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Feed my hunger and I will feed your curiosity.
— Vulgrim to War, first meeting at The Crossroads

Vulgrim is a reoccurring character featured in the Darksiders series.

Overview[]

Vulgrim's twisted mind spins with so many detestable schemes that I doubt he even trusts himself. Indeed, he has grown even more devious since mankind exhaled its last breath. If this wretched demon's business is collecting souls, his pleasure is devouring them.
Always ravenous, Vulgrim will beg, steal or kill for souls. He has also been known to trade for them. A desperate warrior might find such a black bargain palatable. To find him one need only seek Vulgrim's glyphs burned into the ground beneath demon haunts and the broken shells of buildings.

— Official description

Vulgrim is a demon merchant with extensive knowledge about the mortal realm serving independently during the Apocalypse. He accepts Souls as currency, which seem to feed his ever-growing hunger. In Darksiders 2, he also accepts gilt and boatman tokens. The Demon actively seeks 4 chapters of The Book of The Dead, with each chapter containing ten pages. Bring him a chapter and he will give you a key to a vault that has decent loot. In Darksiders III he is the only way to level up, feeding souls to him will give Fury ability points to spend.

Biography[]

Darksiders Genesis[]

At some point in time Vulgrim made a deal with Samael to free his fellow merchant, a fellow demon named Dis from imprisonment and in exchange Dis would give Samael the information concerning Lucifer in Dis's possession. Sadly, Samael was pre-occupied with defending his fortress from an attack by the demon lord Moloch so instead he sent the horsemen War and Strife to the demon.

True to his nature Vulgrim acts as a merchant to the two horsemen selling them upgrades, Creature Cores and enhancements for the pair's weapons. He also eventually directs the two to an Arena in the Void, where he doubtlessly makes a killing betting in the horsemen's favor.

Vulgrim explains the deal he made with Samael and sends the two off to a demonic dungeon, The Slag to collect. Once freed Dis explains what Lucifer is after, The Ember Core, a item with the power of a thousand suns located inside of The Inferno Vault. The second item that Vulgrim required was a Scrying Eye from the temple in the Wind Bind canyon which combined with the Ember core they already granted will allow them to spy on anyone anywhere.

When the two horsemen return to Vulgrim they are joined by Samael. Using the eye Vulgrim is able to track down some of Lucifer's allies, Mammon and after he is defeated Belial who were abusing Eden's resources. The two horsemen travel to Eden and after a shaking battle with the one-time guardian Astarte resolve to cut Lucifer off from the realm. According to Vulgrim it would take a holy artifact of immense power to cut off the demonic paths to Eden and suggests that one of the Weapons of Mass Destruction the angels brought with them when they fought the Nephilim and abandoned on Eden.

Death's Door[]

Death comes to Vulgrim hoping to acquire a replacement for The Harvester while he is on a mission to eliminate a supposed rogue demon for Abaddon. In return, Vulgrim demanded the tongue of a leviathan, a deal that Death was able to collect on when he returned with not only the tongue of a Leviathan but the rest of the head as well.[1]

Darksiders III[]

Vulgrim's first meeting with Fury didn't go well, as she immediately saw him as a threat and was prepared to attack. Vulgrim explained that he was just a simple merchant, and afterwards would trade with Fury, various items in exchange for souls.[2] Vulgrim eventually ran into a bit of a problem, the Serpent Holes he relies on for travel and trade were already inhabited by a race of stone like beings, and though once tolerant of his presence he has far outstayed his welcome.

After receiving the first of the Lord of the Hollows gifts the Flame Hollow Vulgrim came to Fury asking for her help, claiming that his Serpent Holes have been invaded by otherworldly stone creatures and he's deduced that Fury's Flame Hollow is one of several keys to the realm. Seeing as how Fury already has the Hollow, and seeing her predisposition towards violence, the Horseman is the obvious choice to help.

Vulgrim would later attempt to bargain with Fury for the Angelic weapon Salvation. The demon was even willing to offer a million souls for the weapon, but Fury refused, finding it more useful in her journey for the Seven Deadly Sins than offering it to a merchant. As Fury continues to receive the Lord of Hollow's gifts Vulgrim continues to come back to her for aid in removing the Keepers of the Void.

Finally, Fury learns the truth from the final of her victims and confronts Vulgrim intending to take his head. The Demon works his silver tongue and promises Fury and her brother's free use of his Serpent Holes and her own Abyssal Armor likely stolen by his very hands.

Darksiders II[]

Vulgrim appears to Death on his journey to restore mankind, preserving his role as a merchant. Much like in Darksiders, to seek him out one needs to look for his glyphs scattered over the realms by simply approaching them, after which Vulgrim will emerge from below the ground. He offers a poor range of items, most noticeably a selection of boxes which reward Death with random items of varying quality when bought.

Those boxes are bought with both Gilt and Boatman Coins and buying them is more like a gamble since there is no guarantee that one will get an item of desired statistics. However, he is the only merchant in the game that will sell Possessed Weapons, and he has a unique item that allows Death to re-set his Skill Points for use elsewhere. He also asked Death to bring him chapters from The Book of the Dead in exchange for keys to Death Vaults.[3]

Darksiders[]

His primary role throughout the course of War's journey was to provide the Horseman with various goods, upgrades, items, and abilities, in exchange for Souls War had collected in his battles.

War was instructed by the Charred Council to seek out Vulgrim, a demon who has fallen from the favor of the Destroyer and sought for some time to establish trading relations with them. Vulgrim told War that the bulk of the Destroyer's power lay within his tower and in order to reach it, he would need to forge an alliance with the Demon Samael, giving him the Earthcaller in exchange for souls.

After War defeated Tiamat, Vulgrim offered War the ability to travel through his Serpent Holes, the means by which Vulgrim used to get around, thus allowing War to get from one side of the destroyed city to the other instantly. However, War must first allow Vulgrim to take a look at a Heart of the Chosen, recently ripped out of Tiamat. Vulgrim also bought Artifacts in trade for souls.[4]

Personality[]

Come closer, see what Vulgrim has to offer.
Vulgrim

During the course of the game, Vulgrim is simply the Demon merchant that provides the Riders with various goods and upgrades. As such, his personality is not as developed as the other characters in the game. In his small, yet numerous appearances, Vulgrim displays his character traits. He seems to be quite talkative, has a sarcastic sense of humor, and is somewhat devious. However, being a demon, the latter trait is not unexpected. Despite this, Vulgrim seems to be fair and always honors his end of the bargain, as a merchant should. In an odd way, Vulgrim is very charismatic and like all great merchants, he has a smooth silver tongue. He describes himself as a capitalist, only caring about how he may profit and create gain for himself and cares little about the war between Angels and Demons. He seems to trust War, giving useful hints when a path is inaccessible and doesn't at all seem intimidated by War or even his brother Death. In contrast, Vulgrim tries to tread lightly around Fury, mostly due to the Black Rider's lack of patience and short-temper, as she is more prone to lashing out at perceived threats or imagined slights, but is not above bargaining with and manipulating her. Even so, Vulgrim still takes a rather jovial tone with the female horsemen, even when in danger of sparking her ire.

Vulgrim is not unlike his Demon brethren in regard to his hunger for souls. As a Demon merchant, information is won by sating his hunger, in fact, he finds 'young ones' to be especially tasty. In some ways he is similar to The Watcher; he gets in close, watches War for reactions, and often taunts him with 'what he knows' that War does not. But unlike The Watcher, Vulgrim shows great respect for War as well as admires his drive, resolve, resourcefulness and determination. Albeit he finds War's 'haste to die' rather humorous.

He is also sycophantic and will often flatter War with quotes such as: "You are as wise as you are powerful." At the same time, he is rather blunt in his comments when War attempts to do something reckless. Underneath his servile guise, Vulgrim shows to be surprisingly perceptive of any setting. Mentioning to Fury that she and her fellow Horsemen of the Apocalypse were somehow pawns in a much larger game being played from behind the scenes. Something which he highlighted while she was mourning the loss of her companion Rampage, saying that her enemies may be closer to her than she truly believes.

Vulgrim Locations[]

Vulgrim locations appear all over the Destroyed City in Darksiders and are strategically placed to benefit War's travels. For example, as War approaches the Twilight Cathedral, there is a small walled area to the right of the entrance. A Serpent Hole will appear there; a perfect place to stock up on upgrades, purchase some Consumables or cash in an Artifact or two.

Usually, Vulgrim Locations are surrounded by his small, fascinating chimes that cover the area and any paths leading up to the actual location. They are an angled spiral and contain a blue, glowing core which shines in the sun and darkness. The chimes also emit a high-pitched bell sound that can be heard from quite a distance away. Look out for these chimes and follow them to the location where Vulgrim should be waiting.

At each Vulgrim Location, there is a Serpent Hole, which Vulgrim allows War to use during his adventures to travel around the destroyed city.

He uses similar transportation in Darksiders II but denies anyone the privilege of using them.

Vulgrim allows fast travel in Darksiders III, much like the first game along with his usual services.

Trivia[]

  • Vulgrim is one of the few acting characters to appear in all Darksiders games thus far.
  • Vulgrim's role of acting as a guide for War on some useful information was replaced by Ostegoth in Darksiders 2.
  • Death is shown to be the only Horseman who refuses to trade in souls with the demon, similarly he is also the one who has known him for the longest, the implications are telling.
  • One of the items Vulgrim can sell in Darksiders 3 is called the Unfocused Leviathan; its description reads: Though you are sibling to he who hath slain me, I will aid you for a time, which is a clear reference to Darksiders II: Death's Door where Vulgrim asked Death for a Leviathan's tongue and brought the merchant the whole leviathan instead.
  • An odd note for the Merchant: Whenever Death's inventory gets too full, and he can't pick up a Legendary Weapon because of it Vulgrim snatches up the weapon and sends it to Death via Serpent Tome: free of charge and without comment. He simply leaves a message that the weapon is something too dangerous to simply leave lying around.

Gallery[]

References[]

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