Virtuo¶
A statue of Virtuo carved into the Verdant Mountains, in the northern Black Jungle.
Virtuo (pronounced "vurr-chew-oh") is one of the three deities born upon the destruction of the Primal Tree at the end of the First Avihm. Virtuo is the most widely worshipped figure in the realm, serving as a bastion of peace and hope in the perpetual Drehmari war against Maelihs and his forces.
Virtuo mysteriously took flight in Av3 903, departing with the entirety of her Grand Parish to a location unknown to most common folk, leaving massive portions of the realm in shock and ushering in the end of the Third Avihm. In the hundred years since that day, some have abandoned her faith, calling her a traitor, while others wait diligently for her return.
| Titles | Goddess of Peace, Purity, and Perfection Lady of the Mirror The Goddess |
| Classification | Deity |
| Family | Primal Tree (Parent) Maelihs (brother) Drehmal (Sibling) |
| Gender | Feminine (she/her) |
| Devotion Site | Kiln of Virtuo |
Description¶
Virtuo takes the form of a 12-foot tall Drehmari (humanoid) with shimmering blue horns, blue hair and very tan/nearly orange skin. She is known to be calm, wise and stunningly beautiful.
Following her fight with Mael in the Tidal War, Virtuo lost one of her eyes and was left with permanent burn marks on her face, ruining her perfect symmetry.
Abilities¶
Virtuo seems to have the power to heal others, although it is not clear entirely what this entails. There are no accounts in the map of her fighting, although she is known to have carried a greatstaff named "Pristinity" and a shield named "Fortitude" into battle when required.
Virtuo is also the creator of Orderflame, a more controlled, less chaotic version of fire invented due to Maelihs' control over regular fire. In terms of map mechanics, this is simply soul fire.
Virmari and Grand Parish¶
Virtuo's ascended form of Drehmari are Virmari. This ascended race of people was created by Virtuo to help do her work in the realm, and were chosen out of all of Virtuo's followers for their devotion and the quality of their character. Virmari were said to be strikingly beautiful and perfectly symmetrical, just like their Goddess, with crystalline horns and blue skin.
Over time, the Goddess effectively formed a religious state centered around her holy site, the Kiln of Virtuo. Her most trusted and highest-ranking Virmari were known as the Grand Parish, and served as her generals, spokespeople, and more. At the top of the Grand Parish, ranking just below Virtuo herself, were her Grand Pontiffs, one to represent each of her three core principles: Peace, Perfection, and Purity. The only Grand Pontiff whose identity is known for certain is Vahid, who was her final Grand Pontiff of Perfection.
History¶
The details of the First Avihm are shrouded in mystery, but it is known that Virtuo was one of the three deities born in the Felling of the Primal Tree, and received a part of the Tree's soul and memories. She was likely born on the original eastern continent, and is implied to have possibly been a mortal of the Viruhn peoples. The description of Mael's top-tier relic seems to imply that Maelihs and Virtuo have some forgotten, shared history, and that her real name (either the name of the mortal who became Virtuo or the Goddess' true name) is "Ael Irien". Spoken from the perspective of Mael, it reads:
"Ah, Ael Irien... do you know what suffering you have inflicted upon this realm? Your greatest sin, felt by all souls, millennia later. You hide behind a curtain, concealing your true wickedness. You are cowardice incarnate."
Virtuo moved to the new central continent soon after her birth at the beginning of Av2, and quickly gained followers throughout eastern Drehmal. She may have been a driving force behind the foundation and/or upkeep of the early-mid Av2 Empire of Vir, and led the forces of the east against Mael for centuries in the bloody Deity War. In this period, Virtuo grew to become the most widely-worshipped god in the realm, drawing thousands and thousands of religious pilgrims to her Kiln to see her, speak to her, and receive her healing every year.
Access to the Kiln eventually became somewhat stricter in late Av2 as the region fell under control of the strict Tidal Dynasty, but with the majority of the continent under Avsohmic control in late Av2, most of the Drehmari were legally only allowed to worship either her or Drehmal. Virtuo took effectively no part in the Fall of Avsohm, powerlessly watching it unfold from afar.
The Third Avihm would see Virtuo become more directly involved in world events, as the collapse of the Tidal Dynasty led to her Parish fighting in the Tidal War. The Grand Parish, backed by the newly founded Insohmic Order, sought to gain control of Firteid and the entire Black Jungle region by defeating the Tide Queen's remaining military officers. In the chaos of this war, Maelihs and his forces were able to infiltrate the Kiln, where he planned to kill her and thrust the realm into despair. However, after ripping out one of her eyes, Mael was unable to finish the deed, and returned to the southwest having dealt a crushing moral defeat to the Drehmari.
Virtuo and Insohm were eventually able to beat back Mael's forces after the lengthy Battle for Drehmal near the conclusion of Av3. At this point, Virtuo began to question her place in the world, feeling utterly powerless over her own inactions throughout the course of history. Learning from Mari that there were still people living in Eastern Xivrhynt, the fractured remains of her original home continent, Virtuo was given a new purpose. She decided to take her entire Grand Parish with her to the far east, hoping to heal the land and the people at the edge of the world, and abandoning the mainland without any official announcement.
She has not been seen or heard from since.
Sphere of Influence¶
While Virtuo and the Virmari have (mostly) left Drehmal for the time being, Virtuo worship is still seen as the default Drehmari faith throughout a large part of the continent. The Goddess is still worshipped everywhere in the East, although some smaller Aspect faiths also flourish unofficially in towns like Highfall, Marahza, and Schlonko, and Fort Nimahj remains a bastion of her faith in the west.
Devotion Guide¶
Virtuo's devotion site is the fabled Kiln of Virtuo, located on an island just to the west of Firteid.
Several low-level devotion offerings to Virtuo are found around her shrine in the front of the Kiln, but higher-level offerings must be found at statues of her form throughout eastern Drehmal.
Virtuo statues can be found throughout the east, including in Dusps, Highfall, Mossfield, Firteid, and elsewhere in the Black Jungle.
Accepted Offerings
| Value | Items |
|---|---|
| Liked | Dried Kelp Melon Orderflame Lantern |
| Loved | Orderflame Campfire Glistering Melon Slice |
| Adored | Diamond Music Disc (Far) |
Devotion Rewards
| Level | Reward |
|---|---|
| Lvl 1 | Purifying Light +0 |
| Lvl 2 | 32x Melon Seeds |
| Lvl 3 | Potion of Healing II |
| Lvl 4 | Purifying Light +1 |
| Lvl 5 | 64x Stripped Birch Log |
| Lvl 6 | Splash Potion of Regeneration II |
| Lvl 7 | Purifying Light +2 |
| Lvl 8 | Runic Book (Mending) |
| Lvl 9 | Totem of Undying |
| Lvl 10 | Purifying Light +3 |
Virtuo's relic is Purifying Light, an orderflame candle which gives a flat boost to movement speed when held in the off-hand.
Purifying Light Details
| Relic Name | Stat Modifiers | Lore Text |
|---|---|---|
| Purifying Light +0 | +0.007 Movement Speed | You have lit a flame that symbolizes your devotion to the Goddess of Purity. It is small, but flickers in a perfectly steady rhythm. |
| Purifying Light +1 | +0.014 Movement Speed | You have lit a flame that symbolizes your devotion to the Goddess of Purity. The wax grows as the candle burns, dripping slowly upward in radially symmetric lines. |
| Purifying Light +2 | +0.021 Movement Speed | You have lit a flame that symbolizes your devotion to the Goddess of Purity. Its candle has grown so large as to require a lantern for conveyance. Yet, you feel rested and agile while holding it. |
| Purifying Light +3 | +0.028 Movement Speed | "For millennia, I didn't know the many wrongdoings of those who incited my birth. But fragments of memory gave me suspicions, and now, at last, I know the truth. I will do what I can to one day earn Naurduul's forgiveness." |
Late-Game Info¶
You feel an arcane presence...
This page or section may contain significant spoilers for Drehmal: Apotheosis. Read the additional messages below for specific spoiler information.
This article/section contains significant spoilers for the 75% completion event and its associated late-game areas.
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Virtuo cannot be interacted with in any way in-game, but her chambers in Ytaj can be explored. Here is where players will find the Closed Diary, the book which details her decision to leave for Eastern Xivrhynt. This room also holds the aforementioned Fortitude shield, a real artifact.
Virtuo is mentioned in the final sequence of the game.