Stake

A stake was a pointy wooden object and one of the most effective ways to slay a vampire.

Usage
In order for the weapon to be effective, it must've penetrated the vampire's heart. However, vampires in possession of the Gem of Amarra would be rendered invincible, and immune to staking. A vampire could also become immune to staking by having its heart surgically removed, although this process certified the vampires death within about six hours.

Stakes were the most commonly used weapons by vampire hunters and Slayers whilst fighting and hunting vampires, along with crossbows, crosses, holy water and bladed weapons which generally were secondary weapons.

Generally, any wooden object of a reasonable size could function as a stake (including broken chair legs, decorative bamboo sticks, tree branches etc.) but professionals tended to carry their own specially carved stakes. Agents of the Initiative along with Wolfram & Hart security guards and Special Opps each individually carried their stakes while dealing with vampire attacks, similar to how they would use a combat knife or nightstick.

More advanced versions of this weapon were Angel Investigations' Stake-loaded wristbands and Connor's Stake Gun. The Scythe also contained wooden stake opposite to its head.

Kendra Young once owned a individual stake which she nicknamed "Mr. Pointy". She then passed this on to Buffy before her death.

Along with vampires, stakes were also an effective weapon against species related to vampires, such as the Turok-Han and Zompires.

Behind the Scenes

 * Retractable_stake_demontration.jpg prop stakes used in Buffy the Vampire Slayer  were made of real wood, however, when it came to stabbing, stakes with a retractable point were used in action scenes to create the illusion of stabbing.
 * In the non-canonical video games, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Chaos Bleeds, some demon enemies (like hellhounds and hanoch demons) can only be killed with the same methods as vampires like fire, decapitation and staking.

Appearances
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Buffy The Vampire Slayer

 * "Welcome to the Hellmouth"
 * "The Harvest"
 * "Never Kill a Boy on the First Date"
 * "Angel"
 * "Prophecy Girl"
 * "When She Was Bad"
 * "School Hard"
 * "Lie to Me"
 * "What's My Line, Part One"
 * "What's My Line, Part Two"
 * "Ted"
 * "Surprise"
 * "Innocence"
 * "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered"
 * "Killed by Death"
 * "Becoming, Part One"
 * "Becoming, Part Two"
 * "Anne"
 * "Dead Man's Party"
 * "Faith, Hope & Trick"
 * "Revelations"
 * "Lovers Walk"
 * "The Wish"
 * "Gingerbread"
 * "Helpless"
 * "Bad Girls"
 * "Consequences"
 * "Doppelgangland"
 * "The Prom"
 * "Graduation Day, Part Two"
 * "The Freshman"
 * "The Harsh Light of Day"
 * "Fear, Itself"
 * "Beer Bad"
 * "Wild at Heart"
 * "Pangs"
 * "Hush"
 * "Who Are You"
 * "Superstar"
 * "Where the Wild Things Are"
 * "New Moon Rising"
 * "Buffy vs. Dracula"
 * "Real Me"
 * "Out of My Mind"
 * "No Place Like Home"
 * "Fool for Love"
 * "Shadow"
 * "Listening to Fear"
 * "Triangle"
 * "Checkpoint"
 * "Crush"
 * "Intervention"
 * "The Gift"
 * "Bargaining, Part One"
 * "All the Way"
 * "Once More, with Feeling"
 * "Tabula Rasa"

Angel
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 * "City Of"
 * "In the Dark"
 * "Bachelor Party"
 * "Somnambulist"
 * "The Prodigal"
 * "Five by Five"
 * "War Zone"
 * "Blind Date"
 * "Judgment"
 * "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been"
 * "Guise Will Be Guise"
 * "The Shroud of Rahmon"
 * "The Trial"
 * "Reunion"
 * "Redefinition"
 * "Reprise"
 * "Epiphany"
 * "Disharmony"
 * "Heartthrob"
 * "That Old Gang of Mine"
 * "Offspring"
 * "Quickening"
 * "Lullaby"