| Author |
 Topic  |
|
The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
 Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 01:21:42
|
Hello again, all. I bring fresh pearls of Realmslore from the quill of Ed of the Greenwood, but I can’t resist answering althen artren before I present them.
Specifically, in regards to THIS little comment:
You must be losing your touch, Madam Hoody. There are only three or four scribes in line. I guess I'll have to get in line a second and third time.
althen, dear, the scribes are lining up UNDERNEATH me. To save time, you understand. I’d invite you to reach down and feel around to verify that, but some males tend to be, er, squeamish about that sort of thing. (Muffled scream: “He touched my Rod of Lordly Might! He touched it!”)
Ahem.
(Now if you can’t behave, boys, then neither can I. I’ll be over here with Zandilar.)
Now, on to the words of Ed!
Who, curiously enough, also has words for you, althen. To whit, in response to this query of yours: “Ed, in the area that Larloch has his fortress in, is there any back-history, maybe a dwarven or elven fortress, or a mine, or something there before?”
Ed replies:
Yes, Larloch’s Crypt (“Warlock’s Crypt”) actually began as several gnome “strongholds” dug into the southern flanks of the hills, nigh the seashore. Their numbers dwindled under repeated attacks from many foes (goblinkin prominent among them, but also a short-lived “kingdom” of leucrotta and local elves who believed all above-ground fauna belonged to them, for their feasting-spits, from deer to boar to gnomes who dared hunt sylvan beasties), and they were almost all gone (dead or fled to safer areas, such as the seashore south of Neverwinter, and in Velen Peninsula of Tethyr) before Larloch arrived and slew the last of them.
So saith Ed. Who also felt moved to answer this from althen artren: “How does Elminster like his quiche?”
Ed replies:
Raw, of course. :}
Now to be serious: Elminster likes open-faced, small hand-tarts (palm-sized quiches). Made with strong yellow cheese and meat (ham when he eats my frozen ones, bison or bear or moose when he picks through my larder, in that descending order; he made a quiche with fried Spam once, and loved it, though he added other things to soak up some of the salt). He decidedly does not like commercial quiches that are “All crumbling pastry and nothing much in it, look ye!”
so saith Ed. Who now passes on to this, from gomez: “Anyway, 'people known at the court of Cormyr' may actually contain a lot of people depending on how well they need be known...
How about Lady Tavernant? I just found her in Volo's Guide to Cormyr, and she is an noblewoman (hence would be known at court, I guess), eccentric, and can print her own copies... even if she didn't write it, I am sure she printed a few...”
Ed replies:
Right you are: ‘people known at the court of Cormyr’ includes a LOT of people. Let me just provide my first promised clue by refining what I mean by “known at the court.” It means they’ve visited it in person and been announced, more than once, not walked into the room as an anonymous servant or been mentioned by some courtier as some outlander of importance - - that is, important somewhere else. It doesn’t NECESSARILY mean they’re a frequent visitor at Court or well-known there.
And as for Lady Tavernant: what a great guess. Wrong, I’m afraid, but a great guess nonetheless. Almost wish I’d thought of her being the author myself. Right up there with Fee herself as the mysterious scribe. :}
So saith Ed. Who must have been eating his stamina-inducing somethings tonight, because he wasn’t done yet. He moved straight on to Menelvagor’s query: “Really, because I'd love to see info on this book, and what it contains: 'Why I Ride Men and Not Thrones', by Alusair. What were the reactions? Especially in Cormyr, by nobles, commoners, and family?”
Ed replies:
I’m glad you asked. (And in posts to eventually come, I’ll happily talk about many of the titles other scribes are curious to know more about the contents of, too.)
For this particular book, I want to clear up some misconceptions, and this is a handy opportunity.
It’s NOT a sex manual or a randy “steamy confessions for all” tome.
In fact, the title of this book was almost the most salacious part of it. It was not a (forgive me, scribes) blow-by-blow account of Alusair’s lovemaking or what she finds attractive in a bed-partner, it was a frank presentation of why she thought ruling a realm by gaining the trust and support of powerful or soon-to-be-powerful citizens on a personal, individual basis through shared experiences (NOT just lovemaking, but working side by side on shared tasks and projects for the betterment of the realm) was inherently superior to sitting on a throne ruling a populace by decrees, from a distance, through proxies (such as the Purple Dragons, the local Watch, etc.) Her Regency MIGHT have made this book a great irony from cover to cover, but didn’t, because she behaved like that as a Regent, too (no, NOT bedding everyone, though she did from time to time couple with “key” persons, as seen in “The Long Road Home,” my tale at the end of THE BEST OF THE REALMS Volume 2 - - but rather, establishing personal friendships with individuals of high and low station, all over the land, to, and listening to their complaints and suggestions and acting on them, rather than just manipulating them into being her local mouthpieces).
In fact, this book gained Alusair a LOT of support, all over Cormyr, because it was written in such an open, plain, emphatic style - - like someone standing talking to you, not in courtly “high speech” - - that everyone who dipped into it readily understood it, and because it had the ring of truth (the author really believed what she was writing), and the people liked the message. Some conservative nobles were horrified at the thought of “consorting with the lowest and most coarse,” and others winced at the thought that THEIR tenants might now expect them to behave like this, too. However, darned near everyone else, from clergy to Purple Dragons to old shepherds and millers drinking in local taverns, approved highly (whether they believed she’d ever “drop her steel groinsheaths” for them or not).
Her parents admired her for writing it, and openly said so, liking her philosophy and praising it. (Tanalasta’s reaction would of course have been to wince in private, and say nothing in public.) Courtiers are always diplomatic about royal writings (cue the Muppet movie THE FROG PRINCE, and the dignified announcement: “Prolonged applause”).
And of course, the young nobles she rode with were proud and pleased, too, because they now had something to wave at their parents and say, “See? I know you’ve been hearing about her rutting with all of us - - well, THIS is what it’s really all about! Saving the realm in the years ahead, so angry commoners don’t decide Cormyr can get along quite well without our heads still decorating our necks!”
So saith Ed. Who’s done yeoman service this fair even, dealing with divers queries, and now begs leave to go and sort and take out the garbage and the recycling.
So until next time,
love to all,
THO
|
Edited by - The Hooded One on 17 Mar 2009 01:23:25 |
 |
|
|
Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 02:18:19
|
Hello, Ed, THO, and fellow scribes. It's me again, trying to tease a little more Cormyr lineage hints from the apparently airtight NDAs... 
quote:
February 19, 2006: Hi again, fellow scribes. This time, Ed tries to give a useful reply to Nevorick's query: "Lady Herald, I will take thy advice and ask for small kernels of knowledge from the Sage, Ed. After thy whispers, what can Ed say on the Cormyrian Kings, Belmuth and Arathra?"
Ed speaks:
I'm afraid NDA concerns will render me much more terse than I'd like to be, but here we go:
<chop> ... I must warn that I'm not going to say much more about these monarchs, and not give much greater depth if asked about others, either, because although I'd love to share everything freely with all scribes of Candlekeep and Realms fans, I'm NOT going to imperil the chances of getting the lore of Cormyr featured in some sort of official WotC print publication.
I won't even ask about this; I know all concerned with getting this lore out to us are doing their best... as are those concerned with the opposite goal. 
quote:
Nevorick, you must rest assured that the Lineage as it stands now (although we'll always want to add more detail to it, of course) presents a line of succession that has no holes in logic. Weirdnesses, yes, but everything's explained if you read the entire document - - and the scribes THO named have done yeoman service in that regard.
So saith Ed.
Who may be as curious as I am as to why these two monarchs in particular interest you, Nevorick. If you're interested in setting a campaign way back during their times, you'll have to concoct a LOT of information about the wider Realms around Cormyr yourself, and there's a dark shadow hanging over the Forest Kingdom that Ed's trying to avoid saying too much about. If you're planning to have someone or someones around today who's directly descended from either of these, forget it. That same shadow handily eliminated that possibility, although there are "loose end" Obarskyrs from this century who COULD serve that purpose, especially if the descent was illegitimate and secretive. If you were just curious about the stories of Belmuth and Arathra (because of their nicknames, perhaps), I'm afraid that's just what Ed has to be so sketchy about. Sigh. Let us parley.
Okay, now for my question: Can Ed say anything more now about that "dark shadow" hanging over Cormyr? I'm assuming it's not Nalavarauthatoryl or the ghazneths; they're old news when this question was first asked in 2006. Could it be, pray tell, the shadow that blotted out the wondrous illumination that would have been a 3.5E Cormyr sourcebook? If, on the other hand, this shadow is less metaphorical, I'm even more interested... <sigh> Whatever happened to the beauteous idea that more published lore is a *good* thing? I have some theories, but this is neither the time nor the place... |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 17 Mar 2009 02:19:08 |
|
|
|
Garen Thal
Master of Realmslore
USA
1105 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 02:22:31
|
| Hmm. On the topic of who wrote Filfaeril, Bound and Willing, I'm going to venture an off-beat (pardon the puns) guess and say Aundable Inthré. No? Didn't think so. |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 02:43:46
|
My best guess on that 'Shadow', Jakk, is that it has something to do with a very subtle curse that keeps the Obarskyr line lite of males.
The 'curse' itself may not be an actual curse - it could be something more insidious... like certain War-wizards 'pruning' the less-desirables from the lot, or even just keeping the numbers down to prevent civil war. I know of at least one War Wizard who killed a Cormyrian King to save Cormyr.
And I'm only taking a shot-in-the-dark here because me thinks Ed might have another NDA regarding this one.
Also, I was just wondering if you missed some posts, THO? We went through a few pages rather quickly. I had guessed The Lark as the author. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 17 Mar 2009 02:44:17 |
|
|
|
Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 13:40:22
|
| Ed and Hooded One, thanks for the wonderful lore on Alusair's book--that was a tome that had always stuck in my mind (along with some of the others that have been mentioned thus far). |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
|
|
|
The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 14:05:20
|
You're very welcome. That comes from both Ed and me.
Oh, and to Markustay: sorry, I didn't miss seeing it but I did miss responding to it (things have been somewhat hectic away from the keyboard these last few days, for both Ed and me). Unfortunately, it's not The Lark. Sorry.
Nor is it Aundable, Garen Thal. Sorry again. However, both Ed and I like the way your mind works, on settling on such a guess.
Heh. This is fun!
love to all,
THO |
|
|
|
Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 17 Mar 2009 : 16:53:46
|
Thanks a lot for the lore!
Regarding the shadow over Cormyr: could it be that this shadow has anything to do with the current (4e) king's nephew (I don't remember either of thier names). It was mentioned in the FRCG that the king's nephew is quite evil. And if he wants to be king, it would make sense for him to kill off rivals. |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
|
|
|
The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 02:05:08
|
Hello again, fellow scribes. I bring you another omnibus Ed answer, to the following queries:
First, from Jakk:
Hello, Ed, THO, and fellow scribes. It's me again, trying to tease a little more Cormyr lineage hints from the apparently airtight NDAs...
THO quote, re. a Feb 19th, 2006 Ed response to Nevorick about the Cormyrean kings Belmuth and Arathra: “If you're interested in setting a campaign way back during their times, you'll have to concoct a LOT of information about the wider Realms around Cormyr yourself, and there's a dark shadow hanging over the Forest Kingdom that Ed's trying to avoid saying too much about. If you're planning to have someone or someones around today who's directly descended from either of these, forget it. That same shadow handily eliminated that possibility, although there are "loose end" Obarskyrs from this century who COULD serve that purpose, especially if the descent was illegitimate and secretive. If you were just curious about the stories of Belmuth and Arathra (because of their nicknames, perhaps), I'm afraid that's just what Ed has to be so sketchy about.”
Okay, now for my question: Can Ed say anything more now about that "dark shadow" hanging over Cormyr? I'm assuming it's not Nalavarauthatoryl or the ghazneths; they're old news when this question was first asked in 2006. Could it be, pray tell, the shadow that blotted out the wondrous illumination that would have been a 3.5E Cormyr sourcebook? If, on the other hand, this shadow is less metaphorical, I'm even more interested... <sigh>”
Markustay then posted: “My best guess on that 'Shadow', Jakk, is that it has something to do with a very subtle curse that keeps the Obarskyr line lite of males.
The 'curse' itself may not be an actual curse - it could be something more insidious... like certain War-wizards 'pruning' the less-desirables from the lot, or even just keeping the numbers down to prevent civil war. I know of at least one War Wizard who killed a Cormyrian King to save Cormyr.
And I'm only taking a shot-in-the-dark here because me thinks Ed might have another NDA regarding this one.”
Menelvagor then posted: “Regarding the shadow over Cormyr: could it be that this shadow has anything to do with the current (4e) king's nephew (I don't remember either of their names? It was mentioned in the FRCG that the king's nephew is quite evil. And if he wants to be king, it would make sense for him to kill off rivals.”
Ed now responds:
Menelvagor, it would indeed make sense, and that’s the obvious “adventure motivator” set up in the 4e Realms for DMs who want the nephew’s bid for the throne to drive all sorts of adventuring fun in their campaigns.
However, that’s a “modern” shadow. The shadow referred to by THO hanging over the reigns of Belmuth and Arathra is a quite different one.
Markustay, you’re right that an NDA still forbids me from saying much about the shadow in question, and I’m afraid your guess as to its nature is wrong (but at least I can go so far as to confirm that).
So, Jakk, I CAN’T say much of anything more now about said dark shadow hanging over Cormyr - - except to once more confirm what it isn’t.
It isn’t Nalavarauthatoryl or the ghazneths, and it isn’t a metaphor (or anything else) about something that may or may not have prevented the publication of a 3.5e Cormyr sourcebook. It IS “less metaphorical,” so I’m afraid you are indeed going to be more interested . . . but left frustrated by my inability to say more at this time.
What I can say is that there are obviously future plans (that my even come to pass) to say more about this dark shadow, somewhere and somewhen to come, and that the NDA and my own coy evasiveness center on desires not to ruin that future chance to say more.
Watching Gods above and below, I sound like a weaseling politician. Ale for all, this St. Patrick’s Day, and let’s hope you all forget what I haven’t said! :}
Er, so saith Ed. Who I know is BURSTING to say more, but certainly doesn’t want to ruin the chances of a certain someone telling a specific tale about a particular dark shadow at work (at some time or times unspecified) in the Forest Kingdom of Cormyr.
Gads, this cryptospeak is contagious, isn’t it?
We’d better (she purred, and winked once, slowly and languidly) switch to more non-verbal communication . . .
love to all,
THO
|
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 03:00:27
|
Thank you for that answer, and also for Ed's compliment in the reply before that.
As I said, it was only a shot in the dark (if you recall, I had asked about the 'heir-lite' Obarskyr line not too long ago, so thats definately something that peaks my interest, even if it is just happenstance).
Shadows... Mists... so may possibilities.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 18 Mar 2009 03:01:16 |
|
|
|
gomez
Learned Scribe
Netherlands
254 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 07:36:16
|
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
We’d better (she purred, and winked once, slowly and languidly) switch to more non-verbal communication . . .
I'll get the whipped cream!
Gomez,
who has enough trouble with shadows in the Dalelands to worry about any in Cormyr... |
|
|
|
arry
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
317 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 17:05:54
|
quote:
Originally posted by gomez
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
We’d better (she purred, and winked once, slowly and languidly) switch to more non-verbal communication . . .
I'll get the whipped cream!
And the honey!?
 Ahem . . . I'd like to ask Ed if there is a season in the North corresponding to the Russian 'raspuzitsa', the 'season of mud' when the winter snows have melted and ground travel is almost impossible? If there is one, approximately how long does it last? |
|
|
|
Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3240 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 17:41:15
|
| Ooo... BEAST where are you? I know that RAS mentioned this in a few of his novels. But I can't remember the details (and I'm currently at work). |
I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
|
|
|
althen artren
Senior Scribe
USA
780 Posts |
Posted - 18 Mar 2009 : 22:22:53
|
Magic items shunned, scribes:
Alas the only Rod of Lordly Might I will be touching will be my newborn son when he
gets here in early May, and only in diaper changes and bath-time. Boy, talk about
getting submarined.
Ed, could you describe some of the other elven ruins left in the dales, similar to the
one in Tasseldale in VGtTD. |
|
|
|
Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 02:21:30
|
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all.
maransreth, the contest isn't over; no one has correctly guessed who got that infamous chapbook into print, yet. Yes, Ed is indeed willing to provide a clue, perhaps even more than one; he promises me he'll get back to me with one soon.
love,
THO
Dear Lady,
For those of us 50 pages or so behind in our scroll reading, do please remind us of the subject and/or title of the "infamous chapbook." Those of us who did without the InterScroll for a few months want to play along with evryone else.
|
I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
|
|
|
|
Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 03:53:22
|
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
<chop>
What I can say is that there are obviously future plans (that may even come to pass) to say more about this dark shadow, somewhere and somewhen to come, and that the NDA and my own coy evasiveness center on desires not to ruin that future chance to say more.
Watching Gods above and below, I sound like a weaseling politician. Ale for all, this St. Patrick’s Day, and let’s hope you all forget what I haven’t said! :}
Er, so saith Ed. Who I know is BURSTING to say more, but certainly doesn’t want to ruin the chances of a certain someone telling a specific tale about a particular dark shadow at work (at some time or times unspecified) in the Forest Kingdom of Cormyr.
Gads, this cryptospeak is contagious, isn’t it?
We’d better (she purred, and winked once, slowly and languidly) switch to more non-verbal communication . . .
love to all,
THO
Has this specific tale by a certain someone about a particular dark shadow been written and just awaiting a publication window, or is there composition yet to be completed? (he asked, possibly not cryptically enough) THO, I do like your suggestion... words create more questions than they answer... particularly when those attempting to answer the questions have been bound, gagged, and what-have-you by those Naughty Dominatrix Aliens.  Hrm... on that note... perhaps if I were one of those *receiving* the questions, I'd be better disposed to resist their answers... |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 19 Mar 2009 04:12:45 |
|
|
|
Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
729 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 08:20:07
|
quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
Dear Lady,
For those of us 50 pages or so behind in our scroll reading, do please remind us of the subject and/or title of the "infamous chapbook." Those of us who did without the InterScroll for a few months want to play along with evryone else.
Chapbook's title: "Filfaeril, Bound and Willing". Please draw your own conclusions as to the likely subject . |
|
|
|
The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 14:48:18
|
Jamallo Kreen, it is indeed time for a recap. This “who wrote the naughty chapbook” contest arose from posts early in this year’s thread, from Ed, which I’ll quote in part.
The first one is a reply to part of a question from Asgetrion about Heralds in the Thunderstone area of eastern Cormyr, and the second is a reply to Menelvagor’s query about the work itself.
Heeeere’s Ed:
There is a local herald, Bannermere, but this is a new office held by a novice, a young, slender, brown-haired man originally from Berdusk, who is polite and rather shy, and derives most of his income by designing and limning signs and writing letters for locals (he is not a Crown herald). He keeps to Thunderstone, and interested clients come to see him; it’s recently come to light (much to his embarrassment) that he secretly writes salacious chapbooks for sale in Scornubel and Waterdeep, including the popular “Rorel the Conquering Blade” series (in which the debonair, swirling-cloaked Rorel beds an endless series of willing women, often after dueling their craven and cruel wife-beating husbands). Interestingly, there’s long been a rumour that the Rorel books were penned by the same anonymous hand that once presented the now-banned chapbook “Filfaeril Bound And Willing” to a receptive Suzail and even more eager Purple Dragon posts up and down the Realm, but a blushing and stammering Bannermere denies ever even dreaming of portraying the Dragon Queen in such a light. (Another rumour whispers that Filfaeril, who has been officially silent on the work, secretly enjoyed it very much and cajoled her royal husband into acting out the events of several of the encounters therein - - but rumour, like a barking dog, oft makes much more noise and arouses more ire than it in truth should.)
I have mentioned it in the drafts of several Cormyr-set novels, as one of those “in jokes” that the editors used to enjoy reading privately, and then prune before publication. By which I mean: they and I both knew such snippets were never going to see print, but I wrote them for fun (back in the dear dawn days of TSR, and up until quite recently at Wizards, one of the editors would discover such a screed, have a laugh over it, then print it out, stand on her chair in cubicle-land, clear her throat loudly, and then read the said steamy scene out loud for everyone.
It provided a few moments of amusement for most of the Books Department folks, and those who needed to concentrate hard whilst editing and didn’t want to hear it were already hooked up to iPods or similar headphone and earbud devices that walled them away from such distractions.
In those unpublished (“suppressed” if you will, but with my agreement and expectation that they would be edited out), I mentioned this specific fictitious salacious work as one in which Purple Dragons would laugh over, and then get very red-faced when Queen Filfaeril strolled past them as they stood guard together, AND as something court ladies or noblewomen would gossip and titter about - - and then subside into shocked silence when Queen Fee came upon them quickly and joined their conversation about it.
Publicly and officially, the Crown ignored the work, except to ban its possession by any Purple and Blue Dragon (something deliberately not enforced in private dwellings, only within guardposts, armories, barracks, naval bases, and fortresses such as High Horn) and to send undercover courtiers around the cities of Suzail, Marsember, and Arabel to quietly buy up all the copies they could find, and “disappear” them. The Court Wizard (Vangerdahast) then issued a decree that the said work contained “dangerous hidden magics that would enact a curse upon the reader,” and banned its printing or copying out by hand, within the realm of Cormyr.
Publicly (aside from face to face meetings with individual nobles, as described above) Filfaeril ignored the existence of the work. It would be considered a grave breach of Court etiquette to mention its title to any Obarskyr, though personal friends of various royals know when they can ignore Court etiquette and when they should follow it. Filfaeril herself told some (shocked) noblewomen that she’d “quite enjoyed it,” and “hoped to read a sequel, and see what further fancies the clever, clever author could IMAGINE.” Tanalasta was too embarrassed to ever mention it to any of her fellow Obarskyrs (though a War Wizard reported to Vangerdahast that he found a copy under her mattress during his usual secret “checking for dangers” inspection, as well as finding copies in the possession of several personal maids and ladies-in-waiting to all three female Obarskyrs), Alusair discussed it frankly with both her mother and father (separately), Filfaeril and Azoun do indeed share a copy and have read it separately and together - - and have tried some of the scenes described therein together. Neither of them is inhibited, and as the ruling royals, THEY decide and set the morals of the realm, not the other way round (unlike in our real world, there aren’t sole dominant clergies in Cormyr, and therefore the royal family isn’ beholden to the opinion of this or that priest as to what’s “good” or “proper” or “appropriate” behaviour, because the many differing views of the many differing priesthoods offset each other, as it were.
In other words, the rumours that Filfaeril enjoyed the work are true.
The rumor that Bannermere wrote “Filfaeril Bound And Willing” is not true. The author IS someone long known at Court in Cormyr, but I think it’s time for some fun; I’ll leave it to scribes to guess the identity of the author, here in this thread, and give no hints - - but I WILL confirm when someone guesses right (and say so when a guess is wrong). To avoid repetitive “carpet bombing” guessing, let’s limit it to three guesses per scribe. So, stare at all those Cormyrean faces, and ask yourself: who’s secretly naughty, with pen in hand?
So saith Ed, and here we are, many guesses later (but not the correct one, yet). As you know, Ed has very recently begun to provide some clues, and will continue to do so. Of which the next one is this: please bear in mind that the writer of the chapbook, and the person or persons responsible for printing multiple copies of it and beginning to circulate them, may well not be the same person at all.
Let the fun continue . . .
love to all,
THO
|
|
|
|
BEAST
Master of Realmslore
USA
1714 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 15:04:57
|
quote:
Originally posted by Ashe Ravenheart
Ooo... BEAST where are you? I know that RAS mentioned this in a few of his novels. But I can't remember the details (and I'm currently at work).
Dude, I'm purty sure I'd remember if RAS had ever written about purring, whip cream, and honey in any of his books.
But I definitely do not.
Best left to those who know the subject matter more intimately.
If you were referring to this:
quote:
Originally posted by arry
Ahem . . . I'd like to ask Ed if there is a season in the North corresponding to the Russian 'raspuzitsa', the 'season of mud' when the winter snows have melted and ground travel is almost impossible? If there is one, approximately how long does it last?
RAS mentioned the muddy summer of the Bloodstone Lands in the novel Promise of the Witch-King and in the old accessory sourcebook The Bloodstone Lands. Per TBL, p.2, this muddy summer season in the northern region of Vaasa lasts "only for a few short weeks".
The 1E FRCS said the same thing, referring to "an impenetrable bog during the few weeks of High Summer" ("Cyclopedia of the Realms": "Vaasa": p.86). |
"'You don't know my history,' he said dryly."
--Drizzt Do'Urden (The Pirate King, Part 1: Chapter 2)
<"Comprehensive Chronology of R.A. Salvatore Forgotten Realms Works"> |
Edited by - BEAST on 19 Mar 2009 15:43:34 |
|
|
|
khorne
Master of Realmslore
Finland
1073 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 16:02:08
|
| Ed, I would like to ask why so many people in the Realms (such as Elminster or Khelben) seem to consider Volo a fool. If he was an idiot, he would not have survived gathering the information contained in his guides. |
If I were a ranger, I would pick NDA for my favorite enemy |
|
|
|
Garen Thal
Master of Realmslore
USA
1105 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 16:27:47
|
quote:
Originally posted by khorne
Ed, I would like to ask why so many people in the Realms (such as Elminster or Khelben) seem to consider Volo a fool. If he was an idiot, he would not have survived gathering the information contained in his guides.
Ahem. The only reason Volo has survived, as has been suggested elsewhere (though hidden), is that Elminster has been instructed to keep the nosey fool alive long enough to do... something. Why, and what, we've not been told, but it's an interesting little subtext to the relationship the two have.
Now, "alive" can mean all sorts of things, as certain toadstools know, but... |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 16:28:13
|
Volo was not so much a fool as Khelben and Elminster would lead people to believe... which is exactly why they lead people to believe that.
Far easier - and better - to discredit his work, and still keep it around: Volo did seem to have a penchant for finding trouble, and thats something groups like the Harpers or Lord's Alliance found useful from time to time.
As for the chapbook - I've used but one guess, and now Ed's hint has me thinking it was never meant to be published, which has me thinking of possible suspects I wouldn't have considered earlier...
Can we get a date on that chapbook? The title actually sounds like a real event I can think of... |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
Foxhelm
Senior Scribe
Canada
592 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 19:27:51
|
Here's a question or two in regard to translating 4th edition core to the realms. Not sure if you can answer this, but it is important to see if we can make it work.
Primordial and Primal Spirits...
Certain gods like Kossuth are now Primordials instead of gods, Barbarians/Druids/Shaman/Wardens gain their powers from Primal spirits. Yet previous realms lore state the power of druids and clerics of Kossuth all come from gods, and could not gain them from another source.
My question is what would you suggest to adapt 4th core lore with previous realms lore to make effective 4th realms lore?
My two best ideas is either a link between the gods and these other great powers... or cases of Hybred powers like Silvanus and Chauntea being both gods and Primal spirits and Kossuth as well as his fellows being both primordials and gods.
I know a couple of people asking these questions, so any answer would be welcomed which can solve this.
Thanks,
Foxhelm |
Ed Greenwood! The Solution... and Cause of all the Realms Problems! |
|
|
|
Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 19:39:07
|
I've finally gotten around to properly re-reading Silverfall (tests, tests!) and already racked up a few questions:
Even before the Copyright, there are a few words in some language I do not know. "tantaene animis caelestibus irae?" Transalation, anyone?
Also, in the title of each part, there is a different font. I do not understand a letter there. In Dove's part it appears thus: "No ?lore in Armor for ?ly Sake" What is this letter?
Last (for now) I still don't understand what Dove was doing with that sword dance. How exactly does that empower magic swords?
|
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
|
|
|
gomez
Learned Scribe
Netherlands
254 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 20:24:01
|
quote:
Why, and what, we've not been told, but it's an interesting little subtext to the relationship the two have.
If the answer is 'procreate', that would be... interesting. :P |
|
|
|
Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
729 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 21:55:07
|
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
I've finally gotten around to properly re-reading Silverfall (tests, tests!) and already racked up a few questions:
Even before the Copyright, there are a few words in some language I do not know. "tantaene animis caelestibus irae?" Transalation, anyone?
It's Latin - "Can such anger dwell in heavenly minds?" |
|
|
|
Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 22:10:32
|
And the Dove quotation is "No More In Armor For My Sake," though I seem to recall THO saying someone at TSR screwed it up in editing, and it should have been: No More In Armor For THY Sake.
Unlike the Latin epigram, I don't think Ed's quoting anyone, known or anonymous, there. (That line is his invention.)
BB |
|
|
|
Baleful Avatar
Learned Scribe
Canada
161 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 22:16:39
|
Dear Ed and THO,
I have a Cormyr, just-pre-Spellplague lore question. If a noble or anyone else either a visitor to Cormyr unknown to the War Wizards or a native Cormyrean who's never before done anything suspicious went on a "normal" trip outside the Realm, obtained magical means of protecting their thoughts from scrying by the War Wizards or a house wizard dwelling in a noble mansion, and returned with this protection operating, how soon in the usual course of events would this be noticed by anyone?
And how suspicious would it (usually) seem, when detected?
I'm assuming the thought-protected person isn't doing anything suspicious, just going about their usual daily activities and tasks in life.
Thanks! |
|
|
|
Malcolm
Learned Scribe
242 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 22:23:34
|
By the Mysteries of Mystra, * I * have a just-pre-Spellplague Cormyr lore question, too! Mine is a little more mundane.
If a visitor to Suzail starts a new fashion in garments or headgear or undergarments for women, that "catches on" in the city, how soon does it usually take for such a fashion (however brief a fad it later turns out to be) to spread across the realm? A. Word of it, and B. Being taken up by Cormyrean women who never visit Suzail. (I'm assuming there's no impediment to it spreading, such as a law or a shortage of supply of whatever's new, that traders could carry.) How slavishly do social climbers watch and copy the fashions at Court? Of the royals? Of nobles? (And if it varies within one of those categories, such as "some nobles but not others," why?)
Thanks. No hurry on this one, as my campaign is galloping in another direction at the moment. |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 22:51:38
|
@Foxhelm - This came-up over at the WotC boards, and since I seem to be the only FR 'Sage' (over there) that is willing to create 4e lore, I usually field these lore conundrums (I prefer calling them that rather then retcons - that's such a 'dirty word'). Besides, I like puzzles...
It is canon that the gods used the Weave as an interface to supply their followers with spells. Now, we know that on other worlds without a Weave gods grant their spells to their followers directly, or perhaps some other interface is in-place. The reason why I say it is canon is because Mystra can deny followers of a god spells - she basiclly 'breaks' their connection.
Since we know that this situation does not exist on other worlds, and that gods cannot be stopped so easily by the god of Magic there, then Toril is a unique case (AFAWK).
Taking that into consideration, and knowing already that the Weave merely acts as a user-interface, enabling mortals easier access to magic (supposedly, 'Pure Magic' is too potent in Realmspace, so the interface is required), we can see how the gods could have come to use this plug-&-play interface to just put their religion on 'auto-pilot'.
Its quite simple - Mystra made their jobs simpler, and even gods like ease-of-use, so they began to use the Weave as a spell-delivery system, so they could spend more time playing Golf or whatever gods do. This happened over the course of many millenia, until it became the standard way of doing things in Faerûn (although not necessarily elsewhere on Toril). The gods gave Mystra a bit of their power, and she used her distribution infra-structure to get the job done.
They got an easy way of doing things, and Mystra was able to get a big boost to her portfolio (all that power running through her Weave). I even believe that Mystra's church spread 'un-truths' around about how the Weave was the only way to do magic - which we now know in hindsight is patently false.
Some gods never chose to use Mystra's Weave - most notably Shar. Some may have had alternate power-sources to aid their clergy with easy spell use and retrieval (for instnace, the nature gods may have been tapping into fey magic for quite some time). Others were so 'new' that they didn't even realize they had other options (such as Cyric).
What that means is that when the Weave came down, all those gods that had been using Mystra's Weave - which is nearly all of the Faerûnian Pantheon, had to start doing things the 'old-fashioned way', and send spells to their clergy directly. Although this means more work on their part, it also means they can keep closer tabs on their priests now - we had quite a few priests behaving in very odd ways before the Spellplague, and one had to wonder why they were still receiving spells from their deity.
Now, to FINALLY address your question - The Weave was such a handy thing to have around that other beings of immense power - namely primordials and Arch-Fiends - were also able to use it to give their followers spells (with the requisite power 'donation' to Mystra).
With the Weave gone, all of those non-gods are now completely out-of luck! With the change in magic, even demi-powers can't grant spells without the help of a god. Things are back to the way it is supposed to be, before Mystra's Weave changed all the rules of Magic in Realmspace. Just as mortals were never meant to cast 12th level spells, neither were non-gods ever supposed to grant spells.
All is as it should be with Mystra and her Weave gone. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 19 Mar 2009 23:00:18 |
|
|
|
The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2009 : 23:12:12
|
quote:
Originally posted by khorne
Ed, I would like to ask why so many people in the Realms (such as Elminster or Khelben) seem to consider Volo a fool. If he was an idiot, he would not have survived gathering the information contained in his guides.
Ed has touched on this before, as I recall, when I asked him about Volo's status some years ago.
Though, Volo as a Realms character is pretty well summed up in the introduction to any of the Volo's Guides. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
|
|
|
Topic |
|
|
|
Questions for Ed Greenwood (2009)
Topic Locked
