Volrath

Volrath, born as Vuel, was a human from Dominaria, who later became the shapeshifting and phyrexianized leader of Rath. He was one of the main antagonists in the Weatherlight Saga.
==Description==
While evincar of Rath, Volrath was six feet tall.Pete Venters (March 1998). "Dominian Chronicles: The Lurker's Guide to the Stronghold." The Duelist #24, 26-27 He had absolute belief in himself, which caused strong self-confidence bordering on arrogance. He was ingenious, cunning, and completely ruthless, and mastered the ability to shape flesh and bone with sinister artistry.
==History==
===Youth===
Vuel was born as the son of Sidar Kondo, within a north Jamuraan war-clan. When the young Gerrard Capashen was accepted into his family, Vuel initially expressed contempt, but they later became good friends.
One of the rites of passage for Vuel was to face the challenge of climbing a harsh, sizable plateau. His trial was doomed to fail, as Starke il-Vec added poison to the ritual paintings applied to his body. Gerrard chose to save his life, but Vuel was cast out of his clan as a failure, with even his father rejecting him. Volrath, therefore, resented Gerrard for not simply letting him die.
As he wandered out alone in despair, Starke comforted him and whetted his ego and need for revenge. Vuel rallied other barbarians from surrounding tribes to attack his former clan. This led to the deaths of many of Vuel's people, including his father. During this time, Vuel managed to deactivate Karn and steal the Legacy artifacts.
===Rath===
As his lust for power became unbound, he was transported to the strange world of Rath through Starke's portal. Hearing Yawgmoth's words of power, he gave himself to Phyrexia, becoming Volrath, the new evincar of Rath, a shapeshifter and master of flowstone manipulation.
Years later, Volrath hatched a plan to get revenge upon Gerrard and destroy the Legacy. He organized the kidnapping of Captain Sisay to lure Weatherlight to Rath, where his skyship, Predator, ambushed them. In the chaos of battle Tahngarth, Karn, and the Legacy artifacts were taken captive, and Gerrard fell to his apparent demise over the Skyshroud Forest. However, Volrath knew that Gerrard would survive and launch a rescue attempt. 
Volrath watched over Gerrard as he tried to infiltrate the Stronghold. He gradually had his minions wound the other crew members until only Starke and Gerrard were left. Volrath then appeared to confront them along with Sisay and Takara, who were under his mental control. However, after releasing Sisay and Takara, Gerrard killed "Volrath," who was just a shapeshifter. In reality, Volrath had shapeshifted into the form of Takara, which enabled him to stow away aboard Weatherlight as it fled the Stronghold. 
===Mercadia===
Arriving in Mercadia, Volrath used his disguised form to influence the crewmen so they turned against each other. He then took his revenge by murdering Starke and attempting to steal Weatherlight. Gerrard eventually confronted Volrath and was able to beat him in combat, leaving the evincar seemingly dead. However, Volrath survived and pursued Weatherlight aboard Recreant, but once again he was defeated and was forced to retreat to Rath.
===Death===
Upon his return, Volrath found that his throne had been deemed abdicated by the Phyrexians and was being contested over by Greven, Ertai, and Crovax. Volrath entered the contest himself and challenged Crovax's accession in a duel to the death. Volrath's experience was apparent, but Crovax drew extra strength by killing the spectators. Volrath gained the upper hand, but his near-victory was mysteriously cut short as he collapsed in his moment of triumph. Ertai had intervened on Crovax's behalf, off-balancing Volrath, and allowing his opponent to secure his victory.
At the center of Evincar Crovax's coronation was the execution of Vuel, which Volrath had been reduced to following the removal of his Phyrexian implants. Vuel was injected with a vial of liquid flowstone, which Ertai manipulated within his bloodstream to disassemble Vuel from the inside out. As he died, Vuel's last sight was the sky of his homeland of Dominaria as the Rathi Overlay began.
===Legacy===
Centuries later, the Demonlord Belzenlok would take control of The Cabal and make his home in the ruins of Volrath's stronghold. Belzenlok rewrote Dominaria's history, claiming that he had been Evincar instead of Volrath. 
==Trivia==
*Volrath was written as a shapeshifter to enable the proposed murder mystery story of Mercadian Masques, although originally he would have murdered Starke at the beginning of the story.
==Planes visited==
*Dominaria
*Rath
==Story appearances==
Title 	Author 	Publishing date 	Set 	Setting (plane) 	Featuring
Fortune Favors the Bold 	Michael G. Ryan 	June 1997 	Weatherlight 	Dominaria 	Sisay, Gerrard Capashen, Volrath, Tahngarth, Hanna, Mirri, Squee, Crovax, Karn, Ertai, Orim, Starke
Weatherlight Takes Center Stage 	Michael G. Ryan 	August 1997 	Weatherlight 	Dominaria 	Sisay, Gerrard Capashen, Starke, Volrath, Maraxus, Tahngarth, Hanna, Mirri, Karn, Barrin, Crovax, Ertai, Morinfen and Gallowbraid, Selenia
Tempest Storyboard 	Michael G. Ryan, Mark Rosewater & Pete Venters	December 1997 	Tempest 	Rath 	Gerrard, Crovax, Selenia, Karn, Greven il-Vec, Vhati il-Dal, Hanna, Tahngarth, Oracle en-Vec, Mirri, Orim, Eladamri, Starke, Volrath, Ertai, Lyna
Stepping into the Darkness & Dominian FAQ part 3 	Pete Venters 	January 1998 	Tempest 	Rath 	Volrath, Tahngarth, Squee
The Heart of Rath: the Art of Darkness & Dominian FAQ part 5	Pete Venters 	March 1998 	Stronghold 	Rath 	Volrath
Gerrard's Quest #1-4 	Mike Grell 	March - June 1998	Weatherlight, Tempest, Stronghold 	Dominaria, Rath 	Gerrard Capashen, Mirri, Squee, Crovax, Hanna, Karn, Tahngarth, Starke, Orim, Ertai, Sisay, Rofellos, Morinfen and Gallowbraid, Jolav, Selenia, Kondo, Multani, Vhati il-Dal, Greven il-Vec, Eladamri, Volrath, Takara
The Lurker's Guide to the Stronghold & Dominian FAQ part 6 	Pete Venters 	April 1998 	Stronghold 	Rath 	Volrath, Greven il-Vec, Gerrard Capashen
Stronghold Storyboard 	Michael G. Ryan, Mark Rosewater & Pete Venters	April 1998 	Stronghold 	Rath 	Volrath, Gerrard Capashen, Sisay, Tahngarth, Karn, Starke, Takara, Mirri, Hanna, Orim, Squee, Crovax, Eladamri, Oracle en-Vec, Selenia, Greven il-Vec, Sliver Queen
Dominian FAQ part 9 	Pete Venters 	July 1998 	Stronghold 	Dominaria, Rath 	Hans Eriksson, Sisay, Volrath, Starke, Nevinyrral
Rath and Storm Rath Cycle 	Peter Archer and various 	July 1998 	Weatherlight, Tempest, Stronghold, Exodus	Dominaria, Rath 	Ilcaster, Gerrard Capashen, Volrath, Sidar Kondo, Starke il-Vec, Karn, Multani, Mirri, Rofellos, Sisay, Tahngarth, Crovax, Hanna, Orim, Squee, Morinfen and Gallowbraid, Selenia, Torsten, Javero, Alaric, Rofellos, Kastan, Kindeya, Barrin, Ertai, Maraxus, Greven il-Vec, Vhati il-Dal, Eladamri, Oracle en-Vec, Takara, Lyna, Sliver Queen, Urza
Dominian FAQ part 10 & Dominaria Timeline 	Daneen McDermott & Scott McGough 	February 1999 	Urza's Saga, Homelands 	Dominaria, Ulgrotha	Ertai, Urza, Barrin, Morinfen and Gallowbraid, Gerrard, Volrath, Ihsan, Sengir
High Adventure in Mercadia 	Scott McGough, Daneen McDermott & Jess Lebow 	August 1999 	Mercadian Masques 	Rath, Mercadia 	Sisay, Mirri, Gerrard Capashen, Tahngarth, Hanna, Orim, Takara, Volrath, Squee, Karn
Mercadian Masques 	Francis Lebaron 	September 1999 	Mercadian Masques 	Mercadia 	Gerrard, Atalla, Orim, Takara, Starke, Hanna, Karn, Cho-Manno, Tahngarth, Squee, Ramos, Sisay, Xcric, Volrath
Mercadian Masques Comic 	Scott McGough & Kev Walker 	October 1999 	Mercadian Masques 	Mercadia 	Karn, Gerrard, Tahngarth, Sisay, Hanna, Starke, Takara, Volrath, Squee
Nemesis 	Paul B. Thompson 	February 2000 	Nemesis 	Rath, Dominaria 	Yawgmoth, Urza, Crovax, Belbe, Ertai, Greven il-Vec, Eladamri, Oracle en-Vec, Lin Sivvi, Takara, Volrath, Abcal-Dro, Burgess, Kirril
Destiny 	Rei Nakazawa 	February 27, 2007	Planar Chaos 	Rath 	Gerrard, Crovax, Selenia, Sisay, Mirri, Starke, Tahngarth, Karn, Orim, Volrath
==In-game references==
==References==
Category:Phyrexians
Category:Humans
Category:Shapeshifters
Category:Deceased