Belladonna/Wolfsbane

[EO]

On our Persistant World, a few players have been asking about Belladonna as the symbol of the Church of Ezra.

Initially I figured it was obviously because belladonna is wolfsbane. But then, I reread a few books and checked on the plants and belladonna is not wolfsbane. Wolfsbane is actually aconite in folklore and in Van Richten's Guide to Werebeasts / RLCS3E.

Actually, both of these books include belladonna but only as an allergen for werebears, not werewolves. To add to the confusion, belladonna (deadly nightshade), a toxic plant, is mentionned as a potent borcan poison.

I've noticed that in the d20SRD, belladonna is alternatively called wolfsbane. So, I guess that may be the source of the confusion.

Anyhow, how would you handle these contradictions? If belladonna and wolfsbane are two different plants, why are they lumped into one?

[Nathan of the FoS]

Anyhow, how would you handle these contradictions? If belladonna and wolfsbane are two different plants, why are they lumped into one?

General ignorance of botany? (I would have made this mistake, certainly. )

Belladonna could possibly be present on Ezra's arms as a symbol of Borca or the Dilisnyas. It could also be a sort of visual pun--since "belladonna" means "beautiful lady", and "nightshade" could be spun as protection from the darkness.

[NeoTiamat]

Another factor might be that both Aconitum (AKA Aconite, Monkshod, Wolfsbane, Leopard's Bane, Women's Bane, Devil's Helmet or Blue Rocket) and Atropa Belladonna (AKA Belladonna, Deadly Nightshade) both happen to be highly lethal poisons.

Wolfsbane isn't just nasty to werewolves. If a human eats it, there's an excellent chance he's going to be taken out of the building feet-first. same with a non-were-bear who chews on belladonna. Confusion about which toxic plant is which (combined with the fact that both have a ton of names) is the cause of this.

I'd just say that it's an honest mistake and point out that both plants are functionally pretty similar, hence the confusion.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

IIRC, at one point belladonna was part of an AD&D anti-lycanthropy remedy. A bitten victim who ate some, and didn't die of the poison, was only about half as likely to contract the Dread Disease as a person who didn't receive such treatment.

That might have been way back in the 1E era, and may possibly have only appeared in a Dragon article, not an official TSR product. Still, it's a connection.

[Nathan of the FoS]

IIRC, at one point belladonna was part of an AD&D anti-lycanthropy remedy. A bitten victim who ate some, and didn't die of the poison, was only about half as likely to contract the Dread Disease as a person who didn't receive such treatment.

That might have been way back in the 1E era, and may possibly have only appeared in a Dragon article, not an official TSR product. Still, it's a connection.

It was in the 1e DMG, if I recall correctly. Certainly in one of the three core sourcebooks.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

It's right in the 3e SRD too:

Curing Lycanthropy

An afflicted character who eats a sprig of belladonna (also called wolfsbane) within 1 hour of a lycanthrope’s attack can attempt a DC 20 Fortitude save to shake off the affliction. If a healer administers the herb, use the character’s save bonus or the healer’s Heal modifier, whichever is higher. The character gets only one chance, no matter how much belladonna is consumed. The belladonna must be reasonably fresh (picked within the last week).

[High Priest Mikhal]

Belladonna is also used in traditional medicine for a variety of ailments: headaches, menstrual symptoms, peptic ulcer (it still is for this one), and even motion sickness. This could be a reference to belladonna's role in healing. Ezra is a healer, after all.

[ewancummins]

The designers obviously made a mistake by conflating the two plants. I would simply nix all references to belladonna as wolfsbane- although PC confusion about the names and properties of plants could be funny.....


''This is wolfsbane! It will repel the werewolves- see!''

'

[Rotipher of the FoS]

Eh. Maybe the symbol was chosen for political reasons, not spiritual. The Ezran church was founded by a Dilisnya, after all: he might've been sending a subtle warning to relatives to keep their secular mitts off church property and personnel.

[High Priest Mikhal]

Eh. Maybe the symbol was chosen for political reasons, not spiritual. The Ezran church was founded by a Dilisnya, after all: he might've been sending a subtle warning to relatives to keep their secular mitts off church property and personnel.

Good point. Maybe it's both a symbol of healing and of lethality. Sadly I'm not well versed in Yakov's character and I can't say if he was a Dilisnya in spirit as well as in blood. For that matter it could have more to do with the old belief that garlic and wolfsbane can dispel evil spirits, a symbol of the church's doctrine of "battling the creatures of the night."

[Rotipher of the FoS]

By his family's standards, I gather Yakov was a sweetheart; at the very least, we can probably assume he was Lawful Neutral like the sect he'd founded.

OTOH, he seems to have been politically savvy and pragmatic. He may not have been poisoning people right and left, but he did cut a deal with his sister Camille: she wouldn't persecute his new religion, and he'd slant the Church's doctrines so as to keep the common populace in line.

[ewancummins]

Eh. Maybe the symbol was chosen for political reasons, not spiritual. The Ezran church was founded by a Dilisnya, after all: he might've been sending a subtle warning to relatives to keep their secular mitts off church property and personnel.

Good point. Maybe it's both a symbol of healing and of lethality. Sadly I'm not well versed in Yakov's character and I can't say if he was a Dilisnya in spirit as well as in blood. For that matter it could have more to do with the old belief that garlic and wolfsbane can dispel evil spirits, a symbol of the church's doctrine of "battling the creatures of the night."

Sure, but belladonna isn't wolfsbane.

It is possible to use belladona/deadly nightshade as a hallucinogen [I actually know someone who did this- very bad idea!]. Maybe Yakov used the stuff to bring on visions? The modern day church may not know this, if he didn't tell his disciples. The symbolism might therefore be somehwat mysterious.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

Heck, maybe that's what caused his "vision" of Ezra in the first place: one of his relatives tried to poison him, got the dosage wrong, and he wound up having a freaky, pseudo-revelatory belladonna trip. Then he spread the word of the "Goddess" he'd seen so widely that Ezra, like Zhakata or the Overseer, took on enough of a spiritual reality to grant divine spells.

{hides from Church inquisitors}

[ewancummins]

Heck, maybe that's what caused his "vision" of Ezra in the first place: one of his relatives tried to poison him, got the dosage wrong, and he wound up having a freaky, pseudo-revelatory belladonna trip. Then he spread the word of the "Goddess" he'd seen so widely that Ezra, like Zhakata or the Overseer, took on enough of a spiritual reality to grant divine spells.

{hides from Church inquisitors}

Or maybe Ezra is real- but the altered mental state brought on by the poisoning actually let him access her.

It could be interpreted either way. Of course, the modern day church probably keeps this a secert, if they even know about it at all.

PS My PC in Rafe's game was a priest of Ezra, and he deliberatly ingested belladonna to induce hallucinations/a vision. In his mind, the holy plant would give him holy visions- if his heart were pure. Think of it as a shamanic ritual.

[A G Thing]

Heck, maybe that's what caused his "vision" of Ezra in the first place: one of his relatives tried to poison him, got the dosage wrong, and he wound up having a freaky, pseudo-revelatory belladonna trip. Then he spread the word of the "Goddess" he'd seen so widely that Ezra, like Zhakata or the Overseer, took on enough of a spiritual reality to grant divine spells.

{hides from Church inquisitors}

Or maybe Ezra is real- but the altered mental state brought on by the poisoning actually let him access her.

It could be interpreted either way. Of course, the modern day church probably keeps this a secert, if they even know about it at all.

PS My PC in Rafe's game was a priest of Ezra, and he deliberatly ingested belladonna to induce hallucinations/a vision. In his mind, the holy plant would give him holy visions- if his heart were pure. Think of it as a shamanic ritual.

That would be a great addition to any Ezra based spell or ritual that is required to speak or grant information to a cleric of Ezra. It would be a good detail... As long as the player doesn't get addicted! Then you got a problem and it might even affect the messages they get...

"I asked that priest of Ezra to divine and help me find that missing girl!"

"So what did he say?"

"I honestly don't know? He ate some weed, and well, for the past hour or so, all he did is talk mysteriously to a rather large rock!"

"Well that was the biggest waste of 280 gold since that last time we were in Bluetspur!"