The Sihedron rune is confusing me a little. It symbolizes Thassilonian magic, which means it symbolizes runic sin magic. It seems to serve a lot of purposes, though.
Chief Ripnugget wears it on his masterwork breastplate, but presumably that's just because he (or possibly his warchanter) painted it on there. Why? Did Nualia tell him to do it? Was it in a dream from Malfeshnekor? Is he just trying to emulate Nualia? He was impressed with her when he saw her "holy symbol"--is this it?
I don't see the rune anywhere in the Catacombs of Wrath, but maybe I just missed it. Is it there? (I did a search for "sihedron" and didn't turn anything up.)
The Skinsaw Men use the rune of course, but that's because they're serving Xanesha. Is having the rune somewhere on your body enough to send your body to the Greed runewell, or does there need to be a special ritual performed? If there's no ritual, do you power whichever runewell bears the most resemblance to your greatest sin?
Was anything other than a simple tattooing job done to the patrons of Paradise in Turtleback Ferry?
I don't see the rune anywhere in the Catacombs of Wrath, but maybe I just missed it. Is it there? (I did a search for "sihedron" and didn't turn anything up.)
It's on the book held by the statue of Alaznist in room B3.
Creative Director
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In one way, the Sihedron Rune is really just there to clue in the PCs at first that what might seem to be a bunch of unconnected stuff (goblins, ghouls, cultists, ogres) are in fact connected in some way. It's also kind of developed into an all-purpose symbol for the runelords themselves.
Ripnugget has one on his breastplate because he's trying to impress Nualia, who wears the symbol on her neck.
The rune doesn't really play a big role in the Catacombs, but it's there. Often hidden in artwork.
Having the rune tattooed or branded on your body is not enough to send you to the Greed runewell. You also have to be conscecrated in a ritual to aim your soul there, but once that ritual is done and you're marked... it's a done deal. You can undo the ritual's effects by removing the Sihedron from your flesh (erase spell works, as does healing magic, I suppose). If there's no ritual, nothing happens when you die and your soul goes on to its afterlife. The patrons of Paradise did undergo the ritual, but that ritual can be disguised pretty easily. In the case of Paradise, it was basically a set of "repeat after me" type phrases disguised as a "secret club" type initiation thing.
EVIL EVIL EVIL PAIZO,
Repeat after me and let me have your soul LOL
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I don't see the rune anywhere in the Catacombs of Wrath, but maybe I just missed it. Is it there? (I did a search for "sihedron" and didn't turn anything up.)It's on the book held by the statue of Alaznist in room B3.
It's also on all three of the cell doors in room B8.
The rune's frequent appearance is starting to freak out one of my PCs, since someone wearing an amulet with that symbol on it tried to kill her in Magnimar a few months ago.
(The fact that she's got a serious case of gold fever is, ah, just coincidence, of course.)
Clearly I should have searched on "seven-pointed" rather than "sihedron" when I was trying for synthesis. Thanks everyone!
Would somebody that has taken Thassilon as a language know what the sihedron rune means?
Or is it a magic rune that isn't actually part of the language?
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Creative Director
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Would somebody that has taken Thassilon as a language know what the sihedron rune means?
Or is it a magic rune that isn't actually part of the language?
It's not part of the language; it's a symbol and/or logo. An alien who came to Earth and learned English wouldn't immediately understand what the Paizo Logo meant, for example.
It's not part of the language; it's a symbol and/or logo. An alien who came to Earth and learned English wouldn't immediately understand what the Paizo Logo meant, for example.Would somebody that has taken Thassilon as a language know what the sihedron rune means?
Or is it a magic rune that isn't actually part of the language?
That's what I thought or hoped for.
Thanks!
Apropos to nothing AT ALL:That Dave Guy's avatar very nearly made me blurt out "HORSEY!" at the top of my lungs.
I refrained, though, and instead just posted it here.
HORSEY!!!
*snicker*
I like to think of the Sihedron as a fantasy counterpart to the swastika.
Originally, it had religious significance. The people in power, wanting to tap into this source of mysticism, appropriated the symbol, corrupted it, and turned it into their personal crest, symbolizing dark, supernatural power. Once that regime was overturned, the new symbol remained, largely set aside, but still clung to by poseurs and hangers-on.
It’s also entirely possible that the sihedron exhibits a subliminal compulsion on those who view it, forcing the weak willed to appropriate it as their symbol. Each soul bearing the mark doles out a tiny sliver of power to the appropriate runelord, providing them a tenuous link by which they remain in the world.
Also, to take a real-world angle, I'd say that the Sihedron is a type of Pentacle. Pentacles being magical objects or symbols employed for various reasons. Technically, the Sihedron is a Heptagram, which has several preconceptions. One of which is magical power.
Wiki has a pretty thorough article about it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentacle
Not really a spoiler, but just to be polite...
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Creative Director
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A pentacle is the closest analogy to the Sihedron. It's a symbol of magical power. (It was never really much about religion—the runelords themselves are pretty anti religion, and people in Thassilon had to keep their religions, at the very least, secondary to the act of paying taxes.)
To expand upon the theme here, I've introduced a runestone (I think that's the name--the scrying impliment that extends the range of a runewell's soul-sucking power) into my game. My player has asked what the thing looks like and I've done my best to describe what I have in mind, but have also let it be known that my description was a placeholder.
Could someone give me, first a good physical depiction of what a runestone looks like, and second, a better idea of what the thing actually does--in case the character starts magically monkeying around with it.
Thanks!
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To expand upon the theme here, I've introduced a runestone (I think that's the name--the scrying impliment that extends the range of a runewell's soul-sucking power) into my game. My player has asked what the thing looks like and I've done my best to describe what I have in mind, but have also let it be known that my description was a placeholder.
Could someone give me, first a good physical depiction of what a runestone looks like, and second, a better idea of what the thing actually does--in case the character starts magically monkeying around with it.
Thanks!
I think you're talking about the soul lens which lets an appropriately-marked person's spiritual essence be drawn into a runewell from anywhere (or at least anywhere that the Thassilonian empire reached). My guess would be that while at least one of each exists, only greater runewells would be likely to have them; the location of a soul marked with the rune would then determine which lens of the appropriate sin the soul is filtered through.
My guess would be a crystalline thing, perhaps bound in the same room as the runewell it feeds - like a focusing lens hanging above it, with lesser outsctructures that can be used to scry those marked for the lens to harvest and which serve to draw them in upon their deaths. Likely bound in metal and marked with intricate inscriptions of the Thassilonian runes, propped up on a massive metal stand over the runewell... Possibly the lens might have a fluid, ethereal look to it, since it draws in soulstuff.
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Creative Director
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Yeah; the thing that Karzoug uses to extend the range of his runewell is the soul lens. It's not something tiny you can carry around, either. It's in fact a major artifact, and the only one that exists—the PCs don't get to see it and interact with it until the very end of the Adventure Path.
** spoiler omitted **** spoiler omitted **
[url="http://registration.gencon.com/bellasara/merchandise.cgi?a=showprod&id=21&mgroup_id=7&category_id=1"}And one of these!! Ahhh![/url]
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Yeah; the thing that Karzoug uses to extend the range of his runewell is the soul lens. It's not something tiny you can carry around, either. It's in fact a major artifact, and the only one that exists—the PCs don't get to see it and interact with it until the very end of the Adventure Path.
I'd have half-expected at least a few other Runelords to have one; Gluttony would've probably have loved to get as many souls as possible into the runewell at hand, and Envy would've probably wanted Greed's trick.
Wrath apparently just built runewells everywhere. Lust probably did the same. Sloth might've wanted one to avoid the trouble of building multiple wells. Pride might've had an issue with stealing another Runelord's idea, so probably would've gone the multiple-wells route...
I dunno, it just seems like the soul lens might've appealed to a few more Runelords somehow.
As an aside, has anyone else made a mental connection between runewells (which are described as being filled with soulstuff/ectoplasm) and Incarnum? I'm not going to go down that path, but it seems like it might be interesting somehow - someone pulling incarnum in the vicinity of a well gets sin-tainted incarnum and suffers the detrimental side effects of the power...
Yeah; the thing that Karzoug uses to extend the range of his runewell is the soul lens. It's not something tiny you can carry around, either. It's in fact a major artifact, and the only one that exists—the PCs don't get to see it and interact with it until the very end of the Adventure Path.
Wow. Thanks! And whoops...then that's gonna' have to be something else then.
Cruncha-cruncha...
EDIT: You know what I love about this? I ask "so what's a soul lens?" and not one person comes back with "It's your game! Make it whatever you want!" Nope. No sir. The writer of the ACTUAL setting comes on and says "well, it's like this...". I just gotta' say this is one mighty fine product we're getting here, and customer service like no gamers in history have ever gotten unless they got to go game at the designers house. Melf, I'm talkin' bout you. Thanks guys! You do great work.
Contributor
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Another for Mike
Sunny Muffins (TV 17: VD)
*bottom lip quivering*
That's...
That's...
You get a negative cookie!
** spoiler omitted **
Gluttony would've probably have loved to get as many souls as possible into the runewell at hand
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Creative Director
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Wrath's runewells are pretty much cheap knockoffs of the Greed runewell. The Wrath runewells kind of have different functions also.
I'm also pretty sure the other runelords have their own runewells too, but what happened to them, where they're at, what they do, and indeed if they've survived the 10,000 years is unknown.
But as for a soul lens; that's pretty much one of Karzoug's own triumphs, and one that came about near the end. Had Thassilon lasted much longer than it did, I'm sure other runelords would have eventually stolen the soul lens tech or built their own copies... but the empire ended before they really got a chance.
Another for Mike
Sunny Muffins (TV 17: VD)
*bottom lip quivering*
That's...
That's...
You get a negative cookie!
But you have to admit, it was kinda funny (in a sick and evil sort of way).
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Wrath's runewells are pretty much cheap knockoffs of the Greed runewell. The Wrath runewells kind of have different functions also.
I'm also pretty sure the other runelords have their own runewells too, but what happened to them, where they're at, what they do, and indeed if they've survived the 10,000 years is unknown.
But as for a soul lens; that's pretty much one of Karzoug's own triumphs, and one that came about near the end. Had Thassilon lasted much longer than it did, I'm sure other runelords would have eventually stolen the soul lens tech or built their own copies... but the empire ended before they really got a chance.
Ah, I see. I was under the impression that the runewells were something the various Runelords all had developed more-or-less concurrently, and that the Lens had come along with the development of the wells. Interesting, then... I might do some speculating about that. Honestly, I'm also intrigued by the notion of arcane casters trying to tap into the power available - like a kind of 'sincaster presitge class' concept, but that's just my twisted empire-building side showing itself.
** spoiler omitted **Another for Mike
Sunny Muffins (TV 17: VD)
That was just horrifying! Sick... evil... twisted...
AND I can never unwatch it!
** spoiler omitted **Another for Mike
Sunny Muffins (TV 17: VD)
That's horrible...