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mhamza
Seeker
United Kingdom
73 Posts |
 Posted - 05 Jul 2014 : 19:31:51
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I've seen Jalynfein mentioned as the most powerful spellcaster in Menzoberranzan, if so then why didn't he help overthrow the Lolthites in the War of the Spider Queen series? Surely he would have seen the Silence of Lolth as an opportunity to strike against the society that he hated, what stopped him?
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jul 2014 : 21:23:12
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| Perhaps it was the fact that he pretty much would have had to have overthrown the entire society? Perhaps he didn't like the odds of one guy versus 10,000? Maybe he didn't want to rock the boat because he didn't want to get smacked down upon Lolth's inevitable return? |
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mhamza
Seeker
United Kingdom
73 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jul 2014 : 22:49:41
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| He could have had the support of Lord Dyrr and the Jaezred Chaulssin, alongside whatever secret non Lolth worshipping drow who wished to revolt . Sounds like good odds to me |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jul 2014 : 23:53:19
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quote:
Originally posted by mhamza
He could have had the support of Lord Dyrr and the Jaezred Chaulssin, alongside whatever secret non Lolth worshipping drow who wished to revolt . Sounds like good odds to me
That's what, a few thousand, at best? Scattered about, with no support structure, no training, no trace of cohesion, and nothing resembling a chain of command.
Opposing them are dozens of highly-trained, well-armed private armies, with established chains of command, established supply chains, established and heavily protected bases, and troops that are very well-motivated to maintain the status quo. And most of those houses would have their own powerful wizards handy, too.
It would be a very quick, very messy slaughter, and it would happen at the first major house they threw themselves against. |
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BEAST
Master of Realmslore
USA
1714 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jul 2014 : 00:05:25
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Do we even know that Jalynfein survived to live that long, in the first place?
He was described in the short story "The Fires of Narbondel", set when Drizzt was 11 years old (~1309 DR), as already worrying whether he might be corrupted by the Way of Lloth.
The next we hear of him is the Menzoberranzan [Boxed Set], which was set in late 1357 DR, a year before the Time of Troubles.
Though RAS wrote about tons of the priestesses from the M[BS] in his "Legacy of the Drow" mini-series which took place in between the M[BS] and the TOT, he never did discuss Jalynfein. The weakening of the priestesses' magic, then, would also seem to have been a good opportunity for Jalynfein to indulge in a little mischief, but oddly, he remained completely silent. Perhaps he was found out and eliminated at some point in that intervening year?
Drizzt Do'Urden's Guide to the Underdark, dated at the end of 1370 DR, writes of Jalynfein in the present tense, as if he is still alive. But since this is a report of Drizzt's own personal past knowledge of Menzo, it isn't necessarily the most up-to-date on the current events on personalities in the city. His knowledge of Jalynfein may have only been hearsay from Zaknafein, anyway, and with Zak gone, and then with Drizzt only returning to Menzo briefly in the novel Starless Night, Drizzt may have never learned of Jalynfein's most recent status.
To the best of my knowledge, he hasn't appeared ever since, right?
OTOH, just because he hasn't been written of doesn't necessarily mean that he isn't still alive and kicking. His death hasn't been written of, either... |
"'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 06 Jul 2014 00:06:35 |
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Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3802 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jul 2014 : 00:08:15
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quote:
That's what, a few thousand, at best? Scattered about, with no support structure, no training, no trace of cohesion, and nothing resembling a chain of command.
Opposing them are dozens of highly-trained, well-armed private armies, with established chains of command, established supply chains, established and heavily protected bases, and troops that are very well-motivated to maintain the status quo. And most of those houses would have their own powerful wizards handy, too.
It would be a very quick, very messy slaughter, and it would happen at the first major house they threw themselves against.
Menzoberranzan houses were in a very unstable-messy state during the silence of Lolth, tho. Other cities as well. Ched Nasad fell due to Jazred Chaulssin's plotting and Menzoberranzan itself was on the verge of falling by it (and would have done, if not for Lolth coming back right in time).
Drow will backstab each other no matter how crappy their situation is, priestesses losing their power caused just that. There were also the ones already unhappy with the situation, and the silence just made it worse.
In order to change something. one has to try and Lolth's silence was the perfect opportunity. I liked how Vhaerunites acted (not so much how Eilistraeens were portrayed), and I think that someone who hated the situation in drow cities, like the Spider Mage, could have done something (not necessarily going Rambo against noble houses) exploiting all the chaos they caused. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 06 Jul 2014 00:10:43 |
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Lilianviaten
Senior Scribe
489 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jul 2014 : 04:49:31
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| I too, was disappointed that he hasn't been mentioned in any novels. WOTC created a very compelling character, and then seemingly forgot about him. For that reason, I absolutely loved the mention of a certain matron mother in "Night of the Hunter". I don't expect certain characters to ever have more than a supporting role, but a mention here and there means a lot to fans. |
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The Masked Mage
Great Reader
USA
2420 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jul 2014 : 23:44:36
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| You also forget - Lolth is anything but a hands off goddess when it comes to Menzo. She chooses who rises and falls and on occasion even makes a personal appearance 9or sends her handmaidens) to make sure of it. the spider mage is powerful, but is no match for the spider queen and her matrons. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jul 2014 : 23:51:06
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quote:
Originally posted by The Masked Mage
You also forget - Lolth is anything but a hands off goddess when it comes to Menzo. She chooses who rises and falls and on occasion even makes a personal appearance 9or sends her handmaidens) to make sure of it. the spider mage is powerful, but is no match for the spider queen and her matrons.
True, but the OP was discussing making a move during the Silence of Lolth -- so her divine smackdown wasn't as much of an issue. Though, as I said previously, perhaps Jally didn't do anything because he feared her return. |
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mhamza
Seeker
United Kingdom
73 Posts |
Posted - 08 Jul 2014 : 23:44:15
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| I always wondered why Jalynfein was in Menzoberranzan, surely someone who hates Lolth wouldn't live in her favored city. And yeah I meant during the Silence when Lolth couldn't do anything |
Edited by - mhamza on 08 Jul 2014 23:50:27 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jul 2014 : 04:40:38
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| There are a lot of conveniences to living in a city, particularly in the Underdark. There aren't a huge number of drow cities that aren't dominated by Lolth, and there aren't too many Underdark cities that would welcome a drow -- particularly one powerful to impact the status quo. |
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Jalynfein and War of the Spider Queen
