Vampire Diaries universe to include Legacies and The Originals.

Throughout the series and the expansion of its universe, the show has featured various humans who have transitioned.

he term is used to refer to the process in which either a human being, werewolf or witch undergoes the process of becoming a vampire. While somewhat following the same ritual, each requires slightly modified steps to be successful.

What Was The Vampire Diaries About?

The CW introduced its hit-teen drama The Vampire Diaries at the height of the popularity of the Twilight saga and its franchise of films.

The series is based on a series of teen-romance novels by author Aubrey Clark. However, the series was developed by Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson, debuting in 2009.

The premise of the series followed, “The lives, loves, dangers and disasters in the town, Mystic Falls, Virginia. Creatures of unspeakable horror lurk beneath this town as a teenage girl is suddenly torn between two vampire brothers.”

Nina Dobrev played the title character of Elena Gilbert, while Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder played the Salvatore brothers, Stefan and Damon respectively.

Vampire Diaries: Steps To Turning Into A Vampire Explained

For most of the first half of the series, fans waited for the day that Elena would transition into a vampire, which finally successfully happened during season four, before the transition was reversed for her to become human again.

However, throughout the series, we learnt about transitioning and how it plays out differently depending on whether you are human, a werewolf or a witch.

During Legacies season four’s third episode titled We All Knew This Day Was Coming, Freya described the feeling of transitioning to Hope by stating:

“Elijah described it to me once, in his oh so poetic way. He said at first, there’s nothing. But then you slowly start to realize that there’s nothing. That’s your consciousness reigniting. Then the light will trickle in, you’ll open your eyes and you’ll be back in this room. But the colors will be different. The sounds will be fuller. You’ll feel small movements of air on your skin that you’ve never felt before. It can be overwhelming.”

Below, we look at the different processes of transitioning as a human, a werewolf and a witch.

Transitioning as a human

In order to transition as a human being, you are required to have vampire blood in your system as you are about to die.

Thereafter, to complete the transition, you are required to have some human blood within the transitioning period, estimated as 24 hours after awakening.

However, it is important that you are fatally wounded during the time you consume the vampire blood, or the blood will only heal the ailment in question.

That being said, if the person transitioning does not have their vital organs, heart and brain, the transition will not be possible.

Transitioning as a werewolf

A werewolf transitioning produces a hybrid creature, as humans are the only beings that can be fully transitioned into a vampire.

However, for the transition to happen to a werewolf, they are required to have died with the blood of the Original hybrid in their system.

The Original hybrid being Niklaus Mikaelson, or alternatively that of his daughter, Hope.

However, to complete the process, the werewolf will also be required to feed on the blood of a human Petrova doppelganger. If not, the hybrid will eventually become unstable and die an agonising death.

Transitioning as a witch

Transitioning as a witch is different from other transitions, as it will require the witch to sacrifice their powers in order to successfully transition. This is as nature considers witches as its servants, and vampires as an abomination.

Therefore, if a witch is to successfully transition without the sacrifice, then there would be an imbalance in nature. However, siphoners are the only exception to this.

Seeing as they stem from the Gemini Coven and cannot generate their own powers, they can turn into witch-vampire hybrids that can use magic. These witch-vampire hybrids in the story are known as the Heretics.

Final Thoughts

The Vampire Diaries saw Elena finally turn into a vampire during season four of the series, only to later reverse the process and become human again.

Though this was a turning point in the series, fans have always been fascinated by the process of transitioning and the requirements which need to be adhered to.

Much like other vampire series and films, in The Vampire Diaries, the steps taken to transition are different for each of the primary beings and creatures.

Therefore, the transitioning process for a human will be different from that of a werewolf, and in extension of that of a witch.