Little is known about the vampire lord known as the Red Duke. Most agree that he is a disgraced Bretonnian, but the true story is rarely told. He was the Duke of Aquitaine, and was wounded during the crusades. His retainers found him and carried him home through the desert and enemy-infested lands. Their numbers dwindled as they fell to disease or battle, but they pressed on, returning the duke to his castle.

There he lay on his deathbed. His knights swore to serve him and honor his name, even into death, and waited, hoping that he would recover. Despite their hopes and prayers, he perished, and was laid to rest in his family mausoleums. He lay there for three days, and then as a terrible storm raged above him, he rose from his grave as a Vampire.

Within hours, he had slaughtered and raised his entire castle as undead. The knights who had sworn to serve him found that their oath bound them to his service as wights, and the rest of his servants shambled around under his control as zombies. There he sat, lord of an army, with his sights set upon the King of Britannia.