I think this dream is mostly inspired by 2012. (Good movie if you’re into near-constant suspense) There’s this one scene in the movie that takes place over Yellow Stone Park, in which a good portion of the ground for a mile or so visibly starts to swell up. It bursts in a firey explosion of lava and ash, creating a Super Volcano that screws America over.

There was a Tornado of that size forming in my dream. That is, a mile wide in diameter, by estimate. The clouds swirled and had a dark color to them, and I tried to warn my parents that they didn’t look good, but they told me to “Go seek shelter if you’re worried. You know what to do in case of a Tornado.”
The nearest building appeared to be some sort of schoolhouse or post office. I wasn’t sure what the building’s function was, but I knew that there were three windows at the counter, and one large window beyond those. Behind the counter, there was an office consisting of a coffee machine and a couch. Aside from that, there really wasn’t much else to the place.
I used the entire couch to make a fort to defend against the tornado, finding $1.05 in loose change, and waited, covering my head however way I could. I don’t know how long I waited, but I eventually heard a giggle somewhere. It was girly and high-pitched. I popped out of my fort to see where it was coming from, and found the windows at counter showed nothing but darkness outside them. Darkness and the source of the giggles-a certain loli-esque succubus: Lilith Aensland.
As soon as I saw her head, she disappeared back into the abyss, and it faded away, leaving partially cloudy skies and the sun shining as if it were morning. The clouds slowly started to disperse, revealing that they were hiding cars, several types of them, too, but most were older models; all of which were mysteriously floating in mid-air. It was amidst my admiration that I woke up to the sound of my late-ringing alarm clock falling off my nightstand.

Succubus

Contents:

• Hero Introduction
• Skills & Skill Build
• Items & Item Build
• Strategy
• Hero Matchings and Matchups
  
• Conclusion
  

Introduction

Pro’s:

• Versatile hero with several disables, capable of a lot of control during team fights.
• Very high average stat gain compared to other intelligence heroes.
• Very high starting armor for an intelligence hero (only behind Tempest and Blacksmith).
• Above average Movespeed.
• Almost unmatched solo.
  
• Superb attack animation and high damage.
  
• Not reliant on items.
• Good escape and defense mechanisms.

Con’s:

• Limited Mana Pool compared to other intelligence heroes.
• Only 400 Range Attack (Most Intelligence heroes being 600).
• In conjunction with having a low Mana Pool, is also quite mana dependent.
• As the main disabler of a team, is often shut down and targeted during team fights.
• Ultimate requires channeling.

Skills

Smitten

Smitten; aka The Carry Disabler, is your way to shutdown high physical damage units (Example: Madman, Dark Lady, Arachna etc.) at level 4 it equates to a massive 120% reduction in damage base damage (damage derived from overall attributes). This will effectively neuter the damage output of the target it is on. It’s duration of 20 seconds, and cooldown of 15, means it can overlap and be applied to more than one target at a time (or to refresh on a single target making sure it never drops off). Smitten’s manacost prevents it from being spammable, as it will use a decent portion of your mana, but is usually applied as soon as the fight is initiated, to take down their physical carries effectiveness as soon as possible.

Heartache



Heartache; aka The Lane Dominater, is your damaging skill and your way to make sure you never have to leave the lane you’re in. It has a hefty mana cost and cooldown, so it is not to be confused with a nuke, and is far from spammable. The biggest perk about this spell is that it deals True Damage, this means the damage taken from this spell is not mitigated by Armor or Magic Armor, so there is no way to reduce the damage taken from it. This makes it especially potent early on, as it will take a HUGE chunk of their hitpoints, and heal you by the same amount, allowing you to keep yourself in a lane without being reliant on Runes of Blight or Pots. Also something of note, is the range is quite large, and quite a lot further than your attack, so even if someone is out of your attack range, you can still nail them.

Mesmerize



Mesmerize; aka The Multitasker, is your main way of shutting the opposing team down, while also setting up kills and your main escape mechanism (you can also deny yourself with it too!). This skill has a vast variety of applications throughout the entire duration of the game. From the very start it is often used to initiate ganks; locking down your target long enough for your team mates to position themselves, taking a disabler out of the equation, or chasing down a hero that thinks he’s gotten away. As the game goes on, this is your main way of shutting down the devastating heroes in your opponents lineups (Example; Behemoth, Tempest, Magmus) long enough for your team to go to work on the rest of them. As mentioned before, this spell can also be used to deny experience from your opponents; at level 4 this will deal 20 True Damage every second for 7 seconds, meaning you can kill yourself with it at 140hp or less (this is both a blessing, and something to be aware of).

Succubus’ Hold



Succubus’ Hold; aka “WHY DOES HE KEEP TARGETING ME?”, is what makes Succubus what she is. This ultimate is absolutely devastating and again scales throughout the game in use. Early on this will net you a kill on virtually any target you choose, basically any partially weakened opponent will fall to Succubus’ Hold + Heartache. Later on this ability is used to set up team kills, often taking advantage of any enemy hero that even slightly mispositions themselves. Whoever your team feels is the most threatening and uncontrollable threat on their side, that is what your main target should be. As it is a channeling spell, you must use it carefully and precisely and try and get it’s full duration off, there is no point diving into team fights and using this on the person you feel like killing, as you will get stunned and disabled to death and you will never go anywhere. There is absolutely nothing a hero can do while in the grip of this spell, and it must be taken advantage of.

Succubus’ Hold with Staff of the Master

As you can see in this picture, all the Staff of the Master does for Succubus’ Hold is increase the damage per tick. While it may seem like something worth getting (and I see this a LOT with people that aren’t experienced with this hero). I urge you; DO NOT GET STAFF OF THE MASTER ON SUCCUBUS. Damage is not what this spell is about, and getting this item is actually counter-intuitive as the only time when it’s damage aspect is particularly relevant is laning at the start of the game, at the point in the game when you have actually obtained the staff, the disable is what is relevant, allowing your team to get the kills, not you, thus making the staff obsolete.

Skill Build

The great thing about Succubus is her ability to adapt and evolve throughout the duration of the game. Your skill build (and item build) will change based on your opponents, which makes her a relevant threat against virtually any lineup. Smitten is a skill that can be omitted entirely from a build, based on how relevant the ability to shut down a physical carry is against the team you’re fighting.

Standard Build (Knowing they have a Physical Carry):

1. Mesmerize
2. Heartache
3. Heartache
4. Stats
5. Heartache
6. Succubus’ Hold
7. Heartache
8. Stats
9. Stats
10. Stats
11. Succubus’ Hold
12-15. Smitten
16. Succubus’ Hold
17-19. Mesmerize
20+. Stats

Mesmerize is taken at level 1 because you need the skill in your arsenal throughout the game, and Heartache costs so much, and does such little damage at rank 1, that it is virtually never worth using at that stage. Heartache is then taken at every available level, as it is your main way to stay in your lane and deal damage to your opponent. Your ultimate is also taken at every available level. Smitten is not taken till the 12-15 range, because it’s not until later on that Physical Carries become relevant, and shutting them down becomes important (also because it is a % based reduction, the skill does a lot more later on, because it is reducing a much greater amount).
Because Mesmerize is not really being used to shut down at this point, it is more important (and even preferential) to have it at Rank 1 (4 Seconds) at this stage in the game, so maxing it out is not a priority (Also 1 extra second is not really worth giving up +2 Strength, +2 Agility and +2 Intelligence at this point in the game). It is maxed out later when it reaches the point where you want the target locked out for absolutely as long as possible.
As mentioned before, your skill build can vary as much as necessary. Smitten can be skipped entirely, Mesmerize can be maxed out sooner if you need some serious disables in the team, etc.

Items

 

Starting Items:

Runes of Blight x 1 – 90 Gold
Mana Potion x2 – 100 Gold
Mark of the Novice x2 – 300 Gold
Minor Totem x2 – 106 Gold
———————-
Total Cost – 596 Gold

This item build starts you off with 530hp and 338mana. In my opinion this is the optimal way to start off with Succubus. Succubus’s ability to stay in a lane is determined by wise use of Heartache. I generally use 1 Mana Potion either after Level 3 or after Level 5, depending on how well I am harassing my opponents, and then leave the second mana potion right before you hit Level 6, to ensure that you can dive straight into Hold+Heartache combo and go for a kill. Runes of Blight are in there because harassment between Heartache is inevitable from any reasonable opponent, and you don’t want to be solely relying on Heartache to keep you up. Mark of the Novice’s are there for the mana pool boost, and to aid you in your last hitting (which Succubus truly excels at). And last but not least, Minor Totems are there for obvious stat gain, and to use up (and therefor make the best of) your starting gold.

What about bottle??

Since I originally wrote this guide, I have changed my stance on this item somewhat, and I want to outline my thoughts on the matter:

Start of the game:
This item is simply not worth it at this stage in the game. If you begin the game with bottle (which I wouldn’t recommend for virtually any hero) or even with the intention of just buying a few consumables and/or a monkey with the intention of running a quick bottle down, you will be giving up very valuable stats, sacrificing your last hitting abilities, and your overall abilities to stay in the lane. Rune rushing at this point is not really in your best interests, as Succubus doesn’t really have the tools for early kills by herself (unless your opponents play badly), as the combination of a long CD Nuke, and a 4sec Disable aren’t really enough to get a kill on anyone. Given this, aggressively runewhoring, none of the runes are really going to allow you to do anything particularly devastating. In the first 5 levels especially, you do not want to be playing overly aggressively, the most aggressive thing you want to be doing is harassing your opponent and trying to prevent his participation in the lane. If your opponent is the type of hero trying to utilize rune control, simply use Mesmerize to try and prevent him from using the runes, you don’t need a bottle to do this. In summary; at this stage of the game, stats and just general regenerative consumables are vital, and bottle is simply not worth it this early for a hero like Succubus.

Early game:
As you get past level 6, the use of Bottle becomes a lot more relevent. Using runes will help you really abuse your role as a ganker, Invisibility and Haste are your two most devastating runes; both used to setup the perfectly positioned lethal gank, but Illusion (spawn Illusions to attack them while the real you is holding them in place) and Regeneration (helping renew your limited mana pool) are also very strong. After Marchers and TP’s I tend to get a bottle, to allow Succubus a lot of ganking freedom. Another useful trick in tight fights when you and your opponent are both low on HP, is to Mesmerize them, take a few swigs from your bottle, and by the time the sleep wears off, you have your mana and hp back, and the’ve lost hp from the sleep, often giving you the advantage you need to turn a possible death into a kill. The more I play with Bottle the more I have begun to appreciate how useful it can be to support Succubus at this stage in the game, and it should be abused as much as possible.

How early or late you take this item depends entirely how you’re farming/what stage the game is at, and the role your team needs you to play. Bottle is not a 100% must have, but I have found in a large majority of games, it is an item worth buying. As in general for a lot of Succubus items, your build is adaptable, Bottle is another one of those items. Assess what you need, and be aware of the option of playing with it.

Early Game Items:

Early game you want to just be generally fleshing out your original items. You turn the Novice’s into Nulls for a general stat boost, and importantly a mana boost. You want to be grabbing Homecoming Stones because they’re essential for every purpose; defending opponents tower dives, tower defenses, retreating, quick lane swapping, ganks, avoiding skills like Rupture and Spider Shot, you name it, Homecoming Stone can do it.

Now here is a point that I won’t present as fact; and is up for debate between people that I have discussed this with. Again this is a “Well it varies from game to game” point. Generally speaking though, I advocate Enhanced Marchers as the best choice for Succubus.

Enhanced Marchers; Yes, the Damage and Attack Speed aren’t particularly relevant to her (although depending on how long your laning period lasts, and how well you farm early, getting Punch Dagger and Gloves of the Swift can help out a lot). The true beauty of Enhanced Marchers is how well the speed boost synergises with the playstyle of Succubus. Early on in the game she is a ganker, her role is to get into a prime perfect position, get off Succubus’ Hold, and allow her team to score some quick kills. Enhanced Marchers allow for setting up said positioning, whether it be via catching up to an opponent to get off a Mesmerize to hold them in place, getting that extra bit of range to pull off that last Heartache to seal the deal, or quickly getting the jump on someone to pull off a good Succubus’ Hold. This item adds to the element of ’surprise’ of a Succubus gank, you can get into position from the trees or TP gank very effectively with this item.

Steamboots again is one of those things that could very easily be gotten, the stat boost is helpful, the intelligence/strength boost is very handy too. If you find yourself against a team either with a lot of nukes, or one where you realise you’re going to be a target a lot of time; where your survivability is becoming a large issue, this upgrade is definitely worth a lot of consideration.

Boots of Travel are ~generally~ speaking too slow to farm, and while they certainly give Succubus a lot of ganking freedom, I find that Succubus a) Isn’t that farm dependant, so jumping around to farmable lanes isn’t particularly useful, and b) Has no fast farming mechanism, so being able to jump from farm to farm isn’t that easy. You’ll generally find that the gold is more productive to spend in other areas, and this item is more often than not, not the best choice.

Mid-Late Game Items:

Now here is where Succubus really shines. She has many options here for how to build her for midgame onwards, all tailored to your opponents team and playstyle. Main items for Succubus:

Kuldra’s Sheepstick

This is; in most situations, your first main priority to build. Kuldra’s Sheepstick does several things for you:

• Large Intelligence Boost, solving the low Mana Pool problem
• Has a nice Strength Boost, giving you some extra survivability in team fights.
• Gives your the Mana Regeneration to use your abilities more aggressively, and really let you take control of fights, without having to manage your mana pool quite so much.
• And most importantly; gives you yet another (very powerful) disable to aid your team.

This is about your best option as far as main items go, and will really let Succubus come into her own. The items involved in the recipe are also very beneficial, Manatube > Blessed Orb > Acolyte’s Staff, give you the things, in order, to cover a lot of Succubus’s flaws, and give you a nice steady progression over the course of the game.

Puzzlebox

While a lot more of a prominent item on the DotA counterpart Bane Elemental, the item in general is yet to really take off in the competitive HoN community, seeing play a rather low amount of games. However this synergises extremely well with Succubus’s playstyle, and can provide a lot of strong plays, especially those very familiar with micromanagement. At level 3 Puzzlebox provides:

Passive:

• +14 Strength
• +24 Intelligence

Activeateable:
Minions with -

• Mana Burn
• Explosion on Death
• True Sight (1,000 Range Invisibility Detection [Only at level 3])
• Mana Burn
• Haste Aura (Movement and IAS increase)

As you can see, this is not an item to be trifled with. The combo of Mesmerize + Bust Out Minions + Succubus’ Hold + Mana Burn + Attacks while target is held, is enough to bring down virtually any foe. However, the use of this item is more prominent in ganks and solo work, as in team fights, you have a lot of other roles to play, and important things to be doing, leaving Micromanaging minions to be virtually impossible to do. The invisibility detection however is invaluable and a great counter to stealthy targets.

Micromanagement has recently undergone changes to bring it up to par with DotA, so it will be interesting to see if this item takes off a bit more than it has so far.

Shrunken Head

Shrunken Head is for those matches where you realize you’re just not going to be getting any casts off. You’re the first target every fight, you’re hit with an array of stuns, you just generally can’t find the time to contribute anything useful before you’re gunned down. Succubus relies on her ability to control the flow of a team fight, who gets to fight, who can use their abilities at what times, and who is taken out of the fight entirely. Without the ability to do this, Succubus loses a lot of her potency. Shrunken Head provides you with a window after the initiation of a team fight to:

1. Get off your initial casts; Smitten and Mesmerize
2. Channel Succubus’s Hold without interruption
3. Take the attention away from yourself, and hopefully onto a hero that can take more hits than you can (how ‘hopeful’ this is, depends entirely upon how well you set up your disables on the opposing team).

This is a very useful item for Succubus, and generally a goal in most games with a balanced opposing team (whether it comes before or after your Kuldra’s Sheepstick is a choice you make based on how vulnerable you feel to the opposing lineup).

Hellflower

Hellflower is an interesting item on Succubus, completed, the effects of Hellflower are:

Passive

• +20 Intelligence
• +40 Damage
• +30 Attack Speed
• +225% Mana Regeneration.

Activeateable

• 5 Second Silence
• 20% True Damage Equal to the amount of damage taken during the Hellflower effect.

Now this is a very aggressive choice on Succubus. I take this when it’s not so crucial for me to be controlling the team fights, and more important for me to be taking down key targets, the 5 second Silence can throw a large spanner in the works of any heavy duty chain caster, and coupled with Heartache, the bonus damage can equate to a large amount if the target is focused. The stats itself however don’t provide much in the way of survivability. They greatly increase your low mana pool, and regeneration. But with this build, you are very succeptable to focus firing. You really need to be on your game to control potential threats when playing with a Hellflower build, if your team has a lot of disables, a Hellflower build can be devastating.

Luxury Items:

Generally in this section you will find items that you will only obtain if:

1. You are playing an -em game.
2. You have essentially already won anyway.
3. But most importantly, are playing a nail biting, edge of the seat clincher where anybody could win.

Frostwolf’s Skull

A true luxury item. When your team has killed Kongor several times, you’ve stacked up a lot of kills and assists, and are forced to deal with massive creep waves and need to spend your gold. Frostwolf’s Skull will make you extremely hard to target and kill, you will be able to survive through several nukes, and give you more than enough time to do the job you want to do. The slow on your attack helps pull out stragglers and gives you a strong AutoAttack for when your main disables are on cooldown.

Sacrificial Stone

I chose to include this here, because although it is certainly a useful item for Succubus, I would advise to avoid it in a core build. The stats on it are certainly very relevant to Succubus, in that the mana regeneration and additional hp and mana help cover up her flaws, but overall, the expense and lack of utility of this item, leave better choices to be taken. However in the clinching moments of a match, extra charges on this make for quick recoveries, and the on-death bonus helps a lot during team fights. Certainly not an item to be overlooked, but not worth rushing for.

Null Stone

Yet another item to help with general survivability. This is for those matches where getting Shrunken Head wasn’t a worthwhile investment, but there are still some targeted stuns/ministun nukes that can interrupt your channeling, and make your life difficult. Nullstone’s spell block helps protect you during your ultimate, and gives you the additional stats to make it hard to focus fire you.

As with all heroes, this is not the be-all end-all of lists, but generally the items you will use/aim for in 90% of games. It all comes down to the situation and who you are up against. I specifically left out an order in which to obtain these items, as it varies a lot from situation to situation. As mentioned previously, Succubus’ strength is in her versatility and adaptability, you are only limited by your ability to assess what is needed.

Wards:

As mentioned earlier, Succubus is a hero that is defined largely by her abilities and spells, not by her items. Her scalability with items is not nearly as large as other heroes, and as with other heroes of this type (Demented Shaman, Plague Rider, etc.) this makes you the perfect hero for…you guessed it; Wards!
Warding and Counter-Warding is essential in any game of HoN you will ever play, information is everything, and your team will love you for it. There are many warding guides out there, so I won’t go into specifics, but be aware that Succubus is great for this role, and don’t shy away from getting eyes out there.

Strategy

Early Game:

Which Lane To Go:
As Succubus, your heavy preference is to solo mid, with your ability to last hit and stay in your lane, you will have an easy time against almost any hero in the game. However don’t let this limit you, Succubus can thrive in dual-lanes as well, setting up kills with Mesmerize (either on their stunner/disabler) or using it to get into position to take down an opponent with the aid of a team mate. If you have a hero that will really benefit from a solo lane, don’t feel like you need to solo to reach your potential, politely slip into a lane with a team mate that you can do well with.

Laning Solo Mid:
Your job here is easy, just sit and farm and last hit. You do not need to rush into kills. Succubus has a fantastic attack animation and very strong base damage, allowing you to sit back in a lane and just pick off creeps.

What’s your opponent doing?
This is something you need to assess right away. Is it a Thunderbringer with a Bottle looking to harass the hell out of you? Is it a Hellbringer who’s just looking to last hit and turtle around his tower? Is it a runewhoring Valkyrie that wants to do everything in his power to end your life.

You need to find out the answer to these questions as early as possible and react accordingly. If you’re against someone who you know is going to abuse runes to dominate you in a lane, get an ally (or use an ally Monkey) to run you down some Observer wards and simply get to his runes before he can make use of them.

If you are facing someone who is not interested in harassing you heavily, and just wants to farm, that’s fine, do likewise. Against nearly all heroes, you will gain a huge advantage on them as soon as you hit Level 6. Make sure to use Heartache occasionally after level’s 3 and level 5, to stop them sitting on full hp, and then use that momentum to your advantage, and look for an opportunity to score a kill. Against players that don’t do much in a lane, it’s very easy to stockpile up your mana, and use everything in your arsenal on them as soon as you hit level 6.

Laning in a Dual Lane:
Your best friends here are heroes that require positioning to really abuse their damage abilities:
Pebbles
Soulstealer
Valkyrie
Behemoth
These are just examples of a few heroes that will greatly appreciate a 4 second window in order to setup a great place to abuse their abilities. Use Mesmerize offensively, even when not looking to score a kill, make their laning life a living hell.

I’ve hit Level 6, what now?
Early on with Succubus, you are a ganker, that is your role. Be aware of both your team and your opponents team, and where they are at all times. Succubus can turn a potentially overwhelming fight in favor of your team with careful use of her abilities. See which lanes need the most help, and use Homecoming Stone’s and move around behind the trees to setup kills.
This is one of the best aspects of Succubus Ganking, you can Hold them, and they won’t even know it’s coming;
Example:

Here in this picture, Sand Wraith thinks he’s just sitting back having a nice farm, with my ally Pebbles too low HP to be able to really do anything to him. I teleport down to my bottom tower and run behind the trees, and sit and wait. The Sand Wraith gets himself into a vulnerable position and I start to hold him from the shadows. I have then set my Pebbles up for a great Stun/Toss combo to completely destroy Sand Wraith.

Something to always bare in mind, is that while Succubus is capable of some devastating solo kills on Low HP opponents, she really shines setting up her teammates for kills. As already gone over, Succubus doesn’t rely on her items as much as other heroes, meaning you are in a great position to setup kills for team mates to get them hero kill gold. Ways you can abuse this is to Heartache BEFORE you Hold (if the situation permits) to get them even lower straight off the bat, to setup a team mate to get an easy quick kill. A well played Succubus should end games with her assists through the roof.

Use the early game to roam around the map from lane to lane using combination’s of Mesmerize/Heartache/Succubus’ Hold to set your team mates up for kills, helping your whole team farm up and reach the next phase of the game.

It’s Mid-Endgame, team-push time!
At this stage you should have finished your early game build and be on your way to your Kuldra’s Sheepstick or Shrunken Head. You’re now reaching the phase of the game where your role in fights has evolved from ganker to disabler. Your role here is to assess who can stun/disable on their team, and stop them from doing their job.
Example:

Here in this (rather unrealistically staged) fight, I’ve seen my opponents and decided that Magmus is quite clearly the hero here that’s going to do the most damage, so I’ve Mesmerized him and taken him out of the fight. I’ve then realized that Pyromancer has a huge AoE stun and massive damage output, but is relatively easily killed. So I’ve turned my grip to him in the hopes that my team will now press forward, take out the Pyromancer and with that momentum will be able to clean up the rest of their team.

• How viral are vampire “fluids?”  What properties of blood, sweat, saliva….healing, bonding?  Effects on influence?
• What was L’s relationship with Lucas?  Why is she not talking about him much?  Interest in courtesans?
• What big cities did the twins travel through at what times?  Maybe can show migration path of European strains into No.America.
• How exactly did M try to turn Annabel?  Methods vary among types/strains, blood sharing being most common.  Perhaps she wasn’t completely drained before she took his blood?
• How common is it for vampire masters to share with kindred how to turn?
• L’s ability of intention seems to be more nature of her of her sharp perceptions, not telepathy.  However, vampires tend to not have body language.  Perhaps they do but it is so slight…can that observation be taught to a human?
• Where did L learn about the birds and the bees?  Or M for that matter?
• Why was Caroline insistent on moving West?  (Check Memento for any Caroline references.)
• Caroline’s transformation: what does it suggest about M & L’s strain? 
• Are hybrid vamps possible?  Blood-Soul, Soul-Sex, Blood-Sex?  Can strains carry multiple types in them?  nature versus nurture?
• How does one kill a succubus anyways!?

     For some reason I have always been fascinated with the horror concepts of the Incubus and the Succubus, especially the Incubus.

     My first encounter with the term came somewhere in Grade School. I don’t recall exactly when but I was at the local bookstore, and I have a vague memory of coming across Ray Russell’s novel of the same name. It was published in 1976, so that would put me at seven years old, but I think the memory is a bit older than that. And I didn’t realize this memory existed until I bought a used copy of it back in my early thirties. When I saw the cover, it suddenly hit me. And the cover is quite memorable; it’s of a woman’s terrified face, her hand is covering her mouth, and the title is stamped across her forehead in white letters. I also have a memory of trying to pronounce the title, and not sure if what I was saying was right or not. (An image of the cover can be found at the bottom of this post).

     My next encounter with this demonic myth was around 1982, and, again, it involved Ray Russell’s novel, this time in movie form. Hollywood went ahead and adapted it for the screen, and I had a friend who used to buy Fangoria magazine, and every month he brought it in for me to look at. This was way before I was able to tolerate horror and most of those early issues were quite memorable for all the blood and gore they showed. Issue #23 was no different, for it featured a rather stunning looking demonic visage on the cover, down in the corner. It was the titular demon from the movie, and when I first set eyes on it, I was immediately fascinated by what the filmmakers had come with. Having finally read the novel, I have to say the book is much better, and completely different, than the movie. Having said that I still like the movie, and I still own the DVD, and watch it from time to time. (At the bottom of this post I have also added a picture of the Incubus from the back cover of the 1982 movie adaptation that was released on DVD in 2002).

     When it came time to start getting serious about the things I was going to write about, this myth popped right into my head, but I wanted it to be unique, and obviously different from Ray Russell’s novel. An idea came to me when I watched an interview with Michael Crichton on PBS; he was promoting his new science fiction novel, and it was the “science fiction” aspect that gave me what I needed as a basic premise. Instead of giving my demon the stereotypical “supernatural” origin, I decided to give him a technological one. And with that in mind, “That Which Lies Upon,” came into being in 2002, right on Thanksgiving.

     I came up with the title while I perused a book called, “SPIRITS, FAIRIES, LEPRECHAUNS AND GOBLINS: AN ENCYCLOPEDIA,” by Carol Rose. The entry for the Incubus states it’s Latin for, That Which Lies Upon. When I read that, I thought, ‘perfect title!’

     The novel is about four sisters who were sexually abused by their late father when they were kids. Returning home one Thanksgiving, and at the insistence of their psychologist sibling, they venture into the woods behind the house in attempt to visit their father’s cabin, and so doing, perhaps, acquire some kind of closure in the process. Once there, however, they unwittingly unleash a “force” that insists on abusing them further. And as the tale unfolds they learn this “force” isn’t content with just menacing them, the townsfolk become targets, too.

     It’s not just about an Incubus either, as the novel progresses a Succubus arises and the characters are eventually caught in a turf war between these two opposing forces. If memory serves I also threw in parallel worlds created by the subconscious, Angels and even Satan. I originally intended it to be more science fiction than horror, but I just couldn’t keep the supernatural elements at bay.

     Let me know what you think . . .

Bom, o titulo é auto explicativo ne?
Mas vamos lá…quando eu conheci o Edward, tive certeza de que Queria ser uma Vampira [afinal de contas esse é o desejo descarado da Bella, o que acaba influenciando nós leitores]. Mas, tirando toda aquela coisa de amor eterno [que foi o que chamou atenção em twi], porque mesmo eu Queria ser Vampira? Vamos pensar:
BELEZA: nah esse não é um argumento mto bom…ta ta ta que segundo lendas vampiros são extremamente lindos, mas se eu fosse uma Succubus, eu conseguiria ser linda; e o que é melhor, trocaria de forma a hora que quisesse.
IMORTALIDADE: De novo um argumento falho…Succubus também é imortal…
A verdade é que comecei a mudar de idéia depois de conhecer a Sook [aquela humana que pega toda a nata do mundo ‘supe’ em SVM]. Tipo, não preciso ser vampira pra pegar um vampiro…
Daí HoN realmente faz parecer que tanto beber sangue quanto ser mordido é BOM…
Rose fala das endorfinas e da sensação boa em doar o pescoço…
A Claire…na boa, se for pra ficar com o Shane topo continuar Humana…
E então o Dimitri….com toda a sua gloria me fez mudar de opinião. Não só o Dimitri, mas com certeza DAMON, BILL e ERICK’S [dai junta os dois] também tiveram sua parcela de culpa…
E a verdade é que EU QUERIA mesmo eram UMAS MORDIDAS! #prontofalei
Penso seriamente que ser meretriz desses vamps é bem melhor que ser transformada…
/ME MANDA OS VAMPIROS FAZEREM FILA E OFERECE SEU PESCOÇINHO PRA SESSÃO DE MORDIDAS… Uuuuuuuuuuuuuui³
[experimenta usar esse comando no MSN (/me e a frase) sempre tenho a impressão que vcs bóiam quando escrevo isso]

Como eu to no meu momento Georgie: “Don’t look down…“ [tipo: feche os olhos e aproveite a mordida] \oooooooooo/

Então, fiquei curiosa agora… e vcs!?

SERÁ QUE DEVO MUDAR O NOME DO BLOG?! UEHEUEHEUHU

:C

I awoke around 6:30am on the second day, having missed my opportunity to be humbled by the famous one night in Bangkok.  Eleven hours of jetlag-fueled sleep had saved me.  I sat at the porch, drinking coffee and mapping an itinerary for the day.

Many a site I would see on a self-made walking tour.  Off I went in search of my first destination: a walk through the Sanum Luang.  With a brain still addled from my long journey and excessive hibernation, I stroll through the streets.

Lucky Buddha? More like Sucky Buddha. Yeah, I said it.

Turning a corner, I’m hailed by a Thai gentleman asking what it is I’m looking for.  I tell him.  “No, this is not interesting,” he says and goes on to describe some other sites I may be interested in.  He speaks very good English and had mentioned some places I was planning to go to anyway.

As we’re talking, a tuk-tuk pulls up and the gentleman tells me I can take it for 10 baht due to special promotion: free petrol vouchers for the drivers.  I think to myself, “Why not?”  I’m curious about the tuk-tuks anyway.  So in I go, off to Lucky Buddha.

In this way, I experience the mild insanity of a tuk-tuk ride.  Weaving in and out of traffic at high speed, turning into oncoming traffic and being nearly clipped by motorcycles flying by, we make our way.

After the Lucky Buddha (nothing to see here, move along),  the driver must stop to TAT (Tourist Authority of Thailand) to get a voucher.  After which I request we head to Marble Temple.  “Oh no, closed today,” he says.

This fool was driving like a bat out of Hades.

Now, even with a brain functioning at around 50%, I realize this sounds familiar.  The driver must now go to another place to redeem the voucher.  This destination?  A fashion store.  Yes, familiar indeed.  I’ve unwittingly stumbled across the 10-baht tuk-tuk scam.  A harmless scam when it comes to money (10 baht is around 30 cents), but it cost me 2+ hours of my day and my itinerary.

So, humbled, I share this:  Lo!  Beware the 10-baht tuk-tuk, for therein lies the succubus of time.

Happy Halloween! This post is in the series of the Hottest Women You’ll Never Meet (I’m on time!). Seeing as how this is a site about fantasy sports, these women will almost certainly be 100% fictional. You may have run across them in various games, shows or what have you, but you’ve never actually met them. And you never will. Just sit back, read up and enjoy!

Morrigan Aensland

Name: Morrigan Aensland

First Appearance: Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors (1994)

Age: 316 (1678)

Für die einen ist es Sexismus. Für die anderen ein Mann mit einer Flasche Bier in der Hand, der schämisch grinsend in der Küche steht.

In kindly response zum Blogbeitrag meiner lieben Schwester “Die Top No Goes der Phase 1 des Kennenlernens” und der Fortsetzung “10 Dinge die ein Mann beim ersten Date sagen sollte” folgt die lang verschwiegene Top 10 der Dinge, die Frau besser auf den Punkt bringen müsste:

1. “8 Uhr passt! Ich komme lieber 10 Minuten früher und warte dann auf dich!”
2. “Du siehst wirklich gut aus. Ist das ‘Fuel for Life’? Macht mich wahnsinnig!”
3. “Jetzt hol schon endlich dein iPhone raus und zeig mir die neusten Spiele. “Pocket God”? Lass mich auch mal!”
4. Sagt bevor die Rechnung kommt: “Ich zahl schon für mein Getränk.” Und denkt: “Bloß nicht mein Getränk zu bezahlen sonst nehme ich dich bei den nächsten Dates aus wie eine Weihnachtsgans du Waschlappen!”
5. “Essen ist eine Lebenseinstellung. Als ich klein war hab ich mal einen Hot-Dog Fresswettbewerb gewonnen. Ich hoffe du kannst für 5 kochen wenn ich morgen Abend zu dir komme.”
6. “Ja, die Gesellschaft hindert mich am ausleben meiner Gelüste! Würden alle Frauen so zielgerichtet und konsequent denken wir ihr Männer, so würden wir es auf der Stelle miteinander treiben.”
7. “Ich bin zufrieden mit mir, meinen Brüsten, meinem Hintern, meinem Gesicht, meiner Lebenseinstellung, meinen Muttermalen, meiner Zukunftsplanung. Ich liebe die kleine Narbe hier rechts unten. 17,5% Fett sind völlig ok, das muss auch nicht mehr oder weniger sein.”
8. “Ich bin so eine.”
9. “Irgendwie klappt das nicht mit uns. Lass uns Freunde bleiben… nachdem wir Sex hatten.”
10. “Ich ruf dich morgen an. Hier, nimm diesen getragenen Stringtanga und diesen Vertrag in dem drinsteht, dass du die Erlaubnis hast ihn bei eBay zu versteigern wenn ich dich nicht anrufe.”

Those who know and follow the works of Sanura Sakai, owner and creator of Sanu, know she’s been kinda quiet lately. Not without reason, because she released this a couple of days ago:

Yes, it is a Succubus! Included in the color packs are the outfit, wings, tails in a short and long size, ears, horns, fangs, boots, whip and gorgeous eyes.

The outfit comes with a long sleeved top and a sleeveless one. The long sleeved top has a gorgeous heart on the chest as you can see. The whip comes with a hud includes all kinds of excellent animations and emotes.

You can buy the Sanu Succubus in an individual color pack (pink, purple, blue, green, brown, red and black available) or as a ultimate fatpack, which includes everything in every color. There are also regular fatpacks available for seperate items in the set.

Succubus – blue by Sanu
Hair: Ophelia by SLink
Skin: [][]Trap[][] Sphinx Limited 5 Tone Fem

Well, I up & decided to try some St. John’s Wort to help me sleep & it turns out that it did help me sleep but … it also made me incredibly groggy the next day. I did research it first & found that the grogginess doesn’t typically go away so I’m thinking it will need to be something saved for use only on weekends. I will say though, I did sleep really well & even fell asleep fairly quickly without as much anxiety as usual so that’s good. The other thing I noticed is that I spent a lot of time in REM (more than usual & I usually spend a LOT of time in REM) which is not good ..

I’ve also been researching narcolepsy as of late & I’m finding HUGE similarities between my symptoms & narcolepsy. I also found out that although we all associate people falling asleep in the middle of conversations with narcolepsy, that assumption is incorrect. A symptom of narcolepsy – cataplexy is what causes sudden REM (falling asleep) & not everyone has that symptom!

Other symptoms of narcolepsy include:

• excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS)
• sleep paralysis (SP)
• hallucinations (hypnagogic & hypnopompic) (HH)
• cataplexy (C)

You’ll notice that SP & HH are listed separately. In researching, that is how I found the symptoms presented. At first I thought that seemed odd, but as we all know – people can have SP & not have HH.

Now, remember, you can have narcolepsy & not have all the symptoms listed above. I even found a forum for narcoleptics & there were several posters that label themselves PWN w/o C (Person with narcolepsy without cataplexy). The majority of the narcoleptics on the site had been tested at sleep centers & diagnosed by doctors (some even neurologists since it is considered a neurological disease).

Another interesting fact I came across is the reference to “hypocretin”. Hypocretin is the chemical in the brain that is thought to control sleep & awake signals. Per the Harvard Medical School Guide to a Good Night’s Sleep by Lawrence J. Epstein MD w/Steven Mardon, hypocretin is thought to regulate when wakefulness & sleep occur. They refer to Dr. Clifford Saper of Harvard Medical School, a researcher that studied narcolepsy, describing this process as a “flip-switch”. The go on to state that hypocretin appears to be involved in when the flip between states occurs, as well as keeping you in that state. The belief is that when there is little or no hypocretin, people will (of course) flip between sleep & wakefulness frequently thus, causing muscle paralysis & dreaming to occur during wakefulness. I found that a great deal of the book is available for reading via Google books (great site!) so I encourage everyone to check it out!

I also found a lot of material that refers to SP as being a result of REM occurring first rather than gradually going through the normal sleep stages (beginning with light sleep). This makes complete sense to me because it happens every time I go to sleep. The unfortunate instance is when that occurs before I actually fall asleep (SP), which it sooo often does (arg!). That’s when my (ever so wonderful) cycle of jerking myself up once I start to dream while not completely in a sleep state begins (along with my anxiety). I found a lot of posters on the narcolepsy board stating this happens to them as well & it’s actually part of the testing required to diagnose narcolepsy. Narcoleptics hit REM much more quickly than “normal” people & spend more time in the REM state than other “normal” people as well. Often, switching sporadically between REM & other stages throughout their sleep time. (I wish I was one of those “normal” people … lol).

Anyway, I hope everyone finds this information as helpful as I did. Unfortunately, the only way to know for sure whether I just have ISP (or RSP) or something more (like narcolepsy) would be to get sleep testing done at a sleep center … which I can’t afford … but, judging by my symptoms & the amount of time I spend in REM I would say it may just be a obvious that I do in fact have narcolepsy. If only I were a doctor …

Remember the Alamo the Titans that Coinkydink stands for Coincidence, and that Coinkydonk sits for On Purpose. Comprende?

"She's soy sauce, and I'm Worcestershire," Juno might say of Jennifer, apropos of nothing.

I feel like writer Diablo Cody is a kindred spirit.  We’re both from the Midwest.  We’re both Children of the 80’s.  We’re both bloggers.  We’re both screenwriters (I’m just not yet produced).  And we’re both exhibitionists (she was a stripper; I enjoy walking around the mall in a long brown trench coat… that’s all I’m saying).

But of late, I noticed something about Ms. Cody’s produced works.  So far she has three: Juno, Jennifer’s Body, and United States of Tara. And they all share something thematic in common.

Tara with her Id, Ego, and Superego

Let it be known, I was fortunate enough to see Juno before it became the Incredible Hype, and I was knocked a bit off my feet by its sentiment and reality, despite the strange language that filled the characters’ mouths at the get-go.  I’m still not sure if the movie laid off the weird speak as the movie progressed, or if I got used to it (and who am I to knock weird speak… Coinkydink or Coinkydonk?), but I never held it against the flick.

Jennifer’s Body, on the other hand, felt like a misstep.  There was a lot of potential for homages, over-the-top zaniness, and ironic parallels to real high school life that never came to fruition, but this film spurned my thought processes.  Then I recalled her Showtime series, and it clicked:

All Diablo Cody’s characters are women dealing with things inside their bodies.

• Juno – a baby
• Jennifer – a succubus
• Tara – multiple personalities

There’s an old adage about writing: “write what you know.”  It’s not surprising (and it’s actually quite refreshing) that Ms. Cody’s scripts would center on female leads, but it is interesting to note the duality involved in each of the above characters, considering the duality of Ms. Cody herself (if that’s her real name).  Until she inevitably directs and becomes a true auteur, we’re left to wonder how her adaptation of Sweet Valley High will end up, or her future original works.

(SIDENOTE: I’m reminded of the oeuvre of screenwriter Larry Cohen, which includes: Phone Booth, Cellular, and Messages Deleted.  And there’s always Eric Roth, and his Curious Case of Benjamin Gump, plus his Forrest Button.)

So what do you think?  Is it a Coinkydink or a Coinkydonk…

I just came across this webiste that’s of great interest to me: The Conscious Dreamer By Sirley Marques Bonham . I haven’t explored it in it’s entirety & in fact literally – I just stumbled upon it searching “isolated sleep paralysis” via google. The reason I find this to be of extreme interest is because I am ever-so-often pulled into what she calls “recurrent isolated sleep paralysis”, which I call rolling cyclyes or the like. Regardless, one-in-the-same. Check it out & check her site out (as I will continue to do) & I’m sure we’ll all find it of interest

Sleep well! ~ Jayequeue

so, nun zum 3. teil der “georgina kancaid/succubus”-reihe.
der dritte teil heißt “succubus dreams” und ist, wie die teile davor auch, sehr unterhaltsam.
auch wenn diesmal vieles anders war- unzwar nicht nur im positiven bereicht. mal war es super lustig, mal war es super traurig. besonders das ende war wieder zum heulen- wörtlich.
aber wahrscheinlich macht das die ganze “succubus”- reihe so menschlich. denn im vergleich zu anderen büchern wo man nur gegen das übernatürlich böse kampfen muss hat georgina kincaid auch noch genug mit ihrem eigenen, vollkommen menschlichen problemen zu kämpfen- und lässt dabei echt nix aus.
aber kommen wir zum klappentext:

Some days, a girl just can’t catch a break…
…especially when the girl in question is Georgina Kincaid, a shape-shifting succubus who gets her energy from seducing men. First there’s her relationship with gorgeous bestselling writer Seth Mortensen, which is unsatisfying on a number of levels. It’s not just that they can’t have sex in case Georgina inadvertently kills him (generally a turn-off for most guys). Lately, even spending time together is a challenge. Seth’s obsessed with finishing his latest novel, and Georgina’s under demonic orders to mentor the new (and surprisingly inept) succubus on the block.

Then there are the dreams. Someone, or something, is preying on Georgina at night, draining her energy, and supplying eerie visions of her future. Georgina seeks answers from Dante, a dream interpreter with ties to the underworld, but his flirtatious charm only leaves her more confused—especially as the situation with Seth reaches crisis point. Now Georgina faces a double challenge—rein in her out-of-control love life, and go toe-to-toe with an enemy capable of wreaking serious havoc among mankind. Otherwise, Georgina, and the entire mortal world, may never sleep easy again…

(text: richellemead.com)

(bild: angusrobertson.com.au)

wer dachte er hätte schlafprobleme wird spätestens nach dem buch denken das er doch recht gut schläft, zumindestens müssen wir uns nicht mit dem chaos is person rumschlagen- im wahrsten sinne des wortes…

love,
xoxo

wie schon erwähnt hab ich mich vor kurzem der “succubus”- reihe von richelle mead gewidmet, auch bekannt als die “georgina kincaid”- reihe.
da ich von dem ersten buch so begeistert war gings weiter mit dem 2. (buch 3 und 4 sind natürlich auch schon gelesen, die reviews folgen in den folgenden tagen.)
das 2. buch war extrem toll- okay, ich find alle bücher von richelle mead “extrem toll”, also keine ahung wie man die aussage werten kann.
hier erstmal der klappentext, heute mal auf englisch weil der deutsche absolut schrecklich ist.

Georgina Kincaid’s job sucks. Literally.
Love hurts, and no one knows it better than Georgina Kincaid. If she so much as kisses her new boyfriend, she’ll drain his life force. Georgina is a succubus—a demon who draws her power from other men’s pleasure. Admittedly, the shapeshifting and immortality perks are terrific, and yes, Georgina did choose to join the ranks of hell centuries ago. But it seems completely unfair that a she-demon whose purpose is seduction can’t get hot and heavy with the one mortal who knows and accepts her for who she is.

It’s not just her personal life that’s in chaos. Doug, Georgina’s co-worker at a local bookstore, has been exhibiting bizarre behavior, and Georgina suspects that something far more demonic than double espressos is at work. She could use help finding out, but Bastien, an irresistibly charming incubus and her best immortal friend, is preoccupied in the suburbs with corrupting an ultra-conservative talk radio star—and giving Georgina some highly distracting come-hither vibes. Georgina is going to have to work solo on this one—and fast because soon, Doug’s life won’t be the only one on the line…

(text: richellemead.com)

(bild: blue-succubus.livejournal.com)

ganz ehrlich: das buch endet vollkommen anders als man sichs am ende vorstellt- vollkommen anders !
besonders das auftauchen von bastien macht die ganze geschichte besonders spannend.
naja, und da wär auch noch der arbeitskollege der vollkommen am rad dreht, seth, ihr mehr oder weniger freund und natürlich der ganze rest der höllen-sippe.

alles in allem wars echt gut zu lesen- wahrscheinlich hatte ich’s deshalb innerhalb von einem tag durch.
versuchts doch einfach selbst !

love, xoxo

A Succubus (plural succubi) is a demon who takes the form of a highly attractive woman to seduce men, in dreams to have sexual intercourse, according to the medieval European legend. Their male counterpart is the incubus. They draw energy from the men to sustain themselves, often until the point of exhaustion or death of the victim.

a succubus would collect semen from the men she slept with, which incubi would then use to impregnate women, thus explaining how demons could apparently sire children in spite of the traditional belief that demons were incapable of reproduction through generative or gestative means. Children so begotten were supposed to be those that were born deformed, or more susceptible to supernatural influences.

nachdem ich mich nach “vampire academy” auch mal anderen büchern von richelle mead widmen wollte hab ich mich für “succubus blues” enschieden, weil ich das cover total schön fand.
und ich muss sagen, ich wurde nicht enttäuscht. obwohl “succubus blues” und “vampire academy” sich überhaupt nicht ähnlich sind sind beide bücher einfach einzigartig. richelle mead ist definitiv eine sehr begabte autorin, um nicht zu sagen meine lieblingsautorin. (ja, sogar noch vor stepehnie meyer, die allerdings direkt auf platz 1,5 ist )
aber damit wir alle auf dem selben stand sind hier mal der klappentext:

Wenn man schon für die Hölle arbeiten muss, erscheint der Job als Sukkubus verdammt großartig. Eine Frau kann alles sein, was sie möchte, ihre Klamotten sind einfach umwerfend und sterbliche Männer liegen ihr zu Füßen. Zugegeben, sie bezahlen oft mit ihrer Seele dafür – aber warum sich mit dem Kleingedruckten aufhalten?

Allerdings ist das Leben der Georgina Kincaid, Sukkubus in Seattle, weitaus weniger exotisch. Ihr Boss ist ein Dämon aus dem mittleren Management mit einer Schwäche für John-Cusack-Filme. Ihre besten Freunde, alles Unsterbliche, ziehen sie nach wie vor damit auf, dass sie sich in eine Dämonengöttin verwandelt hat, so mit allem Drum und Dran: aufreizendes Outfit, Peitsche und Flügel. Und sie kann sich einfach nicht mit jemandem treffen, ohne ihm einen Teil seiner Lebensenergie auszusaugen.
Bleibt wenigstens noch ihr Alltagsjob in der örtlichen Buchhandlung – also kostenlos Bücher, so viel sie lesen möchte, kostenlos White Chocolate Mocha, so viel sie trinken möchte, und leichten Zugang zum Bestsellerautor Seth Mortensen alias “Er-Den-Sie-Um-Jeden-Preis-Haben-Möchte” …

um meine begeisterung noch deutlicher zu machen: heute fang ich mit dem 2. band an, und band 3 liegt auch schon neben mir.
georgina kincaid ist eine außergewöhnliche person. auch wenn sie kein mensch in dem sinne ist ist sie sehr menschlich, denn kein fettnäpfchen bleibt ihr erspart. wahrscheinlich kann man sich deshalb so gut in sie hineinversetzen, denn sie kämpft mit problemen, die keinem fremd sind: ein chef, dem man einfach hassen muss (vergleichbar mit unausstehlichen lehrern), freunde, die manchmal seltsam sind und, natürlich, die gute alte liebe. achja, ein bisschen action ist natürlich auch noch dabei.
alles in allem ne gute mischung aus echten lebenssituationen gepaart mit fantasy.
und wer mir nicht glauben will sollte sich selbst überzeugen.
achja, hier übrigens das uk cover

(bild: amazon.de)
achja, kleine anmerkung für alle die sich wundern das ich meistens die nicht-deutschen cover poste: ich lese die englischen bücher, nehm allerdings, soweit wie möglich, die deutschen klappentexte, einfach damit alle verstehen wovon ich rede.

jaja, richelle mead ist schon toll.

love,
xoxo