Sacrifice and the Afterlife [Archive] - Wizards Community

Sacrifice and the Afterlife [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Dravda
11-04-07, 10:34 PM What happens to a sacrificed character's soul? If, for instance, a LG fighter is captured and sacrificed to a Lord of Hell, does his soul go to Heaven or to Hell? I'm asking because it might be cool if the party managed to fight their way out of hell.

-Count Dravda
Vathelokai
11-04-07, 11:11 PM I've never seen a rule that specifies it. It seems implied by books such as Book of Vile Darkness that the evil deity finds this beneficial (thus gives rewards for it), but no details as to why.

I say go for it.
1 ton ghost
11-06-07, 06:31 PM apart from Capture the Soul and the like, there isn't anything on that.
that said, celebrant of a sacrifice reaps the benefits as his god is pleased and is showing his support.
the sacrificial victim's soul goes off to it respective plane depending on your campaign setting. take the life, not the soul.
Prime32
11-11-07, 10:07 AM I'm pretty sure it goes to Hell - in Dragon magazine, in the article on Fraz'Urbluu (sp?) he makes it seem they've gone to the normal afterlife at first, but slowly strips away the illusion until they realise they're in the Abyss, then devours them.

The whole point of the sacrifice is to attain souls, though its never quite clear why they want good-aligned souls so badly.
Finarin Panjoro
11-13-07, 10:43 AM The sacrifice serves the dual purpose of removing good from the world (the victim) and of providing lawful evil souls (the killers). Sacrificing a good person to a devil/evil god dooms you to Hell, so of course, devils love it. It's a win-win for them, less good on earth, more evil in Hell.

Murder would serve the same purpose for demons, but ritualistic sacrifice seems lawful to me, and thus the domain of devils.

Just my opinion based on Fiendish Codex 2.
Voran
11-14-07, 06:06 PM I'd say it depends on how 'connected' the sacrifice is.

Even when you're in a DnD setting with active gods and such, simply going "I sacrifice all I kill to Orcus!" (Or whoever), won't automatically sacrifice that soul to your intended party.

Even a ritual sacrifice may not (and probably won't) end up with the soul directly going to the possession of your demon-god-lord-fetish-master. They may benefit from the act of evil in removing a noble soul from the prime material, but they don't get the soul itself.

An elaborate ritual specifically designed to trap the soul and send it to hell, would be needed.

As pointed out tho, largely, sacrificing a soul, is technically your soul, not the actual body you whack, as sacrificing someone to an evil dude is typically an evil damning act that auto-checkmarks your soul for firey afterlife.

So as mentioned, that LE devil prince may not get the soul of that girl you sacrificed, but congrats, he definitely gets yours down the road.
Legdiwena
11-14-07, 07:26 PM I would say the soul goes to whatever deity he worshipped, unless potent magic constrained him otherwise.
KillerGM
11-14-07, 08:21 PM The whole point of the sacrifice is to attain souls, though its never quite clear why they want good-aligned souls so badly.

Because they're like the white cream in Oreos, obviously.

Without the good soul sandwiched between two evil souls, you just have chocolate cookies. Tasty, but not awesomely so.

(Note: this was not an effort to equate white with good and black with evil - I was actually thinking that there are more evil souls than good in that devil's domain or whatever. And I like Oreos.)

:D
Krusk
11-14-07, 09:29 PM What happens to a sacrificed character's soul? If, for instance, a LG fighter is captured and sacrificed to a Lord of Hell, does his soul go to Heaven or to Hell? I'm asking because it might be cool if the party managed to fight their way out of hell.

-Count Dravda

Sounds to me like they are sacrificing the soul to the Lord of Hell. So the souls is sent to him in Hell to do as he pleases. Also, I think in fiendish codex 2 they mention how souls are used as a form of currency in Hell.

plus you can always just decide thats what happens if you think it would be a cool adventure starter.
Legdiwena
11-14-07, 09:33 PM But the soul doesn't belong to the denizens of the lower planes. IMO, the currency remark is concerning souls of evil deities or those that enter into an agreement with devils or stolen by demons from Kelemvor.
Thegans
11-14-07, 10:08 PM I'm not sure about Baator but in Dragon magizine Malcanthets(I probably spelt it wrong) cultists have a method of rituallisticly killing a person that sends them to her layer of the abyss.
Prime32
11-15-07, 12:34 PM I'm completely sure that the soul goes to Hell. It's been mentioned all over the place.
Finarin Panjoro
11-15-07, 01:57 PM According to the Fiendish Codex 2 if a non-lawful evil soul winds up in Hell the devils can't use it the same way they normally would (for power and the creation of new devils). But the soul could be imprisoned and used for things like prisoner exchanges or to get someone else to sign a faustian pact to obtain their release.

Perhaps that is why the sacrifice is done, to give them a means to affecting other ends than what the acquisition of lawful evil souls alone would allow.
Legdiwena
11-15-07, 02:09 PM According to the Fiendish Codex 2 if a non-lawful evil soul winds up in Hell the devils can't use it the same way they normally would (for power and the creation of new devils). But the soul could be imprisoned and used for things like prisoner exchanges or to get someone else to sign a faustian pact to obtain their release.

Isn't that what happened to Wulfgar? Except he was taken there alive and not as a dead soul.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Dravda 11-04-07, 10:34 PM	What happens to a sacrificed character's soul? If, for instance, a LG fighter is captured and sacrificed to a Lord of Hell, does his soul go to Heaven or to Hell? I'm asking because it might be cool if the party managed to fight their way out of hell. -Count Dravda
Vathelokai 11-04-07, 11:11 PM	I've never seen a rule that specifies it. It seems implied by books such as Book of Vile Darkness that the evil deity finds this beneficial (thus gives rewards for it), but no details as to why. I say go for it.
1 ton ghost 11-06-07, 06:31 PM	apart from Capture the Soul and the like, there isn't anything on that. that said, celebrant of a sacrifice reaps the benefits as his god is pleased and is showing his support. the sacrificial victim's soul goes off to it respective plane depending on your campaign setting. take the life, not the soul.
Prime32 11-11-07, 10:07 AM	I'm pretty sure it goes to Hell - in Dragon magazine, in the article on Fraz'Urbluu (sp?) he makes it seem they've gone to the normal afterlife at first, but slowly strips away the illusion until they realise they're in the Abyss, then devours them. The whole point of the sacrifice is to attain souls, though its never quite clear why they want good-aligned souls so badly.
Finarin Panjoro 11-13-07, 10:43 AM	The sacrifice serves the dual purpose of removing good from the world (the victim) and of providing lawful evil souls (the killers). Sacrificing a good person to a devil/evil god dooms you to Hell, so of course, devils love it. It's a win-win for them, less good on earth, more evil in Hell. Murder would serve the same purpose for demons, but ritualistic sacrifice seems lawful to me, and thus the domain of devils. Just my opinion based on Fiendish Codex 2.
Voran 11-14-07, 06:06 PM	I'd say it depends on how 'connected' the sacrifice is. Even when you're in a DnD setting with active gods and such, simply going "I sacrifice all I kill to Orcus!" (Or whoever), won't automatically sacrifice that soul to your intended party. Even a ritual sacrifice may not (and probably won't) end up with the soul directly going to the possession of your demon-god-lord-fetish-master. They may benefit from the act of evil in removing a noble soul from the prime material, but they don't get the soul itself. An elaborate ritual specifically designed to trap the soul and send it to hell, would be needed. As pointed out tho, largely, sacrificing a soul, is technically your soul, not the actual body you whack, as sacrificing someone to an evil dude is typically an evil damning act that auto-checkmarks your soul for firey afterlife. So as mentioned, that LE devil prince may not get the soul of that girl you sacrificed, but congrats, he definitely gets yours down the road.
Legdiwena 11-14-07, 07:26 PM	I would say the soul goes to whatever deity he worshipped, unless potent magic constrained him otherwise.
KillerGM 11-14-07, 08:21 PM	The whole point of the sacrifice is to attain souls, though its never quite clear why they want good-aligned souls so badly. Because they're like the white cream in Oreos, obviously. Without the good soul sandwiched between two evil souls, you just have chocolate cookies. Tasty, but not awesomely so. (Note: this was not an effort to equate white with good and black with evil - I was actually thinking that there are more evil souls than good in that devil's domain or whatever. And I like Oreos.) :D
Krusk 11-14-07, 09:29 PM	What happens to a sacrificed character's soul? If, for instance, a LG fighter is captured and sacrificed to a Lord of Hell, does his soul go to Heaven or to Hell? I'm asking because it might be cool if the party managed to fight their way out of hell. -Count Dravda Sounds to me like they are sacrificing the soul to the Lord of Hell. So the souls is sent to him in Hell to do as he pleases. Also, I think in fiendish codex 2 they mention how souls are used as a form of currency in Hell. plus you can always just decide thats what happens if you think it would be a cool adventure starter.
Legdiwena 11-14-07, 09:33 PM	But the soul doesn't belong to the denizens of the lower planes. IMO, the currency remark is concerning souls of evil deities or those that enter into an agreement with devils or stolen by demons from Kelemvor.
Thegans 11-14-07, 10:08 PM	I'm not sure about Baator but in Dragon magizine Malcanthets(I probably spelt it wrong) cultists have a method of rituallisticly killing a person that sends them to her layer of the abyss.
Prime32 11-15-07, 12:34 PM	I'm completely sure that the soul goes to Hell. It's been mentioned all over the place.
Finarin Panjoro 11-15-07, 01:57 PM	According to the Fiendish Codex 2 if a non-lawful evil soul winds up in Hell the devils can't use it the same way they normally would (for power and the creation of new devils). But the soul could be imprisoned and used for things like prisoner exchanges or to get someone else to sign a faustian pact to obtain their release. Perhaps that is why the sacrifice is done, to give them a means to affecting other ends than what the acquisition of lawful evil souls alone would allow.
Legdiwena 11-15-07, 02:09 PM	According to the Fiendish Codex 2 if a non-lawful evil soul winds up in Hell the devils can't use it the same way they normally would (for power and the creation of new devils). But the soul could be imprisoned and used for things like prisoner exchanges or to get someone else to sign a faustian pact to obtain their release. Isn't that what happened to Wulfgar? Except he was taken there alive and not as a dead soul.