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| #1alkhorSep 02, 2010 3:15:15 | Hi everyone, my campaign is based on a ritual made by Lady Vol that aims to spread the 13th mark (mark of the dead). My PC just got infected by the mark (not a real mark, a kind of mark that kills its wearer..... but that's not the point), and I expect them to investigate on the nature of the mark they are wearing. Then I have questions, even after reading several material, including the "Faith of Eberron" book, chapter on Blood of Vol. 1) What is the common knowledge on "Vol" (as in Blood Of Vol). Do everyone knows about Lady Vol ? Her history ? 2) Do the 13th mark is known and remembered by folks ? 3) It is stated that the "religion" is very old (time of the Giant), but grew with the event of Erandis..... but why did this peticular event made the religion grew ? (is Erandis an icon for the religion ?). 4) Do "Vol" (in Blood of Vol) refers to Lady Vol ? The house ? Or do the House took the name of "Vol" as in the name of someone who achieved fist the self improvement ? 5) Do a lot of followers achieve the immortality, or at a lesser extent, do achieve to live longer ? If I have missed something in printed material or if you have links / ideas on thoose question, I'll be please to read it ! |
| #2ellorinSep 02, 2010 12:24:09 | Hi everyone, Let's see... 1) On the contrary, this is an extremely rare and dangerous kind of knowledge. 2)Some of the Aereni and non-mortals like the dragons of Argonessen and the Lords of Dust .The Twelve and certainly the elven houses remember it too. Otherwise...forgotten by almost everyone. 3)I do not recall Erandis actually causing a rise to the popularity of the Vol traditions but then again, I'm not near my library at the moment. The potency of her dragonmark certainly tipped the scales though, unfortunately for her faction. 4) The line of Vol(it was too long ago to have been a house). 5)Who knows? It's a little like asking if the Sovereigns exist. Something for the Dm to answer if she feels like it. |
| #3durskutSep 02, 2010 14:13:38 | Don't have my books on me, but I'll give it a shot. All this is IIRC/IMO until I get a chance to verify. 1. There are two sides to the common knowledge coin. Non-member side: If you ask a non-BOV follower I imagine his knowledge would only include them being a weird cult from Karrnath. He's probably heard of them doing bloodletting rites and worshiping undead. Member side: A BOV follower, including local clergy, likely knows his faith is misunderstood. He probably knows the group is organized in a cell type structure, but that Seekers should meet with eachother. He'll know the tenets of the faith and if approached in a peaceable manner likely try to dispel rumors to the best of his ability. They would only know the local clergy and meeting places. The number of people who know about Vol is probably about the same as the number who know about Kaius' condition. This means only the crimson covenant and a few top operatives. The thing to remember is that if the dragons catch wind of Vol's identity/story/existence then (big IMO here) they could try to finish the eradication of the line. For this reason Vol needs to be VERY secretive about her existence. 2. The eradication happened 2700ish years ago? That's only 3 or 4 elf lifetimes, so I'd say it is fairly recent in their racial identity especially with deathless around who were there when it happened. Outside Aerenal, the only people who may remember that there was a 13th mark are likely top dragonmarked officials or historians. IMO if the 13th mark was seen by anyone who didn't know what it was, they would probably mistake it for an aberrant mark. My rational for this is they'll figure it doesn't look like any mark they've seen. If they know about the 13th mark they'd remind themselves the mark was wiped out. 3. I figure after Erandis got herself set up and a few agents to work through, they actively promoted the faith throughout Eberron. Active promotion leads to more followers who promote it more. 4. I'm pretty sure I'm missing information from a source, but I would think the Vol in Blood of Vol refers specifically to the group of elves who first formed the religion. We know the religion is older than the mark of death, so it must have been named that way long before the current age. 5. IMO, the original BoV may have produced some immortal elves. They'd have the time and resources to do in depth blood magic research. However, after Erandis started manipulating the religion she likely put "filler" content which looked attractive to attract followers. This said, most of the intelligent undead take orders from Vol and any vampires are pretty dependent on seeker blood. It is likely seekers are simply being fed whatever lies Vol has dreamed up to satisfy their need to "progress" down the track to immortality. Through this reasoning, I think no one will be able to achieve immortality following Vol's BoV. |
| #4HellcowSep 02, 2010 22:14:06 | I have to keep this brief, but I'll always try to help when it comes to the BoV. What is the common knowledge on "Vol" (as in Blood Of Vol). Do everyone knows about Lady Vol ? Her history ? No, and no. Erandis was one member of the line of Vol. The strength of her mark and the presence of the mark on a half-dragon... along with the line of Vol experimenting with half-dragons... was what got the line wiped out. But that's obscure elven history that few people on Khorvaire are aware of. They know that the line of Vol pioneered their traditions, but they don't necessarily know about Erandis Vol (who, after all, is presumed to have died almost three thousand years ago). Members of the Order of the Emerald Claw in particular know that they are aligned with a powerful lich known as the Queen of the Dead. They do not know that this is Erandis Vol; only her most trusted inner circle are aware of this fact. As an aside, it looks like some of these questions are covered in the 4E ECG. Per page 248, it's a History DC 25 check to know that the erradication of the line of Vol was prompted by the birth of the half-dragon Erandis. Do the 13th mark is known and remembered by folks? I'd call it a DC 20 History or DC 15 Arcana check, requiring Arcana training to make the check Arcana check (anyone could try history). It is stated that the "religion" is very old (time of the Giant), but grew with the event of Erandis..... but why did this peticular event made the religion grew ? (is Erandis an icon for the religion ?). This isn't quite right. The earliest example of the techniques used by the line of Vol began with the Qabalrin elves in Xen'drik. But it wasn't about the religion at that point; it was simply the first elven experiments into the preservation of existed through negative-energy necromancy. In Aerenal during the Age of Monsters, the line of Vol drew on the Qabalrin lore and developed the basic principles of the faith. Elven society is all about overcoming death; the line of Vol did this through negative necromancy. In some ways it was more a philosophy than a religion, but the basic principles are there. When the line of Vol was erradicated, its elven allies were exiled from Aerenal. They settled in what is now Karrnath and the Lhazaar principalities (forming the Bloodsail Principality, among other things). They shared their beliefs with the natives of these lands, and the modern faith grew out of this over the course of a few thousand years. So Erandis' death was a turning point for the faith because it was what brought thousands of missionaries to Khorvaire. Do "Vol" (in Blood of Vol) refers to Lady Vol ? The house ? It refers to the elven line. Note that the line of Vol was never a dragonmarked house, as its rise and fall predated the formation of any of the human houses. Do a lot of followers achieve the immortality, or at a lesser extent, do achieve to live longer ? Do they somehow reach the Divinity Within? In my opinion, no. However, I say that the powers of divine PC-class characters affiliated with the BoV reflect attunement to the Divinity Within, but that isn't sufficient to make them immortal. With that said, do they live LONGER? Sure. Because the faith places a strong emphasis on looking out for your community and on the preservation of life. People help one another, and in general, first aid/Heal training is a big priority. So I'd say the average lifespan of Seekers is higher than people in many other communities, because they are far more alert to health issues than other cultures and go out of their way to help one another. But no, actually attaining some level of magical immortality is a remarkable thing that few people attain. |
| #5alkhorSep 03, 2010 7:22:04 | Thx everyone for all the valuable information ! First of all, sorry as some answers were in ECG page 248 as said by Hellcow (my book was at a friend's house). All the answers here made me more confortable with the situation and the intrigue I'm trying to run (I'll try to write it down on the forums to share ideas..... but writing is really difficult for me). Doing my homework on Vol (using your answers as keywords for the search), I've found others interresting links that might help people coming to this thread using the search engine : 1) Libris Mortis - Part 1 www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebee/2... 2) Libris Mortis - Part 2 www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebee/2... 3) Qabalrin - community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758... -- outside Wotc links : 1) www.karrnathishadows.com/BloodofVol.html 2) Qabalrin - ddo-daily.com/714 3) Qabalrin - www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/reach-of... 4) Blood of Vol - eberron.wikia.com/wiki/Blood_of_Vol |
| #6black_saintSep 05, 2010 13:19:11 | I'm getting all my answers from reading the section on the Blood of Vol in the Eberron Campaign Guide 4E. 3) When the line of Vol was exterminated, and its allies from other lines fled to Khorvaire, bringing the beliefs that would form the basis of the Blood of Vol. (pg. 250) 4) Vol referrs to the bloodline. Vol is a family, and all descendents of that bloodline had The Mark of Death (just like other dragonmarks are passed on through a bloodline). Erandis Vol is the only one with the Mark of Death left in the world. (pg. 250-251) |
| #7HellcowSep 06, 2010 19:55:39 | Just to clarify a few points...all descendents of that bloodline had The Mark of Death (just like other dragonmarks are passed on through a bloodline). The Mark of Death was tied to the bloodline of the House of Vol. However, that doesn't mean that every member of that bloodline possessed the mark, any more than every Cannith heir develops the Mark of Making. However, they carried the potential for that mark in their blood, and could pass it on. So you could have a reborn Vol heir who didn't actually have the mark. Yes a lot of people achieve undeath. Bear in mind, that UNDEATH is not what most seekers aspire to. If you recheck the tenet "Only the divine is eternal" on page 249, this is called out: The sect’s highest echelons are made up of undead. Seekers who know of these undead revere them, believing that they have sacrificed paradise to remain behind and guide others. The typical Seeker isn't seeking undeath; he's seeking to master the Divinity Within. That divine spark is bound to the blood... and spectres, vampires, and liches no longer have any blood of their own. These beings have made a terrible sacrifice to overcome mortality and act as champions of the faith, but it's not what the typical Seeker wants for himself. |