Patron Content: The Mark of Death

The Mark of Death was one of the first dragonmarks to manifest, appearing among elves of the Line of Vol. Fascinated by the dragonmark and its potential, the elders of the line of Vol collaborated with a faction of dragons from Argonnessen—a project overseen by Minara Vol and a green dragon known to history as the Emerald Claw. After decades of research, the project produced elf-dragon hybrids who they believed would manifest a dragonmark even more powerful than a Siberys mark—an Apex Mark that could give the bearer potentially divine power. This seeming success was the doom of the line of Vol. The followers of the Undying Court had long despised the Line of Vol, and the Conclave of Argonnessen condemned the work of the Emerald Claw. Together, dragon and elf unleashed their might upon the Line of Vol. They claimed that the Mark of Death now posed an existential threat to all living things, and that the entire bloodline of Vol had to be exterminated. They achieved this goal, and today the lone bearer of the Mark of Death is the lich Erandis Vol. But the mark died with her mortal life, and what she carries are just lines on dead flesh.

How could the Mark of Death return? There are a few ways it could happen. An elf adventurer could somehow be a living heir of the Line of Vol. Perhaps they were born in the past and escaped into the timeless astral plane, or slipped through time through some manifestation of Xoriat; such a character could be a sibling of Erandis, forced to adjust to the modern world. Perhaps Erandis has compelled a branch of House Vadalis to replicate her bloodline—or perhaps Mordain the Fleshweaver did it on a lark. All of these are ways to get a single adventurer carrying the Mark. But the Prophecy works in mysterious ways. Perhaps the Mark of Death manifests in the present day not on elves of the bloodline of Vol, but on members of an entirely different species. Or perhaps it appears on members of multiple species—and the deeds of those bearing the mark will determine which species carries it into the future. The feat below notes that it is restricted to the “Mark-bearing species”—it is up to the DM to decide what that species is.

What follows is one interpretation of the Mark of Death, as I might use it in my campaign.

Design Notes

This dragonmark follows the model laid out in Frontiers of Eberron, and it is intended to be used with the Dragonmark Background feats presented there—although because it’s not currently associated with a Dragonmarked House, a DM could choose to substitute the Lesser Dragonmark of Death for the typical feat granted by another background. The typical dragonmark grants a cantrip, a +1d4 bonus to two ability checks, and access to two spells of up to 2nd level. The Mark of Death differs in a few ways. In my view of things, the primary role of the Mark of Death is interacting with the dead as opposed to slaying the living. I’ve given it toll the dead because it does work with Mabaran energy and it’s good to have a basic practical power. But I’ve made the Guidance of the Mark relating to understanding and soothing dead and undead creatures (“dead” being relevant because of speak with dead); since this is a narrow case I’ve replaced the usual +1d4 with advantage. I’ve given access to speak with dead despite it being a 3rd level spell, because it’s so central to the idea of the mark and because it has limited combat impact; however, I have placed a limitation on it to restrict its power at low levels. The Greater Dragonmark gets more power, though note that the Expanded Spells of the Mark don’t innately have a free casting; you have to use your own spell slots or the bonus slot granted by Power of the Mark. So at its base, it allows you to cast false life once per short rest—but once you’re 5th level you can use it to animate dead or feign death. All together, it allows the bearer to preserve corpses, speak with the dead, assume a deathlike semblance (or grant it to others) or to animate the dead.

These are the BASE powers of the Mark of Death. A player character could explain class abilities as being drawn from the dragonmark. So in the same way a Khoravar Storm Sorcerer with the Mark of Storms could say “My sorcerous power flows from my dragonmark”, a wizard or sorcerer could say their necromantic abilities are drawn from the mark, even if they are more destructive that the base abilities. And this is the point with Erandis Vol. The base existence of the Mark of Death didn’t trigger the destruction of the Line of Vol; they carried the mark for centuries before the cataclysmic end. It was Erandis’s apex mark—a mark of a size never before seen, with an unknown degree of power—that triggered the devastating response from Argonnessen and the Undying Court. Could a player character who starts with the Lesser Mark somehow see it expand to become an Apex Mark? That’s up to you and the DM…

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