The Cult of Vivisekt-Ra
– the cult of Vivisekt-Ra worships an aspect of Morgath. In the
guise of Vivisekt-Ra, Morgath is the Demon God of Vampires. As such,
he is depicted as a colossally tall and impossibly pale man of royal
visage; his full mustache droops over what could only be called an
aristocratic lip. Members of this cult strive to become vampires, as
they feel that vampires represent the triumph of undeath over the
pathetic state of weak mortal flesh. All members of the cult of
Vivisekt-Ra act submissively and obediently to all vampires they
meet—they often prostrate themselves before their un-living masters
in hopes of being rewarded with the vampire's eternal kiss. Indeed,
many vampires exploit members of this cult and use them to further
their own schemes. While this cult seldom summons monsters to do its
bidding, it does practice ritualized seances to bring forth ghosts
that can grant them knowledge of where ancient vampires slumber.
Vivisekt-Ra is a great name.
ReplyDeleteI think the direct inspirations had to have been Mumm-Ra from the Thundercats and the Skinny Puppy album Vivisect VI.
DeleteIs that the one with "My Friend, Maggot" on it?
ReplyDeleteI'm re-jiggering a home-brew world I built from ground-up for the first 3e campaign I ran. I might slide this, or something inspired by it, into the city of Blackthorne, where it is rumoured at least two of everything in the world can be purchased. Vampires would make great collectors of the strange and macabre.
D'ya mean, "God's Gift Maggot"? If so, no, that's on a different album (I think).
DeleteSteal away man. Also, tell us more about Blackthorne!
Yeah, that must be it. A college roommate had that CD.
DeleteRE: Blackthorn, it's a work in progress. The homebrew world was very sandboxy, and I never really developed more than what was within a two-week journey of the party, except for broad sketches. They never made it back to Blackthorne. Here is what I do have on it:
"Blackthorn, also called the Iron City (City of Rust by it’s detractors) is a dark, depressing, oppressive place. Apparently, anything and everything can be had there.
Blackthorn is ruled by the mailed fist of Lord Blackthorn, Boergermeister of the City. The Lord of Blackthorn is a hereditary position. Slavery is prominent.
Blackthorn maintains his hold on the city via the Blackwatch, an elite group of soldiers loyal to the Boergermeister. In addition to the Blackwatch, Blackthorn maintains light and heavy cavalry, light infantry, and several “hit squads” whose organizational names are secret. These troops are used to keep the surrounding area subjugated and in line, even though they amount to a group of hooligans and common brigands. These troops also fend off other nations and non-human threats.
There is a strong thieves guild, which is in a constant struggle with the official government. At times, the thieves’ guild is actually stronger than the local government, and do much to help the common man. This is one of the rare situations where the thieves’ guild is actually a force of “good”.
Blackthorn has grown rich by exploiting the mountains to the north of mineral wealth. Iron for steel, coal, copper, silver, gold, and gems are found in abundance. The valley to the north was once forested, but has been almost clear-cut to feed the smelting furnaces of Blackthorn. Currently, they trade heavily with the twin cities of Serraine and the Dalfrian colony to the south, which was once held by Blackthorn. Serraine doesn’t like trading with such scumbags, but they need the resources that Blackthorn can provide.
Blackthorn’s control extends north into the valley and into the mountains. They have yet to scratch the surface of the mineral resources."
Essentially, Blackthorn is my Lankhmar, with steel goods being the economic engine, instead of grain, with a bit of Greyhawk thrown in. The general theme of this world is "Man's Dawn of Magic", so sorcery is a closely guarded secret, and seen as evil/unnatural by the general populace.
Pretty generic, standard fantasy fare.
Blackthorne sounds like my kind of place. Doesn't sound that generic to me at all.
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