Volothamp Geddarm (pronounced: /ˈvoʊloʊθɑːmp gɛˈdɑːrm/ VOH-loh-thamp geh-DARM[4] 
listen), or Volo for short, was a legendary traveler and storyteller, and was most famous for his guidebook published by Tym Waterdeep Limited.[citation needed]
Contents
Personality[edit | edit source]
He was oft portrayed as the quintessential "go-to guy" of the Realms even if his information was, at best, half-accurate. He was too curious for his own good.[citation needed]
Activities[edit | edit source]
As travelling scholar and minor wizard, Volo was always on the lookout for an exposé. He all too frequently was at odds with Elminster, who preferred some things to be kept in the dark.[citation needed]
While Volo's reputation was well-earned and well-kept, there were others who tended to profit from it, the most well-known being Marco Volo, as he styled himself when it suits him, also known as Marcus Wands, of the famous Wands family of wizards. A trouble-making bard, Wands gained Volothamp's moniker after he stole an artifact from a powerful wizard, and laid the blame on the far more infamous scapegoat of the real Volo. Pursued by the mad mage and his forces, and protected by adventurers hired by his father, Marco came into his own at the finale, when the artifact was revealed as containing a god from another world, who had come to Toril along with Marco's family. The Sunstaffs, as they were known then, had, through the generations, been destined to keep the god imprisoned. Marco awakened to his destiny with the help of the adventurers, his own intuition, and the gods Tyr, Sune and Corellon Larethian.[citation needed]
Though only being a very minor mage, Volo apparently invented a spell, known as Volo's snatch.[5]
Notable Works[edit | edit source]
- Volo's Guide to All Things Magical: First notable work. Written c. 1356 DR with a reprint (with the help of Elminster) published in 1367 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the Bloodstone Lands: Unreleased. Written between 1360 and 1362 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to Calimport: Notes and a copy of an old draft can be found in Candlekeep, all final drafts were destroyed by Calishite pashas or Rundeen agents. Written between 1364 and 1365 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to Cormyr: Written between 1367 and 1368 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the Dalelands: Written between 1368 and 1369 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the Frozenfar: Written in 1364 DR.[6]
- Volo's Guide to Good Rulership: Written in 1377 DR.[6]
- Volo's Guide to the Lands of Intrigue: Written in 1369 DR with an abridged version (which was much more widely distributed) released by Elminster the next year.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the Moonsea: Unreleased. Extant copies were suppressed by the Zhentarim. Written between 1357 and 1358 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the North: Written between 1365 and 1366 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to Rhyming Incantations: Written in 1371 DR.[6]
- Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast: Written between 1366 and 1367 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to the Vast: Unreleased. Original owned by a resident of Ravens Bluff. Written between 1358 and 1360 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to Waterdeep: Written between 1363 and 1365 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Guide to Westgate & the Dragon Coast: Commissioned work. Original held by a noble of Yhaunn. Written between 1362 and 1363 DR.[citation needed]
- Volo's Complete Guide to the Behavior of Nymphs: A reluctantly unpublished work, deemed "too naughty" by Elminster.[7]
- Volo's Guide to Monsters: A treatise on monster lore, with annotations and comments by Elminster. Sometime in the late 1480s or early 1490s DR, Volo sold autographed hardcover copies to travelers and nobles in Port Nyanzaru for 50 gp.[8]
- Volo's Waterdeep Enchiridion: A chapbook designed to be a visitor's guide to Waterdeep. It was expected to serve the reader until Volo's Guide to Waterdeep, long out of print, was updated and re-released.[9]
- Volo's Guide to Spirits and Specters: An unfinished book that lacked information about substantial information about supernatural beings.[10]
- On Goblins: My Life Among the Conquering Host: An all-encompassing guide to goblin society.[11]
- Dungeonology: An adventurer's guide to adventuring.[12]
History[edit | edit source]
Volo enjoying himself at the Yawning Portal.
At some point before 1385 DR, Volo was trapped by an imprisonment spell and was released only after a century passed, some time after 1482 DR. Upon his return, he was informed by Elminster about the events of the Spellplague and the Second Sundering.[13]
After his return, Volo was hired by his rival Randilus Qelver to explore the valley of Barovia for a commission of 99 dragons. He escaped imprisonment in the demiplane by using a charm given by Elminster.[14]
Sometime in the late 1480s or early 1490s DR, Volo stayed in Port Nyanzaru to visit taverns to promote his new book and to set up audiences with the seven merchant princes. He gladly shared the latest rumors and information he overheard since arriving in town with adventurers.[8] He later returned to Waterdeep to start working on his next work, Volo's Guide to Spirits and Specters, while he waited for royalty payments for his previous book.[10]
Sometime in the 1490s DR, during Laeral Silverhand's pure as Waterdeep's Open Lord, Volo frequented the Halfway Inn where he encountered the halfling rogue recruited by the Open Lord herself into the rescue mission for her pet baby griffin kidnapped by the Xanathar's Thieves' Guild. Volo aided the little thief in posting him towards Skullport where the guild operated from and gave a few advices in how to safely get there[15]. Sometime before that he also authored a book about adventuring and dungeons delving, Dungeonology.[12]
In the Year of Three Ships Sailing, 1492 DR, Volo traveled to the Emerald Grove in the Western Heartlands in order to study the unique behavior of a certain group of goblins. He was subsequently captured by these goblins, members of the Cult of the Absolute, and taken to their headquarters at a nearby temple of Selûne.[11]
Appendix[edit | edit source]
Appearances[edit | edit source]
- Adventures
- Tomb of Annihilation • Waterdeep: Dragon Heist • Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage
- Novels
- Once Around the Realms • The Mage in the Iron Mask
- Gamebooks
- To Catch a Thief • Escape the Underdark
- Video Games
- Baldur's Gate series (Baldur's Gate • Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal • Baldur's Gate III) • Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir
- Referenced only
- Neverwinter Nights: Darkness over Daggerford
- Board Games
- Dungeons & Dragons Dice Masters: Trouble in Waterdeep
Gallery[edit | edit source]
Background[edit | edit source]
Volothamp Geddarm—"Volo" for short—, created by Jeff Grubb,[16] is arguably one of the most lasting fictional characters for the Forgotten Realms Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting.
It is through Volo's perspective that Greenwood authored his detailed Forgotten Realms lore-books of the Volo's Guide series: Volo's Guide to Baldur's Gate (note that this, and its sequel, relate to the city and not the computer game), Volo's Guide to Cormyr, Volo's Guide to the Dalelands, Volo's Guide to the North, Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast, Volo's Guide to Waterdeep, Volo's Guide: the Sword Coast No 2, and Volo's Guide to Baldur's Gate II.
In fact, it was his assembling his "first" guide—Volo's Guide To All Things Magical—that put him on the "path" to making his other guides. As for Elminster, it is he who edits every guide that Volo has published, as evident in the many footnotes in each, including Volo's Guide to All Things Magical, which almost got Volo killed making it.
"Volo" is not to be confused with "Marco Volo", real name Marco Wands, of the Wands family of Waterdeep.
He has also had several adventures of his own, as told in Once Around the Realms and The Mage in the Iron Mask.
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References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke, et al. Baldur's Gate III. Larian Studios.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Christopher Perkins, Will Doyle, Steve Winter (September 19, 2017). Tomb of Annihilation. Edited by Michele Carter, Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 235–236. ISBN 978-0-7869-6610-3.
- ↑ Anthony Pryor (1994). Marco Volo: Arrival. (TSR, Inc.), p. 5. ISBN 1-5607-6890-8.
- ↑ Christopher Perkins, Will Doyle, Steve Winter (September 19, 2017). Tomb of Annihilation. Edited by Michele Carter, Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 4. ISBN 978-0-7869-6610-3.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (06-19-2020). Volo's snatch (Tweet). theedverse. Twitter. Archived from the original on 5-16-2021. Retrieved on 5-16-2021.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Ed Greenwood (2016-06-07). Death Masks. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 15. ISBN 0-7869-6593-2.
- ↑ Obsidian Entertainment (November 2008). Designed by Tony Evans. Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir. Atari.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Christopher Perkins, Will Doyle, Steve Winter (September 19, 2017). Tomb of Annihilation. Edited by Michele Carter, Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 24–25. ISBN 978-0-7869-6610-3.
- ↑ Christopher Perkins, James Haeck, James Introcaso, Adam Lee, Matthew Sernett (September 2018). Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. Edited by Jeremy Crawford. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 163–164. ISBN 978-0-7869-6625-7.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Christopher Perkins, James Haeck, James Introcaso, Adam Lee, Matthew Sernett (September 2018). Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. Edited by Jeremy Crawford. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 5, 22. ISBN 978-0-7869-6625-7.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke, et al. Baldur's Gate III. Larian Studios.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Matt Forbeck (2018-08-07). To Catch a Thief. (Candlewick Entertainment), p. 81. ISBN 978-1536200669.
- ↑ Christopher Perkins, James Haeck, James Introcaso, Adam Lee, Matthew Sernett (September 2018). Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. Edited by Jeremy Crawford. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 167. ISBN 978-0-7869-6625-7.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (Feb 2016). Travel Talk: Volo's Visit to Barovia. In Matt Chapman ed. Dragon+ #6. Wizards of the Coast. p. 7. Retrieved on 2017-11-15.
- ↑ Matt Forbeck (2018-08-07). To Catch a Thief. (Candlewick Entertainment), p. 22–23. ISBN 978-1536200669.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (01-22-2019). Ed Greenwood's Alter Ego (Tweet). theedverse. Twitter. Archived from the original on 5-16-2021. Retrieved on 5-16-2021.
