Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Takasi 06-16-04, 12:59 PM	Here's my take on the Mark of Death. These are all Necromatic spells. For the most part they're the complete opposite of the Mark of Healing: Least Mark of Death: Inflict Light Wounds 1/day or Chill Touch 1/day; +2 bonus on Intimidate Checks Lesser Mark of Death: Inflict Serious Wounds 1/day, Poison 1/day, Contagion 1/day or Enervation 1/day Greater Mark of Death: Harm 1/day Siberys Mark of Death: Wail of the Banshee 1/day Comments?
AvonRekaes 06-16-04, 01:18 PM	Don't have the books so I'm not familiar with the powerlevel usualy ascribed to Dragonmarks, but I'll make suggestions on flavor. Least: Inflict, cause it's a fairly straight foward low level attack spell and can heal undead. Lesser: Definately enervation. Poison and Contangion are more about suffering than death (in my opinion), and another Inflict thing would just feel like a lack of flavor. Greater: Harm works perfectly. It's /like/ an Inflict spell, but is much more powerful. However, you might want to find something else, seeing as how Harm *Can't* *Actually* *Kill*. And this is all about death right?
JohnnyONeal 06-16-04, 04:35 PM	Avon's suggestions are well-taken, but I think it works to keep some of the second-best ideas as options. The only change I'd make is to drop poison and contagion. You could always have ray of enfeeblement 2/day be an option, but I think chill touch works nicely. What about the Siberys mark? Should it be destruction, power word kill, or something else? PS: Takasi, your PM box is full, but I'm definitely interested.
Takasi 06-16-04, 06:12 PM	I'm mainly trying to follow the other marks to get a sense of the power level. The Mark of Healing is a good choice because all of its spells revolve around positive energy and I would think the Mark of Death would be the opposite. You could also make the mark include spells dealing with the undead, but then it would be the Mark of Undeath. :D I think poison and contagion should be included as they are equal to "remove poison" and "remove disease" that the Lesser Mark of Healing can grant. Both poison and disease are used to cause death. Ray of enfeeblement is a good choice for a least mark to replace chill touch, though I personally think chill touch has a darker feel. Having 2 first level enfeeblement spells per day IMO isn't as balanced as poison or contagion, and no other lesser mark lists an option to select a first level spell twice a day. As for the Siberys Mark of Death, I would like to see something that instantly kills more than one person. The Mark of Healing gets the 9th level Mass Heal spell. There is no Mass Harm spell in the core book, so the next best thing is Wail of the Banshee. What does everyone think of the +2 to Intimate checks? I figured there should be a bonus, but wasn't sure what skill was best. Someone with the Mark of Death would be pretty intimidating IMO.
Galen_Michael 06-20-04, 05:18 PM	From what I can tell, least marks are generally 0-2nd level spells, lesser marks are 3-4th level spells, greater marks are 5-6th level spells, and (as stated in the Heir of Siberys prestige class) siberys marks are generally 7-8th level (although some 9th level spells appear on the siberys mark list). I also see the Mark of Death as opposing a Mark of Life (if such existed), not the Mark of Healing; whereas a Mark of Wounding might oppose the Mark of Healing (and include inflict spells and the like). I tried to include only spells that caused death (not damage), or related to death (not damage) in some way. Given those guidelines, here's what I came up with for the Mark of Death, trying to use mostly spells with the actual death descriptor.: Least Mark of Death: death knell 1/day, death touch* 1/day, or death watch 1/day; +2 bonus on Intimidate checks Lesser Mark of Death: death ward 1/day or speak with the dead 1/day Greater Mark of Death: slay living 1/day or circle of death 1/day Siberys Mark of Death: power word kill 1/day *As the granted power of the death domain. Destruction, wail of the banshee or finger of death would also make for a good siberys mark...
Jhaelen 06-20-04, 06:13 PM	Hmm, this one's difficult. However I imagine the spells should revolve around 'power over death' rather than spells simply 'causing death'. The spells granted by other dragonmarks are sufficiently useful to the general populace that you can easily imagine how they could have evolved into houses providing services to anyone able to pay for them. So, I basically agree with Galen_Michael. Especially the spells he selected for the Lesser Mark of Death are excellent choices, IMHO! I have to carefully look over the spell lists in my PHB first, before I can make suggestions for spells myself, however. Stay tuned ;-)
Moleculor 06-20-04, 06:39 PM	I agree with Jhalen, especially since the only example of use of the mark was to 'control' rather than cause death.
Galen_Michael 06-20-04, 07:13 PM	Originally posted by Moleculor I agree with Jhalen, especially since the only example of use of the mark was to 'control' rather than cause death. Really? Could you post the page # of the event you're referencing? Now I'm all curious... what did I miss?
Taigis 06-21-04, 02:59 AM	Page 130 indicates that the abilities of the mark were concerned with death and the undead. I see a lot of abilities related to death, but few concerning the undead. Perhaps the inclusion of abilities to create, control or deal more specifically with undead would be investigated. Taigis
Taigis 06-21-04, 03:04 AM	Originally posted by Galen_Michael Really? Could you post the page # of the event you're referencing? Now I'm all curious... what did I miss? Maybe the thought was that Vol's creation was a use of the dragonmark as described on 228. It refers to the matriarch's powers over death. Taigis
Galen_Michael 06-21-04, 03:08 AM	Originally posted by Taigis Page 130 indicates that the abilities of the mark were concerned with death and the undead. I see a lot of abilities related to death, but few concerning the undead. Perhaps the inclusion of abilities to create, control or deal more specifically with undead would be investigated. Taigis Yeah, I actually designed a separate Mark of Undeath which would be a sort of abberant Mark of Death, but I suppose I could just combine the two and allow people to choose freely from amongst all the possible powers. I may post my Mark of Undeath tomorrow, when I have time to format it properly...
Galen_Michael 06-21-04, 03:18 AM	Originally posted by Taigis Maybe the thought was that Vol's creation was a use of the dragonmark as described on 228. It refers to the matriarch's powers over death. Taigis Yeah, I wondered if that's what Moleculor was referencing. I could see that argument, but I would argue that it was the matriarch's own considerable necromantic power, apart from the Mark of Death, that allowed her to transform her daughter into a lich. I kinda doubt that the Mark of Death would be capable of bringing about such a transformation on its own, just because of the level of power that would entail - *maybe* a siberys mark, but dragonmark's typically mimic spells, and there's no spell capable of creating a lich that I'm aware of, save maybe wish. Not to say that rule couldn't be broken... Of course, either way I think that the Mark of Death should encompass both control over and dispensing of death.
Galen_Michael 06-21-04, 02:51 PM	For the death touch spell-like ability for my Least Mark of Death, should their "cleric level" (for purposes of determining how many d6 to roll) be character level or the caster level specified by the highest dragonmark they possess + their levels in the dragonmarked heir prestige class?
Taigis 06-21-04, 03:01 PM	Originally posted by Galen_Michael For the death touch spell-like ability for my Least Mark of Death, should their "cleric level" (for purposes of determining how many d6 to roll) be character level or the caster level specified by the highest dragonmark they possess + their levels in the dragonmarked heir prestige class? To keep it in line with the other dragonmarks, I think it should be as specified by the particular mark (least-1, lesser-6 and greater-10) + their dragon marked heir levels. Why do you think it should be any different for this mark? Taigis
Galen_Michael 06-21-04, 04:28 PM	Originally posted by Taigis To keep it in line with the other dragonmarks, I think it should be as specified by the particular mark (least-1, lesser-6 and greater-10) + their dragon marked heir levels. Why do you think it should be any different for this mark? Taigis I don't really. I'd agree with your assessment Taigis.
Galen_Michael 06-21-04, 07:44 PM	Just as a heads up, I posted my Mark of Undeath here (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=262723) . The Mark of Death could certainly incorporate the spell-like abilities detailed there. Galen
Jhaelen 06-22-04, 03:25 PM	Yep, that are pretty much the powers I thought of, as well :-) However, I've also had this silly idea how they could have monopolized the resurrection business: Lesser Mark: Gentle repose Siberys Mark: Clone or Soul bind Using Soul Bind they could make sure noone got a chance to resurrect someone, so you'd have to turn to them to do the job. And someone interested in a little life insurance could pay them to grow a clone, which would be kept fresh using Gentle repose :-P
Axys 06-23-04, 12:17 AM	:devil::devil:I am not sure about use of a thirteenth mark or making an abberant one since that would most definitely bring the forces of both the Undying Court and the Dragons of Argonnessen down upon the particular character's head. Both were the cause of the destruction of the House of Death because of the Halfelf-Green Dragon Vol that the House bred. But if you do go through with creating such a mark, do not forget to have the full House apply to the other houses for acceptance into the 'Twelve' or now it would be 'Thirteen'. :devil: Last but not least, the draconic group 'The Chamber' would be another power group involved in the attempted slaughter and annihilation of said new/abberant marks. Several highly enthusiastic and energetic yound adult dragons could make any group's lifes rather miserable.
Taigis 06-23-04, 11:15 PM	I don't think it was the mark that they had a problem with. It was a half-dragon elf that led to the destruction of the House of Vol. Taigis
kntshade 07-08-04, 03:35 PM	Has anyone compiled all the known information about the mark of death? I'm very curious about it and would like to know more about it. Suggested reading? Page numbers?
Senko 07-09-04, 03:36 AM	Which raises the interesting question if it was the breeding that caused problems would a character from a house other than Vol who gained the mark of death be able to find help from figures amongst the houses.
Boin 07-28-04, 02:45 PM	I was considering the uses of the mark of death. This is what I came up with based on the fact that every other house has some kind of power related to trade. If you think about trade relating to death the first thing you should think of is funeral/mourge business. Using that as a building block: Least Mark: Gentle Repose (Preserve the corpse for the funeral) Lesser Mark: Speak With Dead (find the cause of death) Greater Mark: Magic Jar (or something using the ability to commune with a dying body unable to speak its last words) Syberis Mark: Clone (Giving is possesor or anyone else willing to pay the fee mastery over death)
Sarlax 07-28-04, 09:19 PM	This is what I came up with based on the fact that every other house has some kind of power related to trade. Do they? Cure Light Wounds isn't precisely a trade spell. The houses commercialize their abilities, but they aren't specifically related to commerce. Gentle Repose and Speak With Dead both strike me as appropriate. For those advocatig Inflict Light Wounds, etc. the Mark of Death isn't the place for it. I can say this with a good amount of confidence. How? Because Inflict Light Wounds is an Aberrant Dragonmark ability. The Mark of Death wasn't an aberrant mark; it would be extremely odd for a regular mark to share powers with an aberrant mark. The description of Vol indicates that she was made into a lich by the house matriarch "who used her powers over death to make sure her beloved daughter survived." I get the impression that the Mark of Death deals not just with death, but undead. It's not about negative energy alone. I think that the Greater Mark was Animate Dead. This would allow for House Vol to provide cheap labor across the continent. It also helps to explain why the house was destroyed. Consider that the elves of Aerenal create deathless with positive energy. In time, a number of them gain the innate ability to manipulate negative energy. Undead aren't always evil (just as nothing in Eberron is always any particular alignment), so the creation of skeletons and zombies by House Vol would have been tolerated, if somewhat offensive. When elf and dragon mated to produce Vol, it was the straw that broke the camel's back. With centuries of tension because of the undead, the mixing of blood was the end.
Ectoplasmoid 08-05-04, 09:22 PM	Being that the mark of death grants power in the realm of death, i would think it fair to make the powers of the house related to death/undeath. Least mark- Control Undead 1/day or Disrupt undead 4(3?)/day? Benefit: +2 on spell save DC's v. undead Lesser Mark: Speak w/Dead 1/day Greater Mark: Animate dead 1/day Siberys mark: Create undead 1/day I think that these marks capture the flavor of the mark of death, though I think that the abilities might be a tad unbalanced
Sarlax 08-05-04, 10:47 PM	Originally posted by Ectoplasmoid Being that the mark of death grants power in the realm of death, i would think it fair to make the powers of the house related to death/undeath. Least mark- Control Undead 1/day or Disrupt undead 4(3?)/day? Benefit: +2 on spell save DC's v. undead I like this draft of the mark. However, I do object to the +2 to spell save DCs. Every other mark grants +2 to a particular skill. I'd use something like +2 to Knowledge (Religion) checks, since that skill covers knowledge of undead. That might be a little out of flavor, though. Perhaps +2 to Charisma-based skills and Knowledge checks related to undead would be more appropriate.
Ectoplasmoid 08-06-04, 01:12 AM	Well, my logic with the spell save DC was that there's no particularly useful skill to use when you're dealing w/undead. I could go with the Knowledge bonus, but I don't quite see how a dragonmark gives you extra "pure knowledge", rather than intuitive knowledge of a specific art, like healing/crafting. The Charisma-based checks kind of stink against a mindless undead. Perhaps +2 to Indimidate is the best option after all.
Save_vs_DM 08-10-04, 06:17 AM	Here's what I'd go with myself ( this is quite fun) Mark of Death Granter Power: +2 bonus on Knowledge (Religion) checks. Least Mark: Detect Undead 1/day, Deathwatch 1/day, or Speak with Dead 1/day Lesser Mark: Gentle Repose 1/day, or Animate Dead 1/day Greater Mark: Symbol of Fear 1/day Siberys: Symbol of Death 1/day I think that House of Death would have done 2-3 things. 1. Worked as a sort of funeral service for the world. Preserving loved ones, gratning closure with Speak with Dead. 2. Provide a cheap and usable resource using Animate Dead. But I primarily see them being used as Mosoleum guards. Think of it: they can guard a tomb for eternity, to give your loved ones peace. 3. Graveyard/Masoleum protection. Using Symbol fo Fear and Symbol of Death they could easily protect a tomb from invasion. This is just my opinions, mind you. Think what you will. Cheers, Save vs DM
Nekode 08-11-04, 06:27 AM	Originally posted by Boin I was considering the uses of the mark of death. This is what I came up with based on the fact that every other house has some kind of power related to trade. I agree entirely Originally posted by Sarlax Do they? Cure Light Wounds isn't precisely a trade spell. The houses commercialize their abilities, but they aren't specifically related to commerce. The spell would be incredibly popular among young hotblooded nobles, damaged workers and all. While the spell might not have been specifically designed for commercial use, it is going to be one of the most commonly used.
Dr. Benway 09-08-04, 06:55 PM	Just adding a quick link to my recent post about the Mark of Death. I would've posted here but dangfool search function is still dead. grrr:tantrum: At any rate, here it is..http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?p=4336295#post4336295 Any feedback there or heree would be much appreciated. DOcB:88E:
Warforged_316 09-08-04, 10:04 PM	I`ve been wondering if the mark of death was an elf dragon mark? it may have already been explained in the ECS but I forgot so just humor me plz
Tanis_flaxenstrand 10-25-06, 05:17 AM	Its my thought that the Mark of Death should be a little more gresoum (sp?) than simply killing a subject. Kinda like the famous 'never play with your food' saying. Sort of like a kill them in a way that is prolongued or that is in some way painful or long for the subject. For the Greater Mark, maybe Heart Ripper (Complete Arcane). It takes a Will save. If failed, the subjects heart is ripped from his body and lands either at the casters feet or in his hand, instantly killing the subject. This mark could also have many things to do with decipt. I dunno. Just a thought.
RaShal 10-26-06, 11:20 AM	It may be that our question could be answered when the Dragonmarked resource book comes out in November. It mentions the 13 Dragonmarked Houses, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see information on Aberrants and some information on extinct d'marks. Ra'Shal
The Brat Prince 10-26-06, 01:21 PM	It may be that our question could be answered when the Dragonmarked resource book comes out in November. It mentions the 13 Dragonmarked Houses, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see information on Aberrants and some information on extinct d'marks. Ra'Shal I think by the "thirteen" they mean the fact that the Mark of Shadow is split between Thuranni and Phiarlan. one mark, two houses. As for the Mark of Death, I'm inclined to think that it was inherently more powerful than the other marks (which i read somewhere but can't remember where...) suffice it to say, I don't think it's unreasonable to start dolling out the death effects as soon as lesser mark... especially since in my Mark of Death-Centered campaign the only person with the mark is a "teenage" elf girl who's got no idea how to use her mak. The abilitiies themselves shouldn't even come into play.
Forgivance 10-26-06, 02:07 PM	I still go with it as a dead mark...however, I woulld offer at least : Lady Vol, spawn of the elven house of Death and the green dragon Emerald Claw, was transformed by her mother using her mark into a lich, though it did kill the mark... Assuming her mother used her mark to actually do the transformation, it would stand to reason she was at least with the greater mark and that that coould Create Undead...however, since there isn't just a Create Lich version of that spell line, it might have been just fluff and flavor... Per the Eberron dragonmark stuff, I would think that: Least: Detect Undead 1x/day, Deathwatch 1x/day, or Sanctuary (avoid death) 1x/day; +2 bonus on Heal or Knowledge: religion checks. Lesser: Animate Dead 1x/day or Speak with Dead 1x/day (personally against the animate as that seems to deal more with the spirit side of necromancy than the death part...regardless of fluff :) Greater: Circle of Death 1x/day, but it being 6th lvl is abit high...and abit low for Siberys.) Blight is also a fine one...or antilife shield.
SquirrelMortis 10-28-06, 06:55 PM	Looks pretty well balanced. You get Ted's Thumbs up! :coolcthul :thumbsup:
lordalm 10-29-06, 02:12 PM	Just a note I thought I would throw out. In the mark of death books that came out, little miss sunshine managed to blow the eye out of and ADULT or ANCIENT black dragon. I know of no spell that would have camparable damage (artistic license for the eye). Now I would assume that would have to be Sieberys mark, but the way it was talked about (the mark) in the book it was made to sound like a least mark that would "grow" with time. Way over powered it that was it. Defienetly a harm spell. So the mark of death was defientely seen by the author (who I will assume ran his ideas by WoTC if not Keith) as causing death. The ECS does hint at the mark being able to affect or control undead as my memory goes though....
goblin_pride 10-29-06, 03:13 PM	There's lots of other things a Mark of Death could do other than causing it. It could have Ressurrection, Reincarnation or even that spell that prevents the corpse from rotting. Just because it's powerful and has death in the name, that doesn't mean it's a source of major offensive mojo. And a once a day Ressurrection that takes a single round to cast is some major mojo, for the record.
Neofish 10-29-06, 05:50 PM	There's lots of other things a Mark of Death could do other than causing it. It could have Ressurrection, Reincarnation or even that spell that prevents the corpse from rotting. Just because it's powerful and has death in the name, that doesn't mean it's a source of major offensive mojo. And a once a day Ressurrection that takes a single round to cast is some major mojo, for the record. I agree 100%.
(Psi)SeveredHead 10-29-06, 06:07 PM	Just a note I thought I would throw out. In the mark of death books that came out, little miss sunshine managed to blow the eye out of and ADULT or ANCIENT black dragon. I know of no spell that would have camparable damage (artistic license for the eye). Now I would assume that would have to be Sieberys mark, but the way it was talked about (the mark) in the book it was made to sound like a least mark that would "grow" with time. Way over powered it that was it. Defienetly a harm spell. So the mark of death was defientely seen by the author (who I will assume ran his ideas by WoTC if not Keith) as causing death. The ECS does hint at the mark being able to affect or control undead as my memory goes though.... More like Slay Living (based on what she did to that annoying black dragon). Also, that Claws of Darkness thing might have been like a "constant Slay Living" effect. It wouldn't be balanced, but it's an NPC only thing. It's really not going to be worse than a bodak, but a bodak PC would probably be broken.
lordalm 11-19-06, 03:48 PM	More like Slay Living (based on what she did to that annoying black dragon). Also, that Claws of Darkness thing might have been like a "constant Slay Living" effect. It wouldn't be balanced, but it's an NPC only thing. It's really not going to be worse than a bodak, but a bodak PC would probably be broken. I am going to assume slay living does damage comparable to disintegrate which I am a little bit more conservative with. I so have to throw a dragon at my party.....
Maialideth 03-18-07, 06:25 AM	here's my quick suggestion for a Mark of Death Least: Deathwatch 1/day, Detect Undead/Deathless 2/day, or Gentle Repose 1/day. (as for skill bonus, I'd probably be more likely to say that Knowledge (religion) is always considered a class skill for those with the Least Mark of Death. Or a +2 bonus on rebuke undead attempts...) Lesser: Animate Dead 1/day, Death Knell 2/day, or Halt Deathless 1/day. Greater: Death Ward 2/day, Raise Dead/Slay Living 1/day, Antilife Shell 1/day, or Create Undead 1/day. Siberys: Control Deathless 1/day, Energy Drain 1/day, or Symbol of Death 1/day.
Cifer 03-18-07, 11:16 AM	Undead aren't always evil (just as nothing in Eberron is always any particular alignment), so the creation of skeletons and zombies by House Vol would have been tolerated, if somewhat offensive. Well, it's the other way around: Undead and their creation are still evil - but noone really cares to stop things "because they're Evil." However, Undead creation is frowned upon by many religions. I don't know the stance of the Host about it, but the Silver Flame and the Undying don't like it. Personally, I don't think Death-effects fit the mark. AFAIK, there are exactly two powers in all the other marks which may be used for relatively direct attack (Sivis Syberis with its Symbol of Death and Lyrandar Least Gust of Wind). Packing a true dragon mark chockfull with agressive powers seems rather wrong to me.
Metamagick 03-18-07, 11:45 AM	Shouldnt one of them have Animate Dead? I mean, they were necromancers............ :::Metamagick:::
Maialideth 03-19-07, 07:11 AM	Shouldnt one of them have Animate Dead? I mean, they were necromancers............ :::Metamagick::: My suggestion does... the one thing I noticed, is the lack of focus on the deathless...
Cifer 03-19-07, 09:30 PM	the one thing I noticed, is the lack of focus on the deathless... I doubt there would be any such focus. Vol seems rather focused on the traditional negative energy undead. The relationship with the Undying was probably a Live And Let Undie held stable by the fact Aerenal still had problems with the dragons.
NthDegree256 03-20-07, 11:06 AM	Let's hear what Keith has had to say on the subject in the past! These are taken from the Ask Keith Baker FAQ (http://boards1.wizards.com/wotc_archive/index.php/t-287579). I figured I'd go and hunt down any noteworthy comments about the Mark of Death so people could at least have a good feel for what the creator of the setting thinks. :) Q:If only the core races can have a dragonmark, how did Vol get one? Was it a true Mark of Death or was it an aberrant dragonmark? A Good question, and only Vol knows the answer. Remember that dragonmarks are unpredictable. Only half-elves can have the Mark of Storm. A half-elf cannot inherit the Mark of Shadow, but a half-orc can inherit the Mark of Finding... and only the Mark of Finding. Apparently, a half-dragon can have the Mark of Death -- which may have tied into the destruction of the House of Vol.So the Mark of Death may be an elf mark, or it may be a half-dragon mark, it seems. (...) the Mark of Death is the reason the line of Vol was eliminated, along with the fact that there is a long emnity between the elves and dragons, making that particular cross especially abhorrent.The interbreeding was disastrous, but would hardly require the extermination of every last member of the line: after all, prisoners wouldn't run off and breed with dragons. The reason to exterminate the entire line was because the line carried the mark: and the mark itself was a threat to all things.Just for clarification. Yes, the elves and dragons were horrified by the thought of a half-dragon, but eliminating the mark was a key goal. Since (the Mark of Death) is a Mysterious Plot Device, and something the elves say a need to eliminate from the world, I could see it as being more powerful than the other marks -- of course, anyone who bore it would become a target for all sorts of people, both those who want to destroy him and those who want to use him or steal his power.If you want to add a living character with the Mark of Death in your game, then it's up to you to set its powers. Since it is not intended for PCs, I'd personally allow it to have more power than the other marks; remember that a war was fought to destroy the mark, so it was obviously a big deal! However, if you're going to give it to a PC, that's another story; it may be a weakened version of the mark. One thing to consider is the presence of half-dragons in the Line of Vol; it's entirely possible that this was done because only a half-dragon could embody the full power of the mark.So, while the mark possessed by Erandis d'Vol may have been broken to Dolurrh and back, an elf-only balanced mark would probably make sense. On that note re: elves vs. half-dragons... Now: the key issue is – WHY the line of Vol mix its blood with dragons? Why did the dragons involved choose this alliance? And what effect did the mingling have on the dragonmark? I think that the Mark of Death possessed by a normal elf could be very different than the Mark of Death as possessed by Erandis d'Vol (meaning, among other things, that whatever happens in Marked for Death, unless a half-dragon is involved, there is still room for the unknown). I DO believe that mark is and was special: that it posed a greater threat than any other dragonmark, and granted powers beyond those of the 12 standard dragonmarks. Also, while this thread is specifically about the Mark of Death, it's worth noting...It is believed (depending on how tightly you hold to the novels) that Erandis d'Vol is the last bearer of the Mark of Death. Perhaps, if she was destroyed, another pure mark would appear to take its place. And of course, this all needs the disclaimer: It's your game! This is what Keith thinks, but he's not running your Eberron games, you are, so if you don't like what he has to say, more power to you.
androkguz 03-20-07, 12:53 PM	About the financial nature of dragonmarks: the houses were not an economic power until Galifar called them into forging his empire, long after the mark of death was gone. So don't really worry of how did House Vol sold its power, because by that time they probably didn't. By the way Takasi, I love Eberron's mysteries, and the mark of Death is just one of the best. I'm curious about how are you going to use the Mark of Death's statistics once you decide which they are? I mean, if you really need them then you're worried about balance: are you giving it to a PC?
Ront Iron-Roar 03-21-07, 09:24 AM	It could be possible that you can combine certain effects together or make some original "spells" for the spell-like-abilties for the Mark of Death. I believe Orien and Lyrander have some custom spell-like-abilities on thier lists that don't show up as spells anywhere else. Maybe do some abilities that deal damage to others. Say using a Nightmare spell that reanimates the person who dies and etc. They all involve damaging the person and then reanimating them afterwards as they fall.
Magicianguy131 03-23-07, 12:57 PM	It could be possible that you can combine certain effects together or make some original "spells" for the spell-like-abilties for the Mark of Death. I believe Orien and Lyrander have some custom spell-like-abilities on thier lists that don't show up as spells anywhere else. Maybe do some abilities that deal damage to others. Say using a Nightmare spell that reanimates the person who dies and etc. They all involve damaging the person and then reanimating them afterwards as they fall. That would be a Greater one, or even a Siberys. It could just be Undeath Seed thingy in Complete Mage. :_:Magicianguy131:_:
vlsigma 11-11-07, 10:32 PM	I've been looking at everything that people have posted, and I think that the Mark of Death deals with causing and controlling death. With that statement, I propose these spells as possibilities: Least Spells: Decomposition(CD), Detect Undead, Death Knell, Gentle Repose, Cause Fear +2 to Intimidate checks Lesser Spells: Animate Dead, Last Breath(CD), Wrack(CD), Death Ward Greater Spells: Waves of Fatigue, Antilife Shell, Undeath to Death, Create Undead Siberys Spells: Create Greater Undead, Energy Drain, Finger of Death, Death Pact(CD) CD = Complete Divine