Top 10 Ways to Kill a Vampire

For centuries, these bloodsuckers have been our worst nightmare so it’s fitting that by now we’d have a list of their pet peeves. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 ways to kill a vampire.

For this list, we’re looking at all the methods that will send the undead packing or crackling to the grave for good. We’re sorry, but you vamps shouldn’t take people’s blood without proper consent and, no hypnosis doesn’t count! Also, if you’re wondering, many of these movies and TV shows usually have the same outcome, but in any case, here’s your SPOILER ALERT.

#10: Garlic

Let’s be honest: most of us would gladly die before finishing our veggies at the dinner table, but when the marauders of the night come a-knocking, you may want to have a century’s worth of garlic on hand. Garlic has long been the best-known and most accessible repellent against vampires, whether you wear it, hang it in your windows or rub it over your home’s entrances. It’s even been recognized as a way to keep them dead. How? By stuffing it in their mouths following decapitation.

#9: Werewolf Bite or Scratch

Arguably the longest and most heated rivalry in folklore is the dreaded werewolf versus the ominous vampire. These legendary creatures share similarities such as preferring night to day, extremely extended life spans and feeding on humans; there couldn’t be a more dysfunctional match made in hell. A vampire that gets a taste of wolf blood becomes stronger and extremely aggressive, but if a werewolf bites or scratches a vamp, it’s like a supernatural lethal injection.

#8: Lack of Blood / Starvation

It’s not rocket science: vamps need blood to survive point blank - whether it’s yours, the dog, a group of pigs, or synthetic. Blood is their primary life source in death and when they don’t get it, that’s a recipe for one antsy dark lord. Unfortunately, most are not able to feed on other vampires because another vampire’s blood is poisonous - it’d be like just drinking salt water to stay hydrated.

#7: Holy Water

Long has the church and symbols of it been the bane of a vampire’s existence. And with holy water being the equivalent of hot grease, vampires avoid Sunday services with an undead passion. An even better trick is taking regular water and blessing it, which can be considered holy water and will have the bloodsucker’s skin crawling. Knowing this also comes in handy seeing as how going to a church and explaining that you need holy water to combat vampires may get you tossed in the loony bin pretty quickly.

#6: Religious Symbols

Short on crosses? No worries; any household items that can be made to resemble religious symbols are just as good. Vampires are getting smarter by the millennium though. For example, they’ve figured out that if they didn’t believe in a certain religion before they were turned, then the religious symbols of that faith do not repel - or in this case - compel them as the undead. So in the future, before you try taking them down, make sure you do some background checks on your neighborhood vamp.

#5: Silver

A lot of people don’t know this, but silver is just as dangerous to vampires as it is to werewolves, and whether it is a silver stake or a bullet, these guys want no part of it. For vampires especially, even coming in contact with silver will sear their skin. So stock up on medallions, rings, and even spoons - one can never be too cautious in situations involving these creatures.

#4: Fire

Hey, everybody’s got some deep dark fear, like heights or drowning. Now being a member of the seemingly immortal undead, you would think with enhanced strength, speed, abilities to fly and so on, that fear would virtually not exist… wrong! Just like Smokey the Bear, vampires hate fire, which is ironic seeing as how if they do still have souls, then they’ll likely end up in a lake of fire after their prolonged afterlife. At least it’s not arachnophobia; seriously, could you imagine being afraid of those insects considering all the cobwebs that are undoubtedly in these mythical beings’ homes?!

#3: Decapitation

In these dark and helpless moments, it’s pretty easy for one to lose their head…literally! But hopefully, it’s the pale dude with jagged fangs trying to bite your neck that it happens to. Beheading a vampire is probably one of the harder methods to employ for supernatural murder, seeing as how you must catch the creature first and then apply enough force to cut its noggin off. And please don’t forget to place the head in between the vamp’s legs and stuff it with a mouth full of the aforementioned garlic to make sure it stays dead.

#2: Sunlight

SPF lotion won’t do you any good if you’re a child of the night strutting around during the day. Sun exposure is often used for torture, executions, or just trying to prove someone’s a vampire. This is arguably the slowest, most painful, and least costly of the ways to dispatch your nocturnal foes. Take into consideration that most have been alive for a long time and are experts at avoiding the sun though, so have a backup plan.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Vervain
- Wolfsbane

#1: Wooden Stake to the Heart

The most iconic weapon against the vampire is the primitive yet highly effective wooden stake. Before the days of silver bullets and flamethrowers, there was the extremely simple stake which could also be used as a cross and torch to ward off the undead. More recently, stakes have been used as projectiles via crossbows. So if you ever accidentally invite a vamp into your home, make sure to offer him or her a stake dinner seasoned with garlic and some Vatican water to wash it all down.

Do you agree with our list? What’s your favorite method of taking out vampires? For more entertaining Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.