10 Vampire Rules and How to Kill Them in Salem’s Room

The following contains spoilers for Salem’s placeNow streaming on Max

Salem’s place Establishes a lot of specific rules and weaknesses about their version of vampires. Based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, Salem’s place is the story of a small town in the northeastern United States, which finds itself with a vampiric infestation. Starting with a brutal sacrifice, the vampires quickly spread through town. As more citizens are killed and turned into bloodsuckers themselves, Salem’s placeThe main characters rally together and do their best to bring down the source of the corruption. This brings them up against the mysterious monster known as Mr. Barlow.

It’s a terrifying take on the classic vampire lore that has inspired multiple adaptations over the years. Salem’s place is notable for the way it references, tweaks and subverts expectations about vampires. In some cases, these weaknesses are consistent with classic vampire lore. in other ways, Salem’s places end makes some surprising diversions and tweaks that lore. This gives the humans fighting the vampires a better chance of survival, but with weapons that come with unexpected weaknesses. Here are the most important rules and weaknesses about vampires Salem’s place.

10

Vampires can be warded off by white roses and garlic

The plants are apparently vampire deterrents

The vampires of Salem’s place Share many of the classic weaknesses that typically hurt the undead, including white roses and garlic. Garlic is an infamous means of repelling vampires. This belief stretches back to ancient folklore about the creatures, with garlic and white roses considered a powerful natural counter to a vampiric infestation. While there is not much of a chance to see if garlic can actually harm the vampires Salem’s placeIt is clear that White roses can be a threat to vampires.

Richard Straker is the human servant of the vampire Mr. Barlow, who carries out his wishes and desires in the light of day. He guides Barlow’s desires into the sunlight and takes measures to protect the vampire. One of his precautions to protect his master included buying all the white roses from the local flower shops. This keeps the vampire hunters from being able to get some And use it against the vampires. Fortunately, there are other ways to kill vampires and repel them.

9

Vampires can be killed by a wooden stake

The stakes need to puncture the heart to be effective

While the vampires of Salem’s place They seem to be immune to most mortal dangers, they follow a classic tradition in keeping their natural weakness to wooden stakes. The vampires of Salem’s place Those who were killed were largely dispatched with wooden stakes to the heart. The blow slays the vampire almost instantly and causes his body to seemingly revert to a more human appearance. This is ultimately the fate of Matthew Burke, Danny Glick, Susan Norton and Barlow.

The stake seems to be the most consistent means of killing a vampire in one blow, although the attack needs to go through the heart. At one point, the vampire hunters try to kill a vampire with a stake but miss the heart. While the blow briefly staggers the vampire, it does no permanent damage to the creature. This makes stakes one of the most important weapons the hunters have In their fight against the vampires, and the proper use of it is crucial for their survival.

8

Vampires must be invited in (and can have their invitation revoked)

How Matthew Burke is able to throw a vampire out of his house with just his words

Vampires have very specific rules in Salem’s place About how they can attack people. Though they may roam the night free, They can only enter closed structures if they are invited. This is where their hypnotism comes into play, as Mark discovers early in the film after a vampiric Danny uses his powers to force Mark to open the window so he can enter. Mark later uses this detail to his advantage, lasting the night in his treehouse even while surrounded by vampires.

Mark can do this because he closes the windows and doors before any of them can enter. The other way vampires can get into a building is with an invitation, which allows them to cross the threshold at will. It’s a classic vampire story trope, but one that Salem’s place Play with a smart way. Although Mr. Burke initially invites a sick Mike Ryerson into his home, He was eventually able to withdraw the invitation After he transforms into a full vampire. This causes Mike to be forced out of the building, saving Burke’s life.

7

Vampires cannot enter consecrated ground

Vampires need to make a sacrifice to be able to hunt

Even beyond the need for invitations, vampires in Salem’s place Have a unique connection to consecrated ground. Sacred places like churches are seemingly safe from vampiresAs Ben and Dr. Cody discover when they use one as a shrine from a vampire attack. The vampires can surround the building and are even able to throw the corpse of the local police sheriff through the window of the church, but they can’t Come in. This, along with their aversion to crosses, suggests that other religious things like holy water do work on the vampires.

However, these Vampires have their own unique names on consecrating their hunting grounds. Ralph Glick is the film’s first causality, captured by Straker and serving as a sacrifice to Barlow. Straker speaks of Ralph as a “sacrifice,” allowing Barlow to hunt in the city and suggesting that this is a limit that keeps vampires in Salem’s place From simply expanding beyond their territory. The fact that seemingly nothing is left of Ralph afterwards (explaining why audiences never actually see a vampiric Ralph) suggests that this was a much more brutal murder than Barlow’s other murders.

6

Killing the head vampire does not necessarily kill all the rest

The Salem’s place Sequel short stories confirm that the vampire infestation remains in the city

One of the big theories that Mark has about vampires after they meet surrounds a head vampire. In some versions of vampire stories, killing the vampire that caused others can release them from their curse. The head vampire is typically much older and more powerful, often with the ability to see and communicate through their corrupted victims. striking, The vampires of Salem’s place They have a connection to one anotherMaking Mr. Barlow an obvious candidate for the head vampire. They seem to share a form of psychic bond, as one vampire mauls Ben over Burke’s death.

However, this psychic bond does not necessarily mean that all the vampires are killed if the head one is killed. While Mark and Ben escape Salem’s lot after killing Mr. Barlow and do not encounter any other vampires, other short story sequels to Stephen King’s Salem’s place Like “one for the road” revealed that the vampiric infestation lived on in the town long after Barlow’s death. This suggests that even though the heroes of Salem’s place The infected townspeople, who survived the climax, were victorious and escaped with their lives, remaining free to hunt prey.

5

Vampire marks disappear after their death

Dead vampires return to human form

The vampiric infection is apparently transferred from person to person through a bite to the neck. Once a person is bitten, they become increasingly sick as the curse sets in. Attempts to combat the infection largely failed, with The marks on their necks seem to be welding as they pass away. However, this seems to be just a precursor to their eventual transformation into a vampire. This is not the only aspect of a vampire that fades after their death.

As seen when minor vampires in the film are slain by the heart, their deaths seem to remove the curse from them. This applies to their physical forms, with Their eyes reverting back to normal and their fangs shifting back into more normal looking teeth. This is different from other famous vampire stories, where killing the undead creature can reduce the body to ash. In contrast, vampires who are killed with crosses seem to completely collapse into fog.

4

Vampire bites are not necessarily fatal

Dr. Cody is able to combat a vampire bite with human medicine

One of the most surprising turns in Salem’s places approach to vampires is as the film reveals Vampire bites are not a death sentence. In other vampire stories, being bitten by one of these creatures causes an infection that cannot be reversed. Dr. Cody initially seems doomed to this kind of fate after she is bitten by Danny’s mother. However, Ben and Susan are able to destroy the vampire before she can kill Dr. Cody. Cody then uses alcohol on the wound and gives himself a rabies shot as a means of combating the infection.

After a moment of uncertainty, This means to actually fight back the infection and saves Dr. Cody. The curse seems to have no effect on her afterwards, suggesting she was able to beat the curse before it actually set in. This is a smart touch in Salem’s placeHighlighting how human advancements like medicine and technology can help combat the undead.

3

Vampires can hypnotize people

The hypnotization can be broken fairly easily

One of the most useful and deadly powers that vampires possess Salem’s place Is the ability to hypnotize people. Throughout the course of the film, this power is seen in different forms. The vampire Danny is able to briefly use this power against MarkWhat should the last eyes glaze over for a short time. A similar fate almost befalls Burke when he is attacked by Mike. However, both Mark and Burke are able to break free long enough to use a cross against the Predator, saving themselves.

Barlow’s power and experience could not have made his version of hypnotism in the film any more useful. Although he exhibits this power on the delivery man Royal when he is first brought to the Marsten house, Royal quickly snaps back to reality and escapes the basement. This power seems to be best used when it can overwhelm a targetBut it is established as a fairly weak amount of control.

2

Vampires can be repelled by crosses (but it doesn’t automatically work)

The crosses need faith to work

One of the most powerful weapons that vampire hunters use Salem’s place are crosses. Burke discovers that crosses are a particularly useful tool in repelling vampires when one attacks him in his home. Notably, doing this causes the circle to glow when in the presence of a vampire. This has several functions, such as it can brighten up dark spaces, warn people of a vampire’s presence, and can burn the undead with their touch. Extended contact can even seemingly destroy the vampire, as seen with Danny’s mother.

The crosses can even be improvised to an extent, with Ben and Susan quickly creating an effective one out of tongue depressors and tape. However, crosses are not necessarily an instant weapon against the undead. As Father Callahan discovers when he confronts Mr. Barlow in a bid to give Mark time to escape, A lack of faith can undermine the power of the religious object And make it useless as a weapon. In the film, his crisis of faith leaves Father Callahan defenseless against the vampire, who quickly kills him.

1

Vampires can be killed by sunlight

The most common vampire weakness is in Salem’s place

As in most versions of vampire lore, the undead monsters of Salem’s place Can be killed with sunlight. Although the vampires are not necessarily helpless during the day (as seen by the monstrous version of Burke and Danny who attempt to attack targets from the shadows of dark buildings), they need to avoid sunlight. Even some Brief moments in the sun can set the exposed skin on fire. Prolonged exposure will cause the entire vampire to burst into flames.

This is the key to killing the several vampires who wake up in the third act of the film. As the sun sets and night sets in, Mark is able to tear down the local drive-in screen to expose the entire lot to sunlight, killing dozens in one fell swoop. Sunlight is the classic weakness of most vampires in fiction, and makes an ideal weapon in Salem’s place.