House Vadalis: Structure, Customs, and Families (Patreon)

THE STRUCTURE OF THE HOUSE

House Vadalis is spread across Khorvaire. Where other houses focus on massive centers of industry, Vadalis outposts are typically working ranches or farms; they need to spread out in order to support their beasts.  Consider The Stampede in the Eldeen city of Sylbaran. This town is on an Orien trade road, and the Stampede is a tribex ranch whose primary focus is providing mounts and beasts of burden to House Orien. The Stampede is run by Myrana d’Vadalis, who also has a personal interest in bulettes. Myrana cares for a pair of bulettes named Trundle and Grim, who she hopes will one day produce offspring. For now, Myrana works with the bulettes, and lets children ride Trundle at festivals. This is a classic example of a Vadalis outpost. It’s a working ranch that focuses on raising a particular type of creature—in Myrana’s case, riding and plains tribex—while also providing care and stabling services for travelers, and possibly experimenting with a more exotic beast or monstrosity beyond the reliable main business. An outpost will always offer hospitality to any Vadalis heir passing through town, but that could range from the use of a guest room to a bedroll in the stables. When creating a Vadalis outpost, the first question is what is the primary beast that they work with? Messenger birds? Tribex? Horses? Hippogriffs? Egg farming? The second thing to consider is how the Mark of Handling differentiates them from a mundane farm. Do they have any resident monstrosities? Are they magebreeding? Do they have any Awakened animals, or any especially noteworthy familiars? Always remember that Vadalis heirs can talk to their animals; when you leave your horse at the stables, the stablehand is likely to chat with them. How have you been? Seen any interesting adventures? There’s nothing malicious in this; it’s not that they’re trying to steal your secrets by talking to your horse. It’s just that they CAN talk to your horse, so why wouldn’t they? Especially if you’re an adventurer! Surely they’ve got some stories to tell.

There’s countless Vadalis ranches and farms spread across Khorvaire. Where most of the Houses place their outposts in major cities, Vadalis’s most important outposts are often in smaller communities where the Vadalis farms and ranches are the driving force of the town. Moonwatch in Breland is driven by Vadalis horse-breeding. In the Eldeen Reaches, Redleaf is famous for its Vadalis hounds. Delethorn is known for the Delethorn goldenfowl, a line remarkable for its health and laying capacity. Merylsward is the birthplace of the Sparrowmonkey. Erlaskar is where Vadalis is experimenting with magebred fish. These are all places mentioned in canon, but similar Vadalis villages can be found in all of the Five Nations. Of course, under the Korth Edicts, Vadalis can’t actually own land; all of its holdings are tenancy arrangements with the nobility. But for all intents and purposes these are Vadalis towns, and while it’s technically forbidden by the Edicts, in many of them Vadalis heirs hold positions of authority. The house is always searching for manifest zones. Ranches focused on production (such as Delethorn) are often in Lamannian manifest zones that enhance health and fertility, while outposts focused on innovative magebreeding (such as Merylsward) are often built in manifest zones tied to Kythri. With that said, there are a number of important Vadalis enclaves that are associated with major cities:

Varna in the Eldeen Reaches has long been the center of the house. The enclave of Foalswood is the Baron’s seat and a center for research and record-keeping; the house archives in Foalswood hold records of every innovative magebreeding ever attempted. Foalswood has a remarkable menagerie of monstrosities—including success stories of the House itself alongside creatures being studied. While Foalswood is the heart of the house, the adjacent outpost of Willowhaven is the largest dairy farm in Khorvaire, and there are a host of Vadalis smallholders spread around the area. 

Sharn in Breland is home to Pegasus Spire, where the house produces Pegasi. It’s worth noting that Vadalis Pegasi are the result of magebreeding; they are Monstrosities rather than Celestials, and don’t inflict Radiant damage with their hoof attacks. Longfeather Ranch, a short distance away from Sharn, are the house’s finest hippogriff breeders. 

Shavalant in Breland is known as “Tribex Town.” The Farm is a major enclave that serves as a hub for the itinerant members of the Handler’s Guild, and it is also where Vadalis produces Breland’s beloved magebred bears.

The Hearth was originally located in Cyre, but in the wake of the Mourning it has taken over an existing ranch outside of Wroat—a ranch built to contain a Kythri manifest zone that occasionally produced monsters. The Hearth has always been the center for the house’s most dramatic innovative magebreeding; once a new creature has been created, they’re transferred to another ranch for ongoing husbandry. Mazina Lavarin d’Vadalis is the Viceroy of the Hearth, as she was when it was still in Cyre. Mazina and her closest aides are celebrated for having survived the Mourning unscathed. While Mazina hasn’t shared any details, rumors say that Mazina and her heirs escaped the destruction by taking shelter in a Khyber demiplane; others suggest that she was temporarily thrown into Kythri. Whatever the truth, there are those who say that Mazina only appears to be unscathed by her experience—that whatever happened to her on the Day of Mourning, it has marked her in deep and unsettling ways. 

These are just a few notable enclaves! Near Newthrone in Q’barra, House Vadalis is experimenting with dinosaurs and reptiles. By Stormreach, the house studies the varied and dangerous creatures of Xen’drik, paying a bounty for any live monstrosities the viceroy has never seen. The Flamekeep enclave is famous for producing the dragonhound Skaravojen. In Trolanport, Vadalis breeds messenger birds and other small beasts. Vadalis is very widespread—in part again because each individual enclave has a smaller population than the enclaves of most other houses. While the list above may give the impression that Vadalis is more invested in Breland than it is in the Eldeen Reaches, the House’s roots in the Reaches are deeper and more widespread. Breland has a significant number of large enclaves—especially since the Hearth relocated to Wroat—but Aundair and the Reaches have more Vadalis villages. 

The Handler’s Guild

With most of the Dragonmarked Houses, business is conducted through the Guilds. With Vadalis, the House itself is a business; every outpost is a working ranch, and most of the work of the House is conducted by Vadalis itself. The Handler’s Guild is an outreach operation that works with ranchers outside of the family—providing guidance, livestock, and veterinary medicine to Guild members who adhere to Vadalis standards of quality and safety, as well as offering the services of expert teamsters or trainers to those who have need of them. Because of this, the Handler’s Guild doesn’t have outposts of its own. There are Guild offices in the main Vadalis enclaves, but most of the full time employees of the Handler’s Guild are itinerant, traveling between farms to perform inspections and offer assistance. 

Balinor’s Blessed

Balinor’s Blessed are an elite force within the House Vadalis—hunters trained to contain and capture monstrosities and dangerous beasts. If a magebreeding operation has a sudden need of a catoblepas, it’s the Blessed who will be sent into the swamp. In recent years, the Blessed have conducted multiple operations into the Mournland, capturing some of the bizarre creatures produced by the Mourning. The greatest disasters in the order’s history occurred when Blessed teams sought to obtain Valenar horses; to this day, many Valenar Tairnadal will challenge any member of the Blessed they encounter. While the primary function of Balinor’s Blessed is the acquisition of monstrosities, they are also called in to contain outbreaks; when the Purple Worm gets loose, it’s time to call on the Blessed. Balinor’s Blessed is a small order; there are a few teams trained to work together, along with a number of independent operatives who assemble squads to deal with the assignments they receive. This is the path that a Player Character would follow if they were sworn into the order: they could deputize their fellow adventurers as their squad to deal with whatever missions the House sends them. 

The Fates

A tiny but important order within House Vadalis, the Fates are Vadalis matchmakers. Given that its work is tied to the careful cultivation of bloodlines, it should come as no surprise that House Vadalis has a strong interest in the pairings of its heirs. The Fates want heirs of the House to lead happy lives, but there are deeply ingrained traditions tied to the belief that well-chosen matches will produce the strongest dragonmarks. No heir is ever forced to marry based on the recommendations of the Fates (though their parents may apply pressure) but no Vadalis heir is allowed to marry without their approval. It’s possible for outsiders to win this approval, as seen relatively recently with Sasik d’Vadalis and Queen Aurala, but it’s rare and dependent on the Fates perceiving the outsider as a strong addition to the bloodlines. Vadalis accepts that heirs may have deep and even intimate friendships with outsiders; but tradition maintains that they should only produce offspring with a Fate-approved spouse. 

The Feral Heart

Scholars would classify the Feral Heart as a corrupted Cult of the Dragon Below, with ties to both Dyrrn the Corruptor and the Wild Heart. The Seryan family were the first followers of the Feral Heart, and the cult delusions typically take root in those who study Seryan tools or techniques. The core corrupting belief of the Feral Heart is the idea that we can unleash the untapped potential of nature, the feral heart that beats within all things. Ferals quickly become convinced that mundane nature is flawed and half-finished, that they are on the verge of creating wonders. This conviction overwhelms any qualms about danger or morality. Where Vadalis is described as experimenting on humanoids—such as the secret Vadalis-Jorasco workshop seen in the novel The Fading Dream—it’s a good bet that the Feral Heart has taken root. Canonically, Mazina d’Vadalis oversees a cell of the Feral Heart within the Hearth; it’s up to you to decide if this is the case in your Eberron campaign. 

VADALIS CUSTOMS

As a whole, House Vadalis is less formal than many of the other houses. It adopted the basic structure encouraged by the Twelve—the system of viceroys, seneschals, ministers, and masters—but Vadalis heirs rarely use their titles. Even Dalin Hornheel d’Vadalis, the patriarch of the house, laughs when people call him “Baron.” Even beyond the house, most Vadalis heirs find any system of titles to be pretentious and amusing. 

As mentioned earlier, familiars are part of everyday life in Vadalis; even heirs without the Mark of Handling often learn to cast it. As familiars can be transformed each time the spell is cast, the shape of a familiar is a way to express mood and personality. There’s a whole language of what different beasts and patterns mean—a crimson serpent around the arm means I’m busy, leave me alone—but the simple approach is that when a Vadalis adventurer meets a Vadalis NPC with a familiar, the DM should let them know the message being conveyed by the familiar. 

There is often a sense of friendly competition amongst Vadalis heirs—casual sibling rivalry, all in fun, but nonetheless a simple way to establish a pecking order. How this manifests varies by family; the Tualis compete by telling stories, while Hornheels like to prove their greater physical strength. Duels between familiars are another Vadalis pastime, something that will draw wagers from the heirs observing the duel. It’s important to note that this pastime is popular because familiars are spirits that suffer no long-term harm from defeat. 

VADALIS FAMILIES

Family is deeply important to House Vadalis. In the present day there are many small families within the house, but every heir knows exactly how their roots run back to the founding four—Lavarin, Grayswift, Tualis, and Hornheel. This section mentions some of the smaller families that have especially strong connections to the founding four, but in creating a Vadalis adventurer or NPC, you can always add new families. 

Grayswift

Historical Role: Druidic dabblers

Primary Areas of Influence: Poultry and (avian) raptors, Awakening

Common Traits: Empathetic, Spiritual, Observant, Determined

Lesser Families: Brightsong, Hawk, Swiftwing

The roots of the Grayswift family are intertwined with those of the Wardens of the Wood. The Grayswifts lived on the edge of the Towering Wood, and thrived due to their interactions with the shifters of the great forest. They were intrigued by the druidic mysteries of the Moonspeakers. Over time, those who were strongly drawn to primal power went east to dwell in the wood themselves, forming the foundation of the modern Wardens. The Grayswifts are descended from those who respected the druids while still remaining true to the traditions of Balinor and Arawai. To this day, the Grayswifts serve as a bridge between the Wardens of the Wood and House Vadalis, seeking to maintain a balance between the Lavarin drive to profit and their own respect for the balance of nature. The Grayswifts believe that overall, the work Vadalis does is a positive thing, that there’s nothing wrong with using magebreeding to create a stronger strain or selling beasts to those that will use them wisely and well. They believe that animal husbandry is the gift of Balinor. The Grayswifts were the first to call for the annihilation of the Seryan line, and they’ll fight fiercely should they encounter animals being abused or practices which they feel defile the spirit of nature itself. More recently, there have been a number of clashes between Grayswifts and Lavarins, as the Grayswift elders say Lavarin is putting its hunger for profits ahead of Vadalis traditions. But overall, the Grayswifts believe that domestication, basic magebreeding, and the powers of the Mark of Handling are all gifts humanity is meant to use. 

The Grayswifts have always been known for their work with birds. Grayswifts magebred the Goldenfowl, which has become the most common form of poultry in the Five Nations. They breed many species of messenger birds and work with raptors for hunting and scouting. The Grayswift line has always had an exceptional talent for Find Familiar and Beast Sense; during the Last War, Grayswift Falconers were often hired as scouts or to handle short range communication. The Grayswifts also have a strong tradition of producing heirs capable of Awakening beasts. Almost every Grayswift outpost has one or more Awakened birds. Grayswifts treat the creatures they Awaken as members of their family, and Grayswift birds regularly carry news and gossip between family outposts. 

Grayswift Characters. The Grayswift family respects the primal mysteries. As such, this is the family for anyone who wants to play a true Vadalis Druid. Such adventurers typically follow the Circle of the Moon, understanding beasts so deeply that they can become beasts themselves. Due to their respect for their animal companions, the Grayswifts are also an excellent family for Beast Master Rangers, especially those who prefer to work with Beasts of the Sky. Given Grayswift’s frequent work with Awakened animals, an unusual path for an adventurers would be to present a character as having originally been a Grayswift Awakened beast who was somehow reincarnated into a humanoid form—either fully human, or as an explanation for playing an Aarakocra or other bestial humanoid. Such a character logically shouldn’t have the Mark of Handling—although the Prophecy works in mysterious ways—but they would have close ties to the House. Overall, Grayswifts are compassionate and brave. The family is loyal to Vadalis, but a Grayswift adventurer may take it upon themselves to police other Vadalis families, making sure that they aren’t mistreating their beast charges. 

Notable Grayswifts. Mother Goslin is a respected elder in the Eldeen town of Merylsward. She carries the Greater Mark of Handling, and her title is drawn from the number of birds she’s personally Awakened. She considers the birds to be her children, as she’s always accompanied by two to three of them. Shepherd is the House’s official envoy to Wardens of the Wood, spending most of his time in Greenheart. Shepherd works to resolve any issues that arise between Vadalis and the druids, but he’s also the eyes of the House in the Towering Wood. There are many fascinating creatures and unusual manifestations of primal magic within the Wood, and Shepherd might well have a use for adventurers who aren’t affiliated with Vadalis who can investigate things he’s learned about without implicating the house.  

Hornheel

Historical Role: Cattle ranchers

Primary Areas of Influence: Livestock

Common Traits: Patient, Sensible, Strong, Persuasive

Lesser Families: Bluebull, Longwheel, Moldan

Nations have risen and fallen around them, but there have always been Hornheels at Willowhaven Ranch. Even before the Mark of Handling, the Hornheels had the finest herds in the region, and were known for their excellent cheeses. Today are the primary wranglers of tribex in the Five Nations, breeding beasts of burden, continuing to run dairy farms, and providing a solid foundation to the house’s more exotic endeavors. The Hornheels themselves are often described as bullish—solidly built, often possessing considerable physical strength. As a family they are known for their stoic disposition and common sense, but they also have a knack for handling people as well as beasts. Hornheels have a long tradition of mediating disputes between the Grayswifts and the Lavarins. While they don’t have the Lavarin love of haggling and driving for deals, the Hornheels have long believed that it’s better to solve a problem with words rather than force. While the Hornheels have pushed back against some of Lavarin’s more unusual magebreeding ideas, the family strongly believes that the Mark of Handling is a gift of Balinor and that Vadalis is justified in exerting its dominion over nature.    

Hornheel Characters. Hornheels are known for strength and endurance. While it might seem an odd choice for a family known for their even tempers, the Wild Heart Barbarian can be an interesting choice for a Hornheel adventurer. Their “rage” can be seen as drawing on the bull’s durability, and the other class features could likewise be seen as connecting to animal aspects through the Dragonmark. The Mark of Handling can be used to manifest temporary spirits (Find Familiar, Conjure Animal); the Hornheel Barbarian is manifesting a beast spirit but then holding it within. 

Notable Hornheels. Historically, Vadalis has usually been led by a Hornheel or a Lavarin. The Lavarins are driven by ambition, and drive the House to pursue dangerous innovations; the Hornheels prefer to maintain a steady pace. The current baron, Dalin d’Vadalis, is a Hornheel heir known for his amiable nature but also for his shrewd diplomacy; his brother Sasik is the consort of Queen Aurala of Aundair. Meanwhile, Willa d’Vadalis is the administrator of Willowhaven and a pioneer in the field of cheese; she’s known as the ‘Dairy Queen.’ If you’ve ever wanted to meet an alchemist artificer who works through the medium of cheese, take a trip to Willowhaven!

Lavarin

Historical Role: Horse Traders

Primary Areas of Influence: Mounts, Innovative Magebreeding

Common Traits: Ambition, Charisma, Imagination, Impatience

Lesser Families: Coldwind, Silvermane, Tavou

Before Orien became a House, the Thorn Post was the most reliable courier service in central Khorvaire—and it was the Lavarin family who supplied the Thorns with horses. Even then, they were working with incremental magebreeding, taking advantage of manifest zones to produce horses with greater speed and endurance than any of their rivals. That spirit continues today; the Lavarin Destrier is the swiftest horse bred in the Five Nations. Lavarins feel a deep drive to do better—to push the envelope, to challenge what’s seen as possible. It was Vadalis Lavarin who produced the first hippogriff, and his descendants strive to live up to that example. This zeal manifests in many ways. On the one hand, the finest innovative magebreeders of the house are almost all Lavarins. Remarkable imagination blended with sharp intelligence helps them push the limits of what can be done. On the other hand, the Lavarins are equally ambitious in business. This became especially relevant during the Last War, as it was the Lavarins who pushed the house to find new ways to engage with the war effort. It was Kyara Lavarin who presented King Boranel with his magebred Ghost Tigers and convinced the king to purchase a battalion of battle bears. Throughout the history of the house, the Lavarin urge to innovate has been tempered by a broad general respect for the general design of nature; it’s this that originally separated the Lavarins from the Seryans. However, over the course of a century of war, Lavarin ambition has driven them further and further afield, with many seeking out forgotten Seryan lore. It’s this that has sparked the rise of the Feral Heart, along with many of the more dramatic acts of magebreeding—including the rumored efforts to apply innovative magebreeding techniques to humanoids. And Lavarin ambition isn’t limited to magebreeding. Mazina Lavarin was behind the disastrous efforts to steal horses from Valenar, and this surely won’t be the last grand scheme a Lavarin sets into motion. 

Overall, the Lavarins are the branch of the family most likely to be tyrannical in their dealings with their beasts—seeing them as tools to be used rather than companions. The Tualis and Hornheels dislike such behavior, but the Grayswifts despise it and will often directly challenge anything they see as Lavarin cruelty.  

Lavarin Characters. In playing a Lavarin character, consider the path of your ambition. Are you drawn to magebreeding, or are you more inspired by the mercantile energy of your forebears? In general, Lavarins dream big; what are your dreams? While the Vadalis Monarch Druid is one path for a Lavarin spellcaster, another option would be to play a Battle Smith Artificer but (with your DM’s permission) to frame your Steel Defender as an organic creature with the Beast subtype rather than as a construct. The idea is that this is an expansion on the principle of Conjure Animals and Find Familiar; you are imagining a beast into reality, designed to your specifications. Beyond this, the Lavarins are the family whose heirs most often develop the ability to handle humanoids; a Lavarin Glamour Bard could present Charm Person, Charm Monster, Suggestion and their other coercive abilities as manifestations of the Mark of Handling.  

Notable Lavarins.  Mazina d’Vadalis is the viceroy of the Hearth in Breland. While Foalswood is the oldest center for magebreeding, throughout the Last War the Hearth has been the seat of the house’s efforts to magebreed living weapons. Mazina was the head of the Hearth at its original location in Cyre, and now she continues her work in its new locations. Meanwhile, Ors Lavarin is the overseer for Balinor’s Blessed; they coordinate the actions of the different Blessed teams, and if a Vadalis adventurer is one of the Blessed they’ll be expected to keep in touch with Orz. Orz is a skilled strategist, but their ambition can drive them to take dangerous risks, as seen in the failed efforts to acquire Valenar beasts.  

Tualis

Historical Role: Hound Breeders, Fey Petitioners

Primary Areas of Influence: Hounds and Guardian Beasts

Common Traits: Curious, Determined, Fey, Quick

Lesser Families: Olden, Redleaf, Wyris

Despite what you might think from some of the stories, Fey aren’t ubiquitous in Aundair and the Eldeen Reaches. They aren’t everywhere. But everyone knows they exist. They could be anywhere. There could be a cinderbin living in your stove. So if the nights are getting cold, it couldn’t hurt to burn some cedar, could it? And of course, the more people embrace these stories, imagining dryads in the trees and grunklins in the attic, the greater the possibility of native fey being born, magic swirling together to fulfil the story. While this could happen anywhere, it’s quite unlikely in most places. But there are points in the world where the spirits are waiting, where energy drifts through from Thelanis. These manifest zones may not contain archfey or passages to the Moonlit Vale, but they hold stories yearning to be told. And yet, even in such places you may not see a dryad or a sprite. When people hear “Fey” most think of humanoid fey—eladrin, nymphs, satyrs. But what of the Questing Beast that’s always one step ahead of its pursuers? The Displacer Beast with a thorn in its tentacle? The Wolf With Burning Eyes, who speaks with your Grandmother’s voice? Will you slay the hart whose silver antlers gleam in the moonlight and suffer a wasting curse, or do you know how to earn this spirit’s blessing? You won’t encounter these things in most parts of the world, but they are out there… and if you dwell in a place where the spirits are strong, you’d best learn how to deal with them. This is the story of the Tualis clan, who staked their claim along the edge of the Towering Wood. They uncovered many wonders and weathered many storms. Some learned from the Greensingers, elves who wandered through the woods. Others stumbled through their lessons. But in time the Tualis learned which creatures they could hunt and which to spare, and how to earn the favor of the spirits. They learned to summon familiars by weaving tales. And through their struggles they were ever accompanied by their faithful hounds, who could scent the presence of unnatural things. 

This is the story of the Tualis. Their traditions aren’t druidic. It’s not a matter of faith; it’s about finding the magic in the wild and knowing the rules it plays by. Where the other families have always sought out manifest zones tied to Lamannia or Kythri, the Tualis search for zones bound to Thelanis, for these are the places where they prosper. They excel at Find Familiar and Conjure Animal, because they’ve always worked with spirits in beast form. With that said, it’s a mistake to think that every Tualis has regular interactions with Fey beyond their own familiars. Tualis know the signs of Fey presence and know how to deal with Fey when their paths cross. And some of them have made personal pacts with the spirits of their ancestral homes. But there are plenty of Tualis who live in grim gray cities that hold no fey spirits, Tualis who focus on their beasts. Yet even these Tualis keep the Fey alive in their hearts by telling their tales. The Tualis love to share stories; if there’s two Tualis in a room for an evening, you can be sure that they’ll engage in a storytelling duel before the night is over. 

Tualis Characters. Tualis adventurers blend the common affinity for beasts with a love of the Fey. One way to express both aspects of the Tualis is through the Fey Wanderer Ranger. While not as tightly bound as a warlock, a Tualis Wanderer should have a patron who gifted them with Fey magic. This doesn’t have to be an archfey; it could be the Hound Who Howls On The Moonless Night, a native hound-spirit who dwells in a grove outside of Redleaf. The Hound doesn’t have immense power, but they have enough to bless this one Ranger. The question then is why? Did the adventurer already pay for their gifts—perhaps rescuing the patron in the past? Have they been given a mission? Or is there a debt as yet unpaid, an open favor waiting to be specified? There are other valid paths; a Bard could be a Tualis storyteller, while an Archfey Warlock might have made a foolish deal. But Fey Wanderer Ranger is the strongest because it’s a class that innately works with the wilds while also drawing on Fey magic.

Notable Tualis. Hala Whitehorn is a legendary figure who played a critical role in the founding of Shavalant. When settlers first came to the region, they cut back the trees of the great forest… and a massive horned bear, “larger than the largest dragon”, emerged from the woods and devastated their farms. Hala Tualis d’Vadalis entered the woods and spoke with the spirits, and when she returned she established a clear set of edicts about how to deal with the forest. Since then the people have lived in harmony with the spirits, and people even believe that if the town is threatened, Whitehorn (the great bear) will emerge to protect it. This is a good example of Tualis in the wider world, because the Fey don’t have a visible impact on the everyday life of Shavalant—but the Tualis heir was able to serve as a mediator in a critical situation that involved them. Meanwhile, Ravi d’Vadalis is a Tualis Ranger who serves as an itinerant agent of the Handler’s Guild, traveling to Guild-supported farms and providing advice and veterinary assistance. Ravi is familiar with the hidden Fey of the region in which he wanders. Just as Hala helped Shavalant, Ravi could offer useful advice to adventurers who cross his path when they’re dealing with a Fey force they don’t recognize or understand. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

When adding House Vadalis into a campaign, consider the types of animals that are involved. If there’s a lone Vadalis heir, do they have a familiar, and if so what shape is it? Do they have a hound or a hawk, and if so is it simply an animal companion or is it an Awakened beast? If it’s a Vadalis outpost, what sort of creatures does it raise or support? If the answer is some sort of mundane creature—horses, chickens, tribex—has the creature been incrementally magebred to have a unique trait, whether cosmetic (golden feathers, fur that shifts in color) or practical (enhanced laying of eggs, color-shifting fur that serves as active camouflage)? Or is the ranch or individual dealing with innovative magebreeding or working with monstrosities? Tied to this, always remember the Vadalis ability to speak to animals and monstrosities. The ranch hand out in the field with the Bulette will be walking alongside the creature and telling it where to dig. Another point to consider is the overall tone you want for Vadalis in your campaign. The Blessing of Balinor gives Vadalis dominion over the beasts, or so they believe. Despite this, the overall tone presented in this article is that most heirs do take good care of their charges; they can talk to them, after all, which makes it harder to ignore cruelty and suffering. However, if you’re focusing on Lavarin or the Feral Heart, you can present Vadalis heirs who are more tyrannical in their dealings with their beasts, more willing to use them and discard them or to create things because they can rather than because they should.

That's all for now! I'll be posting the fully compiled article on the website when I have a moment, but I'm in Indianapolis with a lot to do before GenCon gets started. Thanks for your support!