Fleder

Fleders are lesser vampires, but this description can be deceiving, for lesser does not mean weak and stupid. True, they are primitive and bear a closer relation to animals than to humans; but when they drop on their prey from above, they can be as dangerous as their noble cousins. Even to a witcher.

They are known by other names as well: kites and fliers to name only two.

Reading Van Grott's Amazing Anti-Fleder Strategem provides a bestiary entry.

Associated quest

 * The Night of Long Fangs

Bestiary entry

 * The deceased’s corpse was completely mutilated. All that remained of the nose was a hole clotted with blood. One eye socket had been chewed beyond all recognition. The mandible had been torn off. Seeing this, Sergeant Dovate vomited profusely and the administration of smelling salts was required. The investigation has been discontinued and the deed attributed to a supernatural being. – fragment of a Toussaint Ducal Guard report


 * Fleders are classified as lesser vampires. Though weaker than the rest of their ilk in every aspect from the physiomagic to the physiognomic, they should not be underestimated – for they are very, very dangerous. Fleders cannot be mistaken for any other creature, with their wide, toothy jaws, flat, unpleasant faces and completely hairless, often warty bodies. These vampires mainly fight with their teeth and claws, flailing them blindly and not stopping even when their victim is already dead. Even a solitary fleder is strong enough to take down a trained soldier.


 * Compared to other vampires, fleders display meager intelligence, seen most clearly in the mindless rage which causes them to try with all their might to attack and tear to shreds any weaker being.


 * When fighting fleders, it is best to take advantage of their particular method of movement. These creatures do not run, but they do try to catch their prey and knock it over by leaping. Knowing this behavior, one can plan the fight appropriately and not let oneself be caught by surprise.


 * They are vulnerable to vampire oil as well as Black Blood.


 * "Common people believe that fleders are dead heathens who turned into vampires and rose from their graves. Being vampires, they attack sleeping people and drink their blood. According to peasants, a man bitten by a fleder becomes a fleder himself. This is nonsense, obviously."

Location

 * Slums
 * Little Mahakam, most westerly end of the alley
 * crypts, in general
 * garden of St. Lebioda's Hospital
 * Vizima cemetery
 * warehouse adjacent to the town hall
 * Old manor catacombs
 * Trade Quarter sewers

Monsterbook
Developer CD Projekt's characterization of the fleder taken from the monsterbook, which was enclosed with the Collectors Edition of the computer game The Witcher for Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic:

The fleder is a lesser vampire. Its appetite for blood is the only thing it shares with the noble princes of the night. A creature with animal instincts, deprived of any human, it seemed inappropriate to make him a stereotypical vampire with flat, black hair and dressed in a long black coat. These obvious attributes eliminated, we had to devise features less typical of a bloodsucker. Its head — triangular, with a flat face and horn-like protrusions — renders it similar to a vampire. The concept art and model depicted certain bat-like features, including the monster's face and ears (which became horns). With its glowing red eyes the fleder also resembles a demon, while fans of Coppola's movie may note a similarity with the aged Dracula.

The fleder is not a good flier, the membranes under its arms allowing only short jumps and attacks from above. Though not particularly smart, it knows that it gains an advantage and increases its chance of victory by suddenly attacking unsuspecting victims. Since the fleder's arms are also wings, its hands have thin extensions that enable it to pin down its prey. The long, prehensile toes on the beast's feet allow it to hang head down from the ceiling as shown in the rendered image.

Gallery
Flatterer Φλέντερ Flèdre Fleder Fleder