Life is pain, a ceaseless struggle against hunger, disease, and despair. Every day we’re one step closer to the grave, and all that lies beyond is Dolurrh and the disintegration of the soul. What just god would create such a world? What benevolent Sovereign would condemn their creations to such misery?
But what if mortality is something that can be overcome? Perhaps we all have a spark of divinity within us, a spark that can become a force to rival the Silver Flame. Perhaps one day we can end the cycle of death and misery, so all can live long enough to find their divinity within. Until then, the best we can do is to hold our family and friends close, defy cruel fate, and fight to live as long as we can. This is the message of the Blood of Vol. Life is suffering and death is annihilation, but you can defy this cruel fate— and perhaps even break the cycle for good.
Foundations of the Faith
Most followers of the Blood of Vol identify as Seekers of the Divinity Within—usually shortened to Seekers—though there are other traditions within the faith. The Blood of Vol has long been vilified, with outsiders often viewing it as a death cult, falsely equating it with the cult of Katashka the Gatekeeper (described later in this chapter), or blaming its members for plagues and blights. In the midst of misinformation and fear, what is the truth of the Blood of Vol?
Born in Khorvaire
Human settlers to Khorvaire brought the faith of the Sovereign Host with them, but the Blood of Vol is indigenous to the continent. The line of Vol was a noble line of Aerenal, as described in chapter 2, with a long tradition of necromancy tracing its roots back to Xen’drik. When members of the line of Vol developed the dragonmark known as the Mark of Death, they undertook a risky series of experiments designed to unlock its full powers. This ended when the Undying Court and the dragons of Argonnessen joined forces to eradicate the bloodlines that carried the Mark of Death. In the aftermath of this brutal purge, those elves who had supported Vol but didn’t bear its blood were given the choice of exile or swearing fealty to the Sibling Kings of Aerenal. This resulted in a wave of exiled elves settling in the Lhazaar Principalities and spreading west into the lands that are now Karrnath.
These exiles brought the knowledge of necromancy along with stories of how the heroic family of Vol had sought to attain godhood, only to be destroyed by the jealous gods. The people of the region knew nothing of Aereni traditions or dragonmarks, and they blended this story with their own experience of life in a harsh land, local tyrants, and the empty promises of Sovereign priests. And in the process, they somehow discovered something real. The line of Vol had never sought the divinity within, but these first priests found it, drawing divine power from their own conviction and their own souls.
So despite its name, the religion was never practiced by the line of Vol, nor by the infamous Erandis Vol herself, who was in hiding during the period in which the faith evolved. It is a faith born of the blending of elf and human myths and traditions. While the faithful believe that “Vol” was the first person to find the divinity within and challenge the curse of mortality, the faith is based around the divinity within each of us, not the worship of this mythical Vol. Even devoted priests of Vol do not know Erandis Vol’s identity, though they respect the name of “Vol” as author of their core texts, believing that this Vol challenged the Sovereigns, then was subsequently destroyed by these jealous gods—a martyr of the faith. Modern Seeker scholars debate the origins of the name, whether Vol was an individual or a group of people, or related to the elven line at all. So if Erandis Vol were to proclaim her true identity, many of the faithful would be impressed by her lineage, but her bloodline alone wouldn’t give her divine authority.
Always in Opposition
Millennia ago, as the faith of the Blood of Vol emerged in pre-Galifar Khorvaire, it stood in opposition to the dominant beliefs and authorities of the time. The tyrannical leaders asserted that the Sovereigns blessed their bloodlines and their rule. By challenging the benevolence of the Sovereigns, these early Seekers were also challenging the despots of the time. As time marched on and those petty tyrants fell, the Sovereign Host remained the dominant faith of humanity in Khorvaire, and the philosophical divide between Seeker and Vassal only grew.
The Seekers were also shunned for their use of necromancy, generally considered taboo and said to be condemned by Aureon and Dol Arrah. This prejudice grew worse with the rise of Galifar and the Church of the Silver Flame, which asserted that undead are inherently anathema and drain the life from the world by their very existence. In turn, this caused people to blame plagues and blights on the Seekers. However, the Blood of Vol is a faith grounded in the principle of an oppressive universe, and it endured in spite of this prejudice and persecution. But it never spread far beyond the harsh lands where it began, and Seekers are often still met with fear and suspicion today.
Stronger Together
“The universe is against us, and all we have is each other.”
This is one of the most basic principles of the Blood of Vol. Despite its grim outlook, it is a faith that emphasizes the value of friendship, family, and community. There are no benevolent gods looking out for us, so we have to look out for each other. Death is the end, so we can’t let it steal the people we care about without a fight. And since there is no pleasant afterlife waiting for us, we should treasure the time we have with those we love. These values have kept the Blood of Vol alive through the centuries: the deep commitment to community and to working together even in the face of impossible odds.
The Divinity Within
“Divinity lies within our blood.”
In the eyes of the Seeker, life and the soul are both divine forces. Every soul has the potential to evolve and develop divine power—but this takes time and willpower, and most mortals die before they accomplish it.
As a divine spellcaster who follows the Blood of Vol, you believe that your power comes from your own soul. As a paladin, you are calling on the power of your own blood when you heal your allies or smite your enemies. The visible manifestations of magic of the Blood of Vol typically involve crimson energy, as if luminous tendrils of blood are flowing from you. But it’s not simply your power. Consider the Seeker priest who casts commune; how can they gain information they don’t already know? The answer is that the divinity within is something far greater than you. It is a god, possessing celestial power you can’t understand or imagine—but it is still in its chrysalis, waiting to be born. When you cast your spell, you awaken a sliver of its power; once the spell is done, it returns to its rest.
Or at least, that’s a Seeker believes. Scholars of other faiths argue that the Seekers are deluded, that their powers are simply drawn from some other source, the same kind of delusion that allows a warforged cleric to draw magic from their devotion to the Lord of Blades. However, Seeker priests can reverse this same argument. What proof is there that all clerics aren’t simply drawing on their own divine sparks—that even a paladin of Dol Arrah mistakenly thinks their power come from above, when really, it’s always come from within?
Necromancy and the Undead
The Blood of Vol emerged from collaboration with Aereni necromancers, and the undead have always been associated with the faith. First and foremost, this link is born out of practicality. Seekers have no reverence for corpses; the divinity within is tied to life and to the soul, and once those things are gone, what’s left is just meat and bone. As an extension of this, most Seekers want their corpses to be put to use. The faith is driven by the idea of serving a community—why let your corpse go to waste when it can help your friends and family? As such, mindless undead are commonly seen in Seeker communities serving as guardians, performing manual labor, and completing other simple tasks.
However, a common misconception is that Seekers want to become undead. Some do, driven purely by the fear of oblivion, but undeath is a miserable half-life, not a triumph. The divinity within is bound to your blood and your soul, so Seekers believe that the souls of undead are trapped in their corpses, the spark of divinity lost to them. Those who embrace undeath are seen as martyrs, and generally expected to protect and serve their Seeker community. One of the most public of these champions is the mummy lord Malevanor, the high priest of Atur. The former high priest of Atur was the mummy Askalor, who held the post for over four hundred years—but he was weary of his long undead existence. When Malevanor was grievously injured during the Last War, Askalor transferred his power and his undead existence to his apprentice. This raises an interesting question: if the divinity within lies in the blood, how does Malevanor cast divine magic? The answer is that Seeker communities ritually draw their blood and share it with these champions. Vampires drink this blood, while mummies or liches may bathe in it. Through this, undead priests draw their power from the blood of the living faithful.
Another factor in the long association between the Blood of Vol and necromancy is that Seeker communities have often formed in or near manifest zones to Mabar. While such areas are often inhospitable or dangerous, over the course of many centuries, Seekers have learned how to tap the energies of these places. Because Mabaran manifest zones are usually blighted, outsiders often accuse the Seekers of causing blights. In reality, the Seekers often perform rituals that limit the negative effects of the manifest zones—so instead of causing the plagues and blights associated with Mabar, they often prevent them.
Paths of the Faith
When creating a player character or NPC associated with the Blood of Vol, consider the following paths and which best fits your character.
The Seekers of the Divinity Within
The Seekers of the Divinity Within are the largest and most widespread tradition associated with the Blood of Vol. The faith isn’t as formally structured as the Church of the Silver Flame or even the Sovereign Host. For the most part, Seekers keep to themselves, living in their own villages and small towns or in isolated neighborhoods of larger communities, where they can practice their traditions without drawing the ire of their neighbors. The exception is the city of Atur: known as the City of Night, this remains the most public bastion of the Blood of Vol. Expanded and fortified during the Last War, Atur is the seat of Karrnath’s necromantic research and development. While Kaius III has stripped the Blood of Vol of much of its standing, he still recognizes its potential value should the war begin anew, and many believe that he continues to provide support to Atur. The mummy lord Hass Malevanor is the high priest of Atur and the current spiritual leader of the faith. However, there are stories of undead champions who have guided and protected the Seekers for centuries. Sometimes known as the Crimson Covenant, these enigmatic figures may be the true power behind Atur.
Outside Atur, for the most part, each Seeker community relies on their abactor—the priest that oversees a temple or community—and they rarely reach out to the world beyond. The largest temple in a region serves as a hub, coordinating with the other Seeker communities around it. But every community has its own stories and traditions and they’re generally unconcerned with “heresy”; feel free to develop your character’s own unique beliefs.
As an acolyte of the Blood of Vol, you’ve been ordained as a priest, but not bound to a single community as an abactor. You can receive shelter in any Seeker community. Are you following orders from Malevanor or the Crimson Covenant itself? Are you guided by visions from your own divinity within? As a Seeker hermit, you spent your time in isolation communing with your divinity within, and your Discovery may relate to the faith. Perhaps you have an insight into how to unlock your own power. Or perhaps you’ve learned a secret about the Crimson Covenant, and believe that a malevolent force is manipulating the faithful Seekers—can you find a way to bring down this ancient evil and free your people?
The Bloodsails
The elves of the Bloodsail Principality occupy the island of Farlnen in the Lhazaar Principalities. The Bloodsails share the same roots as the Blood of Vol, as the principality was founded by Aereni exiles. However, they have followed a different path and hewn closer to the traditions of their ancestors. They don’t believe in the divinity within and readily seek immortality through undeath. However, the island can only support a limited number of vampires, and Bloodsails must earn their afterlife by paying velgys—blood money—to the lords of the land. Those who fail to earn enough to buy a better afterlife are instead bound to objects after death. This is similar to the Aereni techniques described in chapter 2, but Bloodsail elves are often tied to ships and sails, enabling their vessels to move across a windless sea, sails driven by ghosts.
Bloodsail elves often bear crimson tattoos that are tied to their families and vessels. The Bloodsails are exceptional sailors, so both sailor and pirate are logical backgrounds for a player character. Most Bloodsails use the Aereni elf subrace provided in chapter 6. As an adventurer, you might have been exiled from your island, or you could be searching for a way to quickly earn the blood money you need to leave mortality behind.
The Order of the Emerald Claw
The Order of the Emerald Claw began as an elite military force comprised of devoted Seekers. When Regent Moranna turned on the Blood of Vol, the Emerald Claw refused to stand down. Today, members of the order include both Seeker extremists and Karrnathi patriots furious at Kaius III for embracing peace. The ultimate leader of the Emerald Claw is the lich known to most as the Queen of the Dead, though those in the inner circle know her to be the infamous Lady Illmarrow of Farlnen. She claims that her violent actions are for the good of Karrnath and the Blood of Vol, but in truth, they primarily benefit her and serve to spread terror.
The Order of the Emerald Claw is full of villains whose actions have cast all Seekers in a bad light, and most Seekers despise the Emerald Claw. If you have ties to the Emerald Claw, you could have served with them before realizing that the Queen of the Dead is pursuing her own evil agenda; if so, you could be determined to find some way to destroy the lich and restore honor to the order. Or you could be convinced that Lady Illmarrow truly does have the best interests of your people at heart. Has she been unjustly vilified? Or are you simply a tool? If you wish to play a Seeker veteran without the villainous ties of the Emerald Claw, the Order of the Onyx Skull was another elite unit comprised of Seekers, but disbanded on Moranna’s orders. As a paladin of the Blood of Vol, you could be a knight of the Onyx Skull who has taken up adventuring after being cast aside by your nation. Are you still loyal to Karrnath? Or do you believe Kaius III is a traitor to your people?
Thieves of Life
The Seekers of the Divinity Within value community, urging the faithful to stand together. But there are others who follow the principles of the Blood of Vol who prefer to stand alone. The hermits known as Thieves of Life are determined to unlock their divinity within at any cost—not to help others, but solely to further their own quest for power and immortality. Thieves of Life are often master necromancers, but never become undead themselves; instead, they specialize in magics that allow them to drain the life from their foes.
As a hermit devoted to the Blood of Vol, you could choose the path of the Thief of Life. You are utterly devoted to the pursuit of your personal divinity, and your Discovery has likely shown you the path you must take. You might be a cleric, a Divine Soul sorcerer, or an Undying warlock (with your patron being your own nascent divinity within). What binds you to your fellow adventurers, and why would they choose to associate with you? You may be utterly devoted to your quest for immortality—but what is your redeeming feature, your anchor to humanity?
An unusual option for a Thief of Life hermit is to say that you’ve actually been in a state of suspended animation for decades or even centuries—your Discovery was made on an inner journey. You were once far more powerful than you are today, but your powers have yet to return; as you gain levels, you are actually regaining the power you once had. If this is the case, it could be that one or more of your adventuring companions are actually descendants of yours; while you’re obsessed with your quest for immortality, you also care about your own bloodline.