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Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

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Originally posted by Christopher_Rowe

It just noticed that this will be my five hundredth post and wanted it to be in this topic.

And now I have to come up with a question.

Okay, how about this. Have there been any/many famous sets of identical twins in the Realms? I know that the Thunder Blessing brought about increased twin births among the dwarves--but are twins counted rare or (relatively) common among elves and halflings? Are twins thought to be good or bad luck in any cultures?

Cheers,

Christopher

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Ed has shared a bit of evil twin lore with me, and it included some identical twins... If it's okay with him, I'll repost it here.

It's not twins in general, though -- I was specifically looking at the evil twin trope.

And there is one set of identical twins in published Realmslore that comes readily to mind... Voaraghamanthar "the Black Death" and his brother Waervaerendor "the Rapacious Raider", the twin black dragons in the Mere of Dead Men. They're from the old Wyrms of the North series, and were first seen in Dragon 258. The article is also online, here.

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The 'evil twin' trope pops up in the Realms mainly in ballads and plays, in two ways: substitution of nobles' dupe for real prince or princess, and long-lost, separated-at-birth-or-childhood sibling reappears to bedevil grown-to-adult 'good twin' (often when parents die; evildoer steps onto the scene to try to seize or claim inheritance).
The concept is well-known to everyone, but not used much by "modern in the Realms" composers and performers in new tales or performances, for that reason.[Somewhat akin to everyone being familiar with "Waltzing Matilda," so very few people are going to embark on a song with similar lyrics or subject matter.]
And it does continue to happen, "for real," in the Realms, due to nobles having bastard children, factional fights within noble or wealthy families, and so on.

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As far as ‘real’ evil twins in the Realms go, the best-known would probably be Harthus Draer, the evil (unrelated by blood, but almost a perfect likeness) double of Ammanthrus Boldoum, a VERY wealthy merchant of Athkatla who became known for his mercantile successes and stupendous wealth, and then for his philanthropy.
Working with a small cabal of Boldoum’s trade rivals, Draer replaced the real Boldoum in 1344 DR, and in the guise of the philanthropist visited many Amnians and Tethyrians, learning much of craft innovations and trade deals that he passed on to the ruthless cabal.
The real Boldoum was kept in hiding in the Amnian mountains and cruelly experimented on, alongside kidnapped persons of the same general build, looks, and hair color; without involving a wizard until it became necessary to replace Draer (either because of treachery or because he’d met his death or maiming through misadventure) and mind-control the replacement, Boldoum’s trade rivals wanted to create several “replacement Bouldoums.”
In late 1347 DR, a bandit raid on that mountain stronghold resulted in the ruination of all the likeness-altering surgeries and “experiments,” and in Boldoum and one of his ‘almost-doubles’ escaping.
The secret was out, but Draer swiftly hired all the mercenaries he could and tried to eliminate both the real Boldoum and the trade-rivals who’d backed him, so he could be left as the only Boldoum standing, and deny the heritage of all the others (who’d be then too dead to promote themselves).
This private war ended up almost causing the death of one of the Council of Six, and for an entire summer (of 1348 DR) was the talk of Amn, Tethyr, and traveling merchants up and down the Sword Coast, with many individuals rumored to be part of this plot or that, and no one really fully understanding the truth. As a result, Draer and Boldoum are famous, or infamous; the war ended with the mysterious backers all slaughtered by the Council, Draer fled far into the Turmish backlands as a hunted man, and Boldoum a changed, paranoid recluse thought to be an impostor by about a third of Amnians.

The second-best-known set of evil twins are a pair of elegant, sophisticated, thoroughly amoral sisters who look identical (milk-white skin, tall and sleek, raven-black hair down to their behinds), and who are ruthless in their pursuit of wealth and power. Their names are Serelke (“SAIR-elk”) and Ryngoleira (“RINN-go-leera”) Tabarcrast, and they are minor nobility in Chessenta who fully intend to end up ruling Chessentan cities some day.
They work both independently and (at times) together, as friendly rivals, and both are equally evil, scheming, brilliant actresses. They often exploit confusion among others (such as outlander merchants, arms-dealers especially) who mistake one of them for the other. They are expert poisoners, have amassed a lot of largely-hidden, cached wealth and steadily growing personal collections of magic items they use to defeat foes in private, and they are superb in the arts of lovemaking; their common approach to advancement thus far has been to “sleep their way to the top” in Chessenta, poisoning or arranging ‘accidental’ deaths for those who spurn them or grow tired of them or defy their manipulations.
The “Tabarcrast Shes” have become legendary for their bored, jaded mannerisms and fell beauty, and the whiff of more rumored than properly understood corruption that clings to them; legends spread by talkative caravan merchants throughout the Heartlands.
In 1377 DR, they are in their late twenties, and have been at their climbs upward since their mid-teens.

Among fictitious evil twins, the most famous would probably be Laevur, the villainous long-lost brother (and double) of the hero Raulaerik, who kills and impersonates his older brother in the play THE BRIGHT BLADE AND ITS SHADOW (written by an anonymous playwright, and first performed in Neverwinter in 1339 DR; an instant hit, it was put on by various troupes up and down the Sword Coast, becoming an always-running standard in Waterdeep about the same time it reached Suzail and Westgate, in 1347 DR; it’s very well-known now and its popularity has waned somewhat, but its utility to comment on local government and local liked and disliked persons cause it to be remounted often). In the play, Laevur gets all he wants (rulership, specific women in his bed, and riches), but finds them hollow - - and in the end, deadly, as he’s slain by an old foe of Raulaerik who herself impersonates one of Laevur’s bedmates.

The second most famous would be from an old ballad, THE GHOST DANCERS, wherein a good man, Althus, ends up haunted by ghosts who intend to frighten him to death because he happens to have built his farmhouse atop the buried treasure they guard - - but Althus is murdered by his unscrupulous identical twin brother Ulgram (because Ulgram has heard tales of the treasure). Ulgram proves impossible for the ghosts (who have no idea Althus has been replaced) to scare, but at the end of the ballad they manage to kill him by surrendering the treasure to him and then locking him alive, to suffocate, in the largest treasure chest.
This ballad dates from 1167 DR or so, and if there was ever any real-life truth inspiring it, it’s been forgotten. It was formerly far more famous than the play I mentioned first, but these days its melody and refrain (“The ghosts they danced, cold white flames under the moon/The ghosts they pranced; we’ll join them soon”) are better remembered than all the stanzas (and thus, the entire story).

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If you dont mind me asking, what is Asperger's. I have heard of it before. Good question too.

Brimstone

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Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

Okay, I just remembered this post, and asked Ed if I could share the twin lore I got from him... It's not a direct answer to this question; as mentioned already, I was specifically looking for lore about evil twins.

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Originally posted by The Hooded One

(Well, a gal can dream, can't she? With the assistance of her whip and a little thing that seems to constantly need new batteries?)

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Originally posted by The Sage

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Originally posted by The Hooded One

(Well, a gal can dream, can't she? With the assistance of her whip and a little thing that seems to constantly need new batteries?)

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Interestingly, I was recently told that not even re-chargeable batteries are enough for such devices these days.

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Originally posted by Jakk

Is there anything more he can tell us about his pending web-writing for Wizbro?

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Originally posted by Jakk

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Originally posted by The Sage

[quote]Originally posted by The Hooded One

(Well, a gal can dream, can't she? With the assistance of her whip and a little thing that seems to constantly need new batteries?)

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Interestingly, I was recently told that not even re-chargeable batteries are enough for such devices these days.

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Originally posted by Jakk
"not even re-chargeable batteries"? Does this mean such devices now need to be connected directly to AC power? AC is such a "standards-free" standard, with different plug and socket styles everywhere... personally, I think that's just to frustrate the proponents of free love...

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Originally posted by Zandilar

I wonder if there are magical toys like this in the Realms, perhaps manufactured by Sharessans? Or maybe clockwork ones invented by gnomes... I've always wondered about gnomes...

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“I’d want that,” she whispered then giggled huskily, “Don’t think I’d get that rod of vibration working at this point anyway…”

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Originally posted by The Hooded One

Sage, I think ANYTHING can and should be discussed, so long as we steer clear of real-world connections that can at times rightly upset people (e.g. religious and lifestyle views).

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Yes, there are sex toys in the Realms, from whips and dildos through use of costumes and roleplaying (including cross-dressing; any amount of rough, tough armored guards secretly wearing silken feminine scanty panties under their leather cods and "unders," to "tingling creams" and wine-dissolved aphrodisiacs. Endless nipple-clamp-dangling adornments (including at high society revels and in the "official" garb of priestesses).

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