Vulkan
The Volcano God of Smiths
History
Before Time
A son of Helios, Vulkan was cursed and fell from his lofty position as the Godsmith. He it was who forged Death for Azrael and so was indirectly responsible for the demise of his father, the Sun. He forged many weapons for many godsand drew further emnity from his brothers for not discriminating against the Darkness deities. Eventually, when Chaos entered the world, Vulkan had to take up arms against it and lo! he was skilled with all weapons for he ahd forged each and every one of them.
He met with Neibelung at this time and the two fought side by side, long and hard. Lucifer approached his brother and requested that Vulkan join with the other sons of Helios to retrieve their father from Hell. But Vulkan refused saying that he had work to do in the land. Lucifer cursed him and left to enter Hell. Thus alone of the Sungod's children, Vulkan did not rescue his father and when he was maimed by Phoenix, Lucifer refused to heal him.
Since Time
Due to his curse, Vulkan's cult has not thrived. Vulkan taught the arts of smithying to Neibelung and now most people look to the Dwarven forges. His people are vulnerable to disease and snubbed by the healers, or made to pay dearly for curing. The cult is now found only around volcanoes and is often not strong even there. Due to his wound taken in the Chaos Wars, his worshippers must ritually mutilate themselves, and this too does little to bring him worshippers.
Life After Death
Cultists believe that after death they shall go to help Vulkan fashion htose weapons of war thet will be needed for the final battle against evil and darkness. Unable to heal even himself, Vulkan cannot of course grant Death divints to his worshippers or indeed any form of divint not concerned with smithying.
Runic Associations
Originally associated with full Fire powers and the Man rune, Vulkan lost much power to Phoenix when he was wounded. Now his cult is associated with the reduced Heat rune. He retains Mastery of his skills at the forge.
Nature of the Cult
The cult has two facets. The first is as a vehicle for the worship of smiths of all kinds, the second is the means to placate the Volcano spirits. The Volcano is supposed to be where Vulkan keeps his forge. Now that he is accursed and the dwarves have subsumed many of the duties of the Smith, the cult is common only in those areas that feel it necessary to placate Vulkan as the Master of the Fire Spirits within the Volcano. There are some wandering smiths but these are exceedingly rare.
Socio-Political Position and Power
Around volcanoes, they may have some to much power. Elsewhere the cult has none.
Particular Likes and Dislikes
The cult is friendly to all the Lightbringers, despite their returned enmity and remains associate to Rhadamanthus and Mithras, for these are more warlike and need weapons made by the Godsmith still. He is also associated to Neibelung for their close friendship during the Chaos Wars and some smiths are still to be found in the Dwarven cities. Chaos is universally disliked and the Lunar cults distrusted but Zadok and Banuril are tolerated as they are the only healers who will cure a smith in good heart. All the Darkness and troll cults are disliked. Engariel is pitifully feared for it is almost impossible for a smith to get cured of an affliction. Finally, Azrael remains close sue to Vulkan forging Death for him.
Organisation
The cult takes several forms in those places where is is strong. Sometimes it has a guild structure, sometimes lone smiths around a central temple that is little more than a shrine, and very occasionally it forms the main central religion and pillar of the government, but only when the community lives in the direct threat of the volcano.
Centres of Power and Holy Places
The cult can only be found near volcanoes. These are considered holy and are objects of worship themselves as symbols of Vulkan's power. The cult is occasionally preeminent in these places. Its strongest bastion is upon the Isle of Volcanoes where its isolated position, several large volcanoes, and a ribbon of sea to protect it from Engariel has enabled the cult to flourish.
Holy Days and High Holy Days
The cult Holy Day is on Fireday of Stasis Week. On this day, the cult makes offerings to Vulkan, the Godsmith. On Fireday of Truthweek Seaseason the High Priest of a temple will make sacrifice to Vulkan to placate the Fire Spirits of the local volcano, to prevent an eruption during Fireseason. There is a POW×5% chance of this being successful.
Lay Membership
Lay Membership is open to anyone wishing to placate the Volcano God or learn the arts of smithying. They must sacrifice one point of POW to Vulkan on every Holy Day and three on the High Holy Day. In return they can buy training in 1- and 2-handed hammer, blacksmithing, jewelsmithing, and evaluate treasure, and the spells of Detect Enemies, Detect Gems, Detect Gold, Detect Magic, Detect Silver, Disruption, Firearrow, Fireblade, Glamour, Glue, Ignite, Ironhand, Light, Multimissile, Protection, Repair, Speedart, Spirit Binding, Strength, Vigour can be bought at full cost. There are no other benefits.
Initiate Membership
Due to the painful initiation ceremony, the applicant must indeed be a dedicated worshipper and so there is no test. During the ceremony, the applicant must hamstring his own left leg with a heated knife. This cannot be cured by any means and thereafter he will have one less hit point in that leg. This does not affect total hit points, or the damage that can be taken to total hits from wounds to that leg. His movement rate drops to 5, and he will be unable to run. He loses 5% from his defence, and his climbing and jumping skills will be tested at half their actual value. Henceforth, he must wear a smith's apron (a leather skirt) and carry a hammer at all times
Initiates can buy all normal skill training save climbing, jumping and riding. The skills of blacksmithing, jewelsmithing, gem cutting, armouring, weapon making, shield making, and evaluate treasure can be bought at half price, as can STR training. All weapon skills are taught, with hammers being half price. The spells Bludgeon, Coordination, Repair, and Strength are half price and ignite is free. Healing and Xenohealing may be bought at double cost. Initiates gain a place to work in the temple for 1sh. ⁄ day.
Initiates must sacrifice two points of power on a Holy Day and four points on a High Holy Day. Anyone not doing this is liable to being struck by a falling lump of molten rock should they fail a POW×5% when within range of a volcano. The effect of this is similar to Sunspear.
It is very difficult for Vulkan cultists to obtain healing from Lucifer. The healer cult is very hard-hearted in this and while they will not let a cultist die through lack of healing, they will chrge exhorbitant rates for cures and, if the smith cannot pay, they will inform the Rhadamanthites. In less civilized places, healers may actually refuse healing to a smith unless the welfare of the community depends upon it.
Runelord Membership
The requirements are 15+ POW, 90% in 1-handed hammer attack and parry, blacksmithing, jewelsmithing, evaluate treasure, and one other cult skill, which if a weapon skill must be great hammer attack and parry. Depending upon the community to which he belongs, he will gain an amount of iron - at least an iron hammer, and the following depending on a POW roll.
| POW Roll | Iron Equipment |
|---|---|
| Critical POW×5% | A full set of armour made to his specification plus 2 hammers |
| POW×1% | 2 hammers and a helm of choice, mail hauberk and sleeves and plate greaves |
| POW×2% | 1 hammer and a helm of choice, breastplate and 1d4 random items of armour |
| POW×3% | 1 hammer and a helm of choice, breastplate and 1 random item of armour |
| POW×4% | 1 hammer and a helm of choice and 1 random item of armour |
| POW×5% | 1 hammer of his choice and an open helm |
| Failed POW×5% | 1 warhammer |
Runelords gain all the normal benefits of their status save that their divine intervention can only be used for the purposes of smithying or placating volcano fire-spirits. All their skills may exceed 100% save for climbing, jumping and riding. Runelords are called Smithlords within the cult and are expected to take on at least one apprentice or else serve one season per year in a temple dispensing training. They must swear to avenge Vulkan's wound.
Runepriesthood
The Smithpriests are the backbone of the cult. It is they who are the great forgers of superb weaponry and artifacts as well as more mundane things.
Requirements are: 18+ POW and mastery of either blacksmithing or jewelsmithing. They must pass a test of INT + evaluate treasure and must swear to avenge cultists and placate the fire-spirits of the volcanoes. They have all the normal advantages and disadvantages of their status. All skills are limited to DEX×5% save for blacksmithing, jewelsmithing, armouring and weaponmaking. They must either keep an apprentice or serve for one season per year in a temple teaching spells and skills. STR and DEX may be trained. All runepriests gain an iron hammer of their choice.
Runespell Compatibility
Smithpriests gain access to the following standard runespells: Dismiss Elemental I, II and III, Divination, Divine Intervention, Mindlink, Multispell I, II and III, Reflection, Shield, Spell Teaching, Spirit Block and Warding.
Vulkan Divination only allows the priest to find out how to make, fashion or find a particular device. Vulkan Divine Intervention is used to
secure some ability for a device, e.g. a matrix can be powered
by one point of power per point of Divine Intervention stacked, a spirit bound
into a device can be bound permanently if one point of Divine Intervention is stacked per ten points of power or part thereof that the spirit has.
Smithpriests also gain access to the following cult special runespells…
One Point Spells
Know Weapon: Range: touch; Duration: 15min; Non-stackable; Reusable
When cast upon a hand-held melee weapon, it enables the caster to use it at the same skill level as his hammer skill. One handed weapons are used at
warhammer skill level, and two handed weapons at great hammer skill level.
Matrix Creation: Range: touch; Duration: permanent; Stackable; Non-reusable
Enables the caster to place a spell, Rune or battlemagic, or spells into a magical device. The device must be related to its function. The device
once created can be attuned and then used as if the spell was the owners. Extra spells may not be added after the first use of Matrix Creation. When
stacked with Divine Intervention the device may be powered
at 1 POW point per point of Divine Intervention. Divint may also be used to make
the device command activated. Some such devices can be used unattuned, but at the cost of permanent POW. Note that only reusable spells may be placed
in a matrix. The spell must either be known to the caster or else to someone in Mindlink with him. Each point of Matrix Creation allows the making
of a one point Runespell, or two point battlemagic, matrix.
Searing: Range: touch; Duration: 15min; Stackable to 4 points; Reusable
When cast upon any hammer, causes the head to glow hot and dance with flames. Each point stacked adds 10% to the chance of hitting and d3 to the
damage. This damage is flame-based and will do double this against targets vulnerable to fire, and less to targets resistant to fire.
Summon Ancestor: Range: 160m; Duration: 15min; Non-stackable; Reusable
Summons a random ancestor of the caster back from Vulkan's great forges. See Azrael for the Ancestral Summons tables.
Two Point Spells
Create Bane Weapon: Range: touch; Duration: permanent; Non-stackable; Non-Reusable
Cast when forging a weapon designed to combat a particular type of foe. The weapon must be suitably forged from runemetal and should contain the
essence of the creature against which it is aligned and a symbol of that which is effective against it. The smith must roll POW×5% as he casts
the spell. Success indicates that the weapon is complete, failure means that the spell is lost and the weapon is useless junk. Note that the making of
special weapons and devices is difficult and takes much longer than the normal manufacturing times. It must often be started and completed on
particular calandar dates. If successful, then whenever the weapon is emploed against its target, the damage is does through armour is doubled and
cannot be healed or regenerated save naturally. Only one bane is allowed per weapon. Armour may be baned to give it double the normal hit points
against the target group.
Summon Spirit of Volcano: Range: 60m; Duration: 15min; Non-stackable; Reusable
This spell summons the spirit of a specific volcano, named at the time of sacrifice. It manifests itself as a salamander but does not require actual
fire to appear as it is not being summoned from the elemental worlds but from within its abode inside the volcano. The salamander is normally small,
but on any Fireday or during Fireseason it is medium sized, and on Fireday in Fireseason it is large. Otherwise it is subjet to the usual strictures
on the use of elementals
Three Point Spells
Eruption: Range: 15m; Duration: instant; Non-stackable; Non-Reusable
Causes the ground to burst forth a shower of molten rock upon the victim causing 3d6 of CON damage. If used upon the slopes of a volcano, then the
strength is doubled.
Subservient Cults
Spirit of Reprisal
Any cultist who leaves the cult or offends the cult dictates will suffer the outpouring of a double size eruption upon his head, should he ever stray near a volcano. He will still suffer the curse of his mutilated leg and there is no way of curing this save by divine intervention from another cult. In addition all lightbringer cultists will despise such a traitor and almost certainly mete out some form of persecution.
Associate Cults
Azrael
Grateful for the forging of Death, the Deathgod offers…
Summon Specific Ancestor: Range: 160m; Duration: 15min; Stackable; Reusable; 2 pts.
Summons a specific named ancestor back form Vulkan's forges. It must be stacked with Summon Ancestor.
Mithras
The Soldier God was grateful for the fine set of weapons that Vulkan made for him. He offers his brother…
Fireguard: Range: touch; Duration: 15min; Non-stackable; Reusable; 1pt.
Cast upon any shield, will cause it to completely protect the bearer from the effects of any flame based attack, provided that it is kept between
the bearer and the source of heat. It also causes all non-runemetal weapons to take a point of heat damage from striking the its surface if
successfully parried. Vulkan cultists can cast this spell upon their aprons.
Neibelung
The Dwarf God learnt much from Vulkan of the arts of smithying and the use of the hammer. In return he gives Summon Small Gnome.
Rhadamanthus
The Lawgod thought his brother's curse unjust for Vulkan had technically committed no crime, therefore he remains associated and offers this Runespell…
Bind Ghost: Range: 160m; Duration: instant; Non-stackable; Reusable; 1 pt.
Binds the spirit of a willing victim into an area as a ghost or into an object. The spell has the effect of preserving the abilities of the spirit
so that they are lost at 1⁄7th the normal rate. When stacked with a point of Divine Intervention, the caster can bind
a spirit into an object permanently so that it becomes part of the object and is in Mindlink with whoever attunes it.