- "What I do, I do for the glory of Germany."
- ―Magnus Völler[src]
Magnus Völler was a German archaeologist who competed with his American counterpart Indiana Jones, his former University of Chicago classmate and fellow student of Professor Charles Jacob Kingston, in the search for the Staff of Kings in 1939, being one of Jones' archaeological nemeses alongside René Emile Belloq.
Biography[]
Early life[]
In the early 1920s,[2] Magnus Völler had attended the University of Chicago, where he became classmate[1] and close friend[3] of fellow American student Indiana Jones, both studying under Professor Charles Jacob Kingston,[1] the two being his most promising students.[4] However, Kingston didn't much care for Völler due to his links with the antiquities black market.[1]
Kingston and Völler with the Jade Sphere.
In 1922, while in Panama on a dig with Kingston and Jones,[3] Völler sneaked into a Mayan temple even though he had been warned by Kingston not to enter because of its dangers. There, he found the Jade Sphere and set off a rolling ball trap. He was saved by Jones, who had been sent in to find him. Nevertheless, Völler didn't thank him for interfering with his plans and came to hate him[5] while the act brought his relationship with Kingston to an abrupt end.[4]
After repeated reprimands, Völler was kicked out of the university.[1] Meanwhile, his rival would would go on to study at the Sorbonne[6] and became a respected archaeologist and university teacher.[7][8]
Waiting for revenge[]
Disgraced and expelled, Magnus Völler crawled back from Chicago to his native Germany, just as the Nazi movement had started to gain prominence. Shortly afterwards, Magnus started running errands for Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, acquiring a position within their party's ranks.[1] Little was heard about Völler over the years, but since Kingston's disappearance in 1933, Jones suspected of the "familiar rat" of Völler.[4]
The Odin, Völler's base of operations.
At some point in the late 1930s,[9] Völler managed to collect fragments of the Mirror of Dreams,[5] originally assembled by Indiana Jones and Mei Ying in 1935 to locate Emperor Qin Shi Huang's tomb before Kai Ti Chang's Black Dragon Triad,[10] which he kept on board the Odin, his immense zeppelin named after the eponymous Norse deity[5] which he utilized as his base of operations and where he kept a room for his prized collections.[4]
Other pieces Völler claimed included Orichalcum linked to Atlantis, some of King Solomon's Jewels,[5] a Germanic Shield and Cup of that culture too, the latter of which symbolized strength, which was likely why Völler had prized it.[11]
Search for the Staff of Moses[]
In 1939, Magnus Völler began searching for clues to the Staff of Kings. Traveling to Sudan with several Nazi desert commandos, he initiated the excavation of a Nubian site, but Indiana Jones slipped in and grabbed the Ram's Head Bust. With the help of a soldier, Völler confronted Jones and managed to retrieve the artifact but his rival escaped by taking one of their planes.[1]
Needing information from Charles Jacob Kingston, Völler followed up on a lead that Archie Tan knew where the missing professor had gone. He hired Blind Duck and his Hip Chen Tong to get Tan to talk, as well as recover the hidden Jade Sphere from Chinatown, San Francisco, but Jones managed to rescue Tan and claim the piece himself. with the two avoiding being shot by Völler through jumping onto a tramway.[1]
Völler then returned to Panama, where the Sphere had originally been found. He tasked Sudao and his band of pillagers to raid a Jungle Village Kingston had befriended, and set up camp in some ruins overlooking a sinkhole. Realizing that Jones was also searching for the Temple of the Cosmos, Völler tracked the archaeologist and tried to capture him when Jones uncovered Kingston's hidden journal. However, Jones slipped his grasp once again.[1]
Völler picked up Jones' trail in Istanbul, where his rival and journalist Margaret Grace O'Malley were going to attend the opening of a museum at Topkapi Palace. Völler cornered O'Malley and hinted that he knew her true identity as a British spy. Meanwhile, Jones had found clues in the catacombs to the whereabouts of the Staff of Kings, then rescued O'Malley, and escaped via elephant from Völler's men.[1]
Völler takes the Staff of Kings from O'Malley.
Following Jones and O'Malley to Nepal, Völler arrived in the Odin, and sent his men to seize the town guarding the temple where the Staff was held. Letting Jones do the difficult work of retrieving the staff, Völler and his soldiers followed O'Malley into the temple. When O'Malley seized the staff from Jones, Völler took it from her at gunpoint, and kidnapped her, and tried to seal Jones inside the structure. Capturing Kingston from the village, Völler took the relic and his prisoners aboard the Odin.[1]
Defeat and death[]
Eventually, Jones found his way aboard the zeppelin and rescued O'Malley, while Völler tried to figure out how to use the mystical powers of the staff. He tried to kill his nemesis once and for all upon coming across him aboard his airship, but Kingston sacrificed himself to prevent so, resulting in Magnus killing his former teacher. Völler was ultimately defeated by Jones and was undone when the parted waters of the Indian Ocean came back together at the Bay of Bengal[1] which sealed Völler's fate as the water walls closed and destroyed him and his cohorts.[4]
Legacy[]
Indiana Jones would later write on his journal about the Germanic Cup that Magnus Völler had claimed, which he managed to recover, noting his reasons on why Voller may have prized it. As for the rest of Völler's lost finds, Jones would go on to expand research on them[11] such as when he discovered what Orichalchum powered in Atlantis later that year[12] or when he discovered more of Solomon's gems in King Solomon's Mines in Meroë during his search for the Infernal Machine in 1947.[13]
Personality and traits[]
Magnus Völler was a proud German who dreamed to see his beloved country one day to rise to ultimate power. For Indiana Jones, a monstrosity like the Odin could only belong to a wicked madman like Völler. Upon realizing how the Staff of Kings worked, Völler was consumed by his power lust and unleashed all of the Staff's might, making the night sky flash with a terrible force and briefly turning everything white. He was willing to let Indy do all the hard work to then claim the prize himself, thrilled at what seemed his imminent victory. Even if defeated fair and square, Völler was fine with cheating by drawing a pistol.[4]
Behind the scenes[]
Concept art of "Magnus Reil".
Magnus Völler was voiced by the late English actor Adrian Schiller in Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings.[1]
The design document for "Indiana Jones 2007",[14] an early version of the Staff of Kings story by LucasArts,[15] indicates that Völler had the surname Reil and described him as Indiana Jones' graduate school nemesis and a high-ranking Nazi official who wished to acquire the Staff of Kings to help Germany win the oncoming war. An "evil döppelganger" of Jones, Reil was a "physically superior specimen" likewise trained by Charles Jacob Kingston, Abner Ravenwood and Frederick Oxley and "eternally jealous" at Jones for always getting the girls.[14]
In an interview with developer David Collins by VideoGamer.com in the lead up to the game's release in early 2009, Magnus Völler is referred to as "Magnus Moeller". Whether this was a mistake (such as on Collins' part or through a dictation error) or is an indication that the character's last name was changed late in development is unclear.[16]
Continuity[]
Where Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide mentions that Magnus Völler and Indiana Jones were close friends,[3] Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings: Prima Official Game Guide indicates that they were always fierce rivals.[4]
While the storyline of Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings is generally the same across multiple platforms, the details vary depending on the version of the game:[1]
Wii/PS2 version[]
After Jones worked his way through the Odin to the Völler's office where the Staff was kept, he found Völler up on the catwalk surrounding the room. Charles Kingston tried to talk Völler out of using the staff. Jones and O'Malley tried to sneak over to the catwalk but they were spotted by the Odin's pilot, who warned Völler. Völler tried to shoot Jones but Kingston jumped out of his wheelchair and was shot instead. Völler tried to shoot Jones again but his gun jammed. Völler pulled out the staff, and told Jones to come and get it. Using the staff's power split the sea, and escaped from the Odin aboard a motorcycle, landing on the now-cleared floor of the sea. Jones and O'Malley chased after him in a motorcycle of their own. After a long chase, Jones caught up to Völler's motorcycle and grabbed the staff. While fighting for control of the staff, Völler was pulled upward into the wall of water. Eventually his grip failed, and he was pulled into the churning sea. As Jones drove to the shore, the staff relaxed its power on the sea, collapsing the walls of water, and destroyed the Odin.[11]
PSP version[]
Völler with a machine gun in the PSP version.
After Jones worked his way through the Odin to the Völler's office where the Staff was kept, he found Völler up on the catwalk surrounding the room. Völler sent out some henchmen to defeat Indy, but they were unsuccessful. Following their defeat, Völler came down from the catwalk via a ladder, and pulled a machine gun on Jones. Jones hid behind some statues while Völler fired at him, coming out to attack whenever the German reloaded his weapons. Indy finally disarmed Völler, and defeated him in a fist fight. Jones was able to retrieve the staff just as Maggie O'Malley and Charles Kingston entered the room. With Jones' back turned, Völler got up, picked up the gun and fired at Jones. Charles Kingston jumped in front of his former student and was killed by the shot. Jones and O'Malley jumped out of a window of the Odin and use the staff to part the sea below. Völler tried to fire upon Jones from the Odin, after they had escaped to the shore aboard a half-track, but the Odin was caught as the wall of seawater collapsed. The water rushed into the bridge, killing Völler and sinking the Odin.[5]
DS version[]
After Jones worked his way through the Odin to the Völler's office where the Staff was kept, he found Völler up on the catwalk surrounding the room. Jones reached the bridge where he found O'Malley and Kingston tied together and Völler watching from a catwalk above. Völler sent out a few goons to stop Jones, but Jones quickly overpowered them. Völler then came down on an elevator and attacked Jones. Jones succeeded in defending himself and got the staff. Völler fired his gun on Jones, but Kingston quickly jumped from his wheelchair in front of Völler, and saved Jones' life. In his dying breath, Kingston told Jones to protect the staff. With the gun still pointed at him, Jones grabbed O'Malley and jumped out a window with the staff. As they landed in the bay, the waters below them began to part, allowing them to land on the ocean floor. Völler sent his troops to the vehicle bay to bring them back. A few half-track motorcycles reached the sea bottom just before Jones reached the shore. Jones used the staff to split the Odin in two and sent it to the bottom of the sea. Then Jones raised the staff, causing the parted waters to collapse down onto the ship, completely submerging it. Völler yells out Jones' name in his dying breath.[17]
Novelization[]
In Rob MacGregor's unpublished novelization of the game, Völler's background is expanded upon.[18] As Indycron keeper Leland Chee stated during an interview with TheRaider.net in 2010 that a copy of MacGregor's completed manuscript never reached him,[19] it's unclear how much, if any, information about Völler's early life is part of the Indiana Jones canon.
In the book, Magnus Völler was a German nationalist and the son of one of the Thule Society's founders, also having a brother in the country's army. While a dedicated archaeology student under both Charles Jacob Kingston and Abner Ravenwood, he had an irritating habit of linking subjects back to his home country no matter how baseless, in addition to always competing against Indy for Kingston's approval and attention as well as being jealous due to never attracting any fellow female students due to his unpleasant attitudes. After being expelled from the University of Chicago—in 1921 as opposed to the 1922 setting of the game's prologue—for leaving Indiana Jones for dead at the Temple of the Cosmos to acquire the Jade Sphere, Völler completed his studies on his return to Europe at his undergraduate alma mater the University of Dresden, falling in with the growing Nazi movement due to his disgust at Germany's treatment in the wake of World War I.[18]
By 1939, after being frustrated by Adolf Hitler putting a Frenchman and an American expatriate at the head of Nazi expeditions into the occult, Völler inherited Belloq's position, was promoted to Oberarbeitsleiter and was placed by Heinrich Himmler to be the director of Verteidigung Germanisches Altertum, the "Defense of German Antiquities" within the SS, in the aftermath of Donovan's failure in claiming the Grail. With a focus on Biblical artifacts and in anticipation of San Francisco's American-German Cultural Center exposition, Völler captured bricks from the Tower of Babel, pieces of Jacob's Ladder, Dead Sea Scrolls, ancient Egyptian military artifacts from the Red Sea's bottom and fragments of the Septuagint before he turned his attention to uncovering the Staff of Moses under the belief it could help Hitler win the incoming war, which put him on a path to be reunited with Indiana Jones.[18]
Appearances[]
Concept art of Magnus Völler.
- Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings novel (Cancelled)
- Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings
- Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings Scavenger Hunt (Mentioned only)
Sources[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings
- ↑ Indiana Jones started studying at the University of Chicago in 1920 as seen in Young Indiana Jones and the Mystery of the Blues.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings: Prima Official Game Guide
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings PSP
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Peril at Delphi
- ↑ Raiders of the Lost Ark
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, which depicts the recovery of the Mirror of Dreams, takes place in 1935 while Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings takes place in 1939.
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings Wii/PS2
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Indy 2007 Design Document
- ↑ The story of the cancelled Indiana Jones And The Staff Of Kings at Film Stories
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings Preview at VideoGamer.com (Web archive)
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings DS
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings novel
- ↑ Leland Chee interview at TheRaider.net