Funerals in Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Funerals in Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Zedium
05-12-05, 05:29 PM This is just a little article I have written to add more flavor to Eberron. This ought to be nice if one of your characters has recently passed away.

Funerals in Eberron

Eberron is a world where dying means something. Few people have the power to return the dead to the lands of the living and often it is even seen as a bad thing to do so. Especially the church of the Silver Flame would think resurrecting someone would pull that person from the Flame itself, actually taking power away from a divine source. Also, the existence of Dolurrh is well known. Most folks know what will happen to them when they die, and seeing how Dolurrh is not really a happy place, a funeral is a special thing. It is usually the last point where someone in the mortal realm will be remembered.

Usually, funerals in Eberron are similar to those in our world. Friends and family come together to cremate or burry their beloveds and will honor them. It is a sad occasion and usually there is a lot of mourning. Even after a century of war, someone’s death is still a major event, and a lot of people will live with the close relatives of the deceased. This is how most of the funerals of the Sovereign host take place and they are usually guided by a priest of Boldrei. Followers of the Dark Six usually hold funerals in a similar manner, although a priest of the Keeper is usually the one who guides it and the whole tone of it is a lot darker. The graves of Eberron are very similar to our own; they are usually located at cemeteries, although in some cases it can be in large crypts or at desolate locations. Often decorations are added to a grave and a short message about who the person was who is laying in the grave. On the more expensive gravestones a continual flame spell has been applied creating quite an eerie play of light during nights at the graveyard. To prevent grave robbing, the wealthy often trap their coffins with a permanent Symbol of Pain or sometimes an even more extreme version. This is the usual course of action though, and several of Eberron’s cultures have their own ways of holding funerals.

Aerenal:
The elves of Aerenal send the recently deceased to the city of the dead, where priest of the undying court will treat the corpse with a special ritual which will basically turn it into a mummy. Although there are no wrappings and all the organs are still intact, the corpse will be well preserved for many millennia without the aid of magic. If the elf was a special and worthy figure, a special ritual will be performed where he will be converted to a member of the undying court. This ritual is the most holy of the rituals of the undying court and has only been performed a few times these last few centuries. If the elf is a normal person, a tomb will be made near the ancestral home of his line and he will be buried in this tomb usually wearing fine clothes and armor. (See the Undying Soldier and Councilor on pages 301 and 302 of the ECS for an example) The burial is often a long ritual, which can sometimes take up to weeks. The corpse will be buried with most of its belongings although he will often give away special and significant items which will prove useful to the ones he leaves behind.

The Blood of Vol:
The Blood sees the death of someone as a tragic thing, and often a long mourning period is in order. It is quite common for families worshipping the blood to mourn for months or even years. Funerals are elaborate things and are often visited by many worshippers, although they are often held in secret except in Karrnath. The dead are always buried, because that way their corpse can be brought back by means of necromancy later on. If available, a priest will cast Speak with Dead so the family of the deceased can ask 1 or 2 last questions. The more wealthy members of the faith will have their corpse raised and brought back as an intelligent undead. The less fortunate will try to build a crypt, even if it will leave almost no money for those who they have left behind to inherit. Even for the common man their grave means a lot and Blood gravestones are often heavily decorated in a gothic style. This has resulted in areas where the Blood is worshipped, especially Karrnath, to be covered by crypts and ornate graves.

Darguun:
The goblinoids of Darguun all have very different ways of honoring the dead. The goblins often hold simple funerals, very much alike to those of the humanoids. The family of the deceased mourns only for a short period though, and after a week, even for close relatives, it almost seems like the person in question has been forgotten. This is not dishonor for the dead though, it is actually seen as honoring the dead by moving on with life and not showing weakness to ones who would abuse such weaknesses. The bugbears have funerals where the deceased is either given a glorious funeral with family and friends from far and wide if he died during battle or during some other event or a sober and small funeral with only the closest family if the bugbear died under circumstances not worth any glory. The hobgoblins either hold funerals resembling those of the other bugbears, although the Dhakaani have their own tradition. They prefer to burry their dead in the tombs of their ancient empire. They think this way the spirits of the fallen will be close to those of their glorious empire that way. This kind of funeral is usually only reserved for the greatest among them though and many hobgoblins see it as a major goal in their life to reach such a grand funeral.

Kalashtar:
The Kalashtar mourn every death, and they mourn often due to their ongoing struggle against the Dreaming Dark. Every death means losing a servant for Il-Yannah, but the war must go on and thus the dead are only mourned in public for a short while, but sometimes kalashtar will mourn for the rest of their lives for someone they held dearly, especially someone of their own line. The dead are usually cremated quickly after dying and preferably within a 24 hour period. After the cremation, the ashes are held in an ornate urn and kept safe by someone standing close to the kalashtar, this is usually someone of the same Quori line although in special cases the urn is given to a close friend.

The Silver Flame:
The Church of the Silver Flame thinks that someone joins the flame upon dying if he led a good life, and will strengthen the flame with his presence. Thus funerals are usually glorious events although the dead are still mourned because they left the lands of the living. The dead are cremated usually in churches or at holy sites on large pyres build out of the finest wood. The wood is often decorated with delicate holy patterns and heavily decorated. The pyre itself is powered by a magical silver flame. The silver color is created by using a delicate mixture of magical substances and is a secret only known by priests of the Flame itself. After the funeral is over, the ashes are mixed into flametouched iron and cast into small amulets, these amulets are then given to family and friends. These amulets can also be used as a holy symbol, although they will cost the same as a normal flametouched holy symbol.

The Valenar:
The Valenar elves hold grand feasts where the dead are cremated in the open air. This is seen as a glorious event where the deceased will join the ancestors as another great spirit. There is a lot of drinking and dancing while friends and family gather. At the funeral there are usually several Keepers of the Past who will record tales about glorious moments of the elf in question. These tales don’t need to be about heroics, they are usually about the normal things in life which defined the person in question. “Maelinas once broke his leg when he was a teenager, even though the bone was sticking out he still kept going till he arrived at the healer by his own strength” would be an example of what people would say about a normal elf.

Zilargo:
The Zil gnomes usually have funerals to reveal many of their intrigues. Although it is mostly a normal burial, the reading of the will is a special event. During this reading not only will be appointed to each person present what will be bequeathed to him. But the late gnome usually reveals many secrets but for almost every secret he reveals he will probably will create a new one in return.
Vharuck
05-12-05, 06:00 PM Truly excellent and amazing! I especially like how you captured the sorrow that the Blood of Vol treat death with.

All I ask is, what about the Mror dwarves? Or the Talenta halflings?
Naudachu
05-12-05, 06:12 PM Great thread. I like how you've made each unique and yet still believable. I wonder if the Aerenal (or maybe the Silver Flame would be better) have a day like the Mexican Day of the Dead where they celebrate those who have died.

Here's a couple more:

Shifter
The ways of the shifters varied, but death comes to them all eventually. Upon death their bodies are left to nature to devour. Its considered a great sign if the deceased is eaten by his ancestral animal. In fact some rituals have emerged to ensure this, the simplest of which is a Druid summoning the beast in question.

Lhazaar
Many pirates of the Lhazaar Principalities follow the example of the great explorer. The dead are placed in a makeshift vessel and set ablaze in stolen alcohol. The craft is pointed toward Sarlona returning the spirit to their homeland. Some may be burned with a fair amount of wealth leading many to a post-ritual dive to retrieve the valuables. This has become part of the ritual for many to appease their conscience, but the underlying reason is greed. For this reason many cremations take place in shallow water.
ChronosCrow
05-13-05, 01:36 AM Nice ideas.

I had a player die once in sharn and we encountered this ordeal. On the spot Imade up a way for people to be buried in the City of Towers. This was way before the sourcebook mind you.

Sharn: On one of the southersides in Dura where the wind is carried out to see is a ceremonial platform. There you can have the beloved cremated and then set into a menial mechanical flying contraption that lasts only long enough to fly the ashes out to sea and then drop into the ocean. There are varying levels of how lush the ceremony itself can be. One can also place small light weight momentos in the contraption with the ashes.
Marshall Stone
05-13-05, 01:52 AM I like your take on the Zil funerals. It seems rather appropriate, and a great way to generate plot hooks.

Nice job on the Silver Flame and Kalashtar as well.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Zedium 05-12-05, 05:29 PM	This is just a little article I have written to add more flavor to Eberron. This ought to be nice if one of your characters has recently passed away. Funerals in Eberron Eberron is a world where dying means something. Few people have the power to return the dead to the lands of the living and often it is even seen as a bad thing to do so. Especially the church of the Silver Flame would think resurrecting someone would pull that person from the Flame itself, actually taking power away from a divine source. Also, the existence of Dolurrh is well known. Most folks know what will happen to them when they die, and seeing how Dolurrh is not really a happy place, a funeral is a special thing. It is usually the last point where someone in the mortal realm will be remembered. Usually, funerals in Eberron are similar to those in our world. Friends and family come together to cremate or burry their beloveds and will honor them. It is a sad occasion and usually there is a lot of mourning. Even after a century of war, someone’s death is still a major event, and a lot of people will live with the close relatives of the deceased. This is how most of the funerals of the Sovereign host take place and they are usually guided by a priest of Boldrei. Followers of the Dark Six usually hold funerals in a similar manner, although a priest of the Keeper is usually the one who guides it and the whole tone of it is a lot darker. The graves of Eberron are very similar to our own; they are usually located at cemeteries, although in some cases it can be in large crypts or at desolate locations. Often decorations are added to a grave and a short message about who the person was who is laying in the grave. On the more expensive gravestones a continual flame spell has been applied creating quite an eerie play of light during nights at the graveyard. To prevent grave robbing, the wealthy often trap their coffins with a permanent Symbol of Pain or sometimes an even more extreme version. This is the usual course of action though, and several of Eberron’s cultures have their own ways of holding funerals. Aerenal: The elves of Aerenal send the recently deceased to the city of the dead, where priest of the undying court will treat the corpse with a special ritual which will basically turn it into a mummy. Although there are no wrappings and all the organs are still intact, the corpse will be well preserved for many millennia without the aid of magic. If the elf was a special and worthy figure, a special ritual will be performed where he will be converted to a member of the undying court. This ritual is the most holy of the rituals of the undying court and has only been performed a few times these last few centuries. If the elf is a normal person, a tomb will be made near the ancestral home of his line and he will be buried in this tomb usually wearing fine clothes and armor. (See the Undying Soldier and Councilor on pages 301 and 302 of the ECS for an example) The burial is often a long ritual, which can sometimes take up to weeks. The corpse will be buried with most of its belongings although he will often give away special and significant items which will prove useful to the ones he leaves behind. The Blood of Vol: The Blood sees the death of someone as a tragic thing, and often a long mourning period is in order. It is quite common for families worshipping the blood to mourn for months or even years. Funerals are elaborate things and are often visited by many worshippers, although they are often held in secret except in Karrnath. The dead are always buried, because that way their corpse can be brought back by means of necromancy later on. If available, a priest will cast Speak with Dead so the family of the deceased can ask 1 or 2 last questions. The more wealthy members of the faith will have their corpse raised and brought back as an intelligent undead. The less fortunate will try to build a crypt, even if it will leave almost no money for those who they have left behind to inherit. Even for the common man their grave means a lot and Blood gravestones are often heavily decorated in a gothic style. This has resulted in areas where the Blood is worshipped, especially Karrnath, to be covered by crypts and ornate graves. Darguun: The goblinoids of Darguun all have very different ways of honoring the dead. The goblins often hold simple funerals, very much alike to those of the humanoids. The family of the deceased mourns only for a short period though, and after a week, even for close relatives, it almost seems like the person in question has been forgotten. This is not dishonor for the dead though, it is actually seen as honoring the dead by moving on with life and not showing weakness to ones who would abuse such weaknesses. The bugbears have funerals where the deceased is either given a glorious funeral with family and friends from far and wide if he died during battle or during some other event or a sober and small funeral with only the closest family if the bugbear died under circumstances not worth any glory. The hobgoblins either hold funerals resembling those of the other bugbears, although the Dhakaani have their own tradition. They prefer to burry their dead in the tombs of their ancient empire. They think this way the spirits of the fallen will be close to those of their glorious empire that way. This kind of funeral is usually only reserved for the greatest among them though and many hobgoblins see it as a major goal in their life to reach such a grand funeral. Kalashtar: The Kalashtar mourn every death, and they mourn often due to their ongoing struggle against the Dreaming Dark. Every death means losing a servant for Il-Yannah, but the war must go on and thus the dead are only mourned in public for a short while, but sometimes kalashtar will mourn for the rest of their lives for someone they held dearly, especially someone of their own line. The dead are usually cremated quickly after dying and preferably within a 24 hour period. After the cremation, the ashes are held in an ornate urn and kept safe by someone standing close to the kalashtar, this is usually someone of the same Quori line although in special cases the urn is given to a close friend. The Silver Flame: The Church of the Silver Flame thinks that someone joins the flame upon dying if he led a good life, and will strengthen the flame with his presence. Thus funerals are usually glorious events although the dead are still mourned because they left the lands of the living. The dead are cremated usually in churches or at holy sites on large pyres build out of the finest wood. The wood is often decorated with delicate holy patterns and heavily decorated. The pyre itself is powered by a magical silver flame. The silver color is created by using a delicate mixture of magical substances and is a secret only known by priests of the Flame itself. After the funeral is over, the ashes are mixed into flametouched iron and cast into small amulets, these amulets are then given to family and friends. These amulets can also be used as a holy symbol, although they will cost the same as a normal flametouched holy symbol. The Valenar: The Valenar elves hold grand feasts where the dead are cremated in the open air. This is seen as a glorious event where the deceased will join the ancestors as another great spirit. There is a lot of drinking and dancing while friends and family gather. At the funeral there are usually several Keepers of the Past who will record tales about glorious moments of the elf in question. These tales don’t need to be about heroics, they are usually about the normal things in life which defined the person in question. “Maelinas once broke his leg when he was a teenager, even though the bone was sticking out he still kept going till he arrived at the healer by his own strength” would be an example of what people would say about a normal elf. Zilargo: The Zil gnomes usually have funerals to reveal many of their intrigues. Although it is mostly a normal burial, the reading of the will is a special event. During this reading not only will be appointed to each person present what will be bequeathed to him. But the late gnome usually reveals many secrets but for almost every secret he reveals he will probably will create a new one in return.
Vharuck 05-12-05, 06:00 PM	Truly excellent and amazing! I especially like how you captured the sorrow that the Blood of Vol treat death with. All I ask is, what about the Mror dwarves? Or the Talenta halflings?
Naudachu 05-12-05, 06:12 PM	Great thread. I like how you've made each unique and yet still believable. I wonder if the Aerenal (or maybe the Silver Flame would be better) have a day like the Mexican Day of the Dead where they celebrate those who have died. Here's a couple more: Shifter The ways of the shifters varied, but death comes to them all eventually. Upon death their bodies are left to nature to devour. Its considered a great sign if the deceased is eaten by his ancestral animal. In fact some rituals have emerged to ensure this, the simplest of which is a Druid summoning the beast in question. Lhazaar Many pirates of the Lhazaar Principalities follow the example of the great explorer. The dead are placed in a makeshift vessel and set ablaze in stolen alcohol. The craft is pointed toward Sarlona returning the spirit to their homeland. Some may be burned with a fair amount of wealth leading many to a post-ritual dive to retrieve the valuables. This has become part of the ritual for many to appease their conscience, but the underlying reason is greed. For this reason many cremations take place in shallow water.
ChronosCrow 05-13-05, 01:36 AM	Nice ideas. I had a player die once in sharn and we encountered this ordeal. On the spot Imade up a way for people to be buried in the City of Towers. This was way before the sourcebook mind you. Sharn: On one of the southersides in Dura where the wind is carried out to see is a ceremonial platform. There you can have the beloved cremated and then set into a menial mechanical flying contraption that lasts only long enough to fly the ashes out to sea and then drop into the ocean. There are varying levels of how lush the ceremony itself can be. One can also place small light weight momentos in the contraption with the ashes.
Marshall Stone 05-13-05, 01:52 AM	I like your take on the Zil funerals. It seems rather appropriate, and a great way to generate plot hooks. Nice job on the Silver Flame and Kalashtar as well.