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Purple Dragon Knight
Master of Realmslore
Canada
1796 Posts |
 Posted - 15 Jul 2007 : 18:43:35
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed. Who didn’t just quote his notes, I see, but rewrote and greatly expanded what’s in them. And I certainly recognize the two priestesses of Sharess we Knights met and had dealings with, in his words. (By the way, many folk in Silverymoon venerate this goddess, both as lay worshippers and clergy.)
love (and backrubs!) to all,
THO
I never paid any attention to Sharess until now. Dear Lady Hooded, please pass my heartfelt thanks to Ed. This is awesome! |
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Purple Dragon Knight
Master of Realmslore
Canada
1796 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jul 2007 : 19:04:07
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Dear Lady Hooded and Ed,
I've have been meaning to ask about gnomes for a very long time now. In my Realms, gnomes are a force to reckon with. Whenever you find them, you see an organized community that can achieve things twice faster than any other communities on Faerun (be it human, dwarves or elves). They may not be the best smiths and craftsmen, but they are quick to reach "masterwork" levels (much quicker than the 25 years of apprenticeship all dwarves go through) and once they get there, they are fierce business competitors. They will respond to threats by selling their goods slightly cheaper to a threatening competitor so they can then, themselves, resell to the same price displayed in the gnome shop, utterly shutting up the competition's yapper and getting them off their case. If someone really persist in harassing them, they can send a few pranksters their way, or publicly ridicule them; if all else fails, they do not see packing and leaving as a failure. They value family and friends, and LIFE, way too much to dig their heels in.
Now, when I have the chance to play (rather than DMing), almost exclusively, I have seen myself select gnomes as my characters, for the last three or four years. I have been experimenting with a gnome bard/shadowcraft_mage lately, with the Shadow Magic feat. Many thinks that Shadow Magic is exclusively for Sharrans, but (technically) the Player's Guide to Faerun states the following prerequisite: Wis 15 or to worship Shar. Now, it happens that "my" gnome has a Wisdom of 15, of course! 
This gnome of mine worships Baravar Cloakshadow, so it goes without saying that he is illusion-oriented in skills and abilities, and spell selection. In my Realms, these good-aligned shadow magic casters are as acceptable to Shar as regular Weave casters of evil alignment are to Mystra.
Now, there's "regular" Weave magic gods out there (Velsharoon I believe, or is he Lawful Neutral?) So I surmise that the same could be true for the Shadow Weave, even though it's controlled by Shar and they might "have" to be in "good" terms with her (whether this may or may not be contradicted by Faiths and Pantheons).
I guess my question is the following: can you give us a "royal treatment" post on the Forgotten Folk in general? I have hoped to hear your take on gnomes for many years now (especially if you talk about Baravar Cloakshadow, as my gnomes always pick him as a Patron, somehow...  By the way, a few years ago I was delighted by a certain Web Enhancement which listed a certain paladin order of Baravar Cloakshadow...  ) If you want to chime in on gnomes (or other races other than human) and their use of the Shadow Weave, that would then be spectacular!
Best regards,
PDK |
Edited by - Purple Dragon Knight on 15 Jul 2007 19:08:25 |
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AlorinDawn
Learned Scribe
USA
313 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 00:23:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Purple Dragon Knight
snip I guess my question is the following: can you give us a "royal treatment" post on the Forgotten Folk in general? I have hoped to hear your take on gnomes for many years now (especially if you talk about Baravar Cloakshadow, as my gnomes always pick him as a Patron, somehow... By the way, a few years ago I was delighted by a certain Web Enhancement which listed a certain paladin order of Baravar Cloakshadow... ) Best regards, snip
PDK
Here here! GNOMES GNOMES AND MORE GNOMES! GIVE US GNOME LORE!! er...gnome lore please Ed =)
I've been playing a gnomish bard/druid of Larue and went back to the Gnomish Point of View article in Dragon Magazine and various other sources to find some information concerning the forgotten folk....man they really have been rather forgotten.
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Edited by - AlorinDawn on 16 Jul 2007 00:29:57 |
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Zandilar
Learned Scribe
Australia
313 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 01:06:26
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Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by AlorinDawn
Here here! GNOMES GNOMES AND MORE GNOMES! GIVE US GNOME LORE!! er...gnome lore please Ed =)
I've been playing a gnomish bard/druid of Larue and went back to the Gnomish Point of View article in Dragon Magazine and various other sources to find some information concerning the forgotten folk....man they really have been rather forgotten.
Err... and yes... Whatever happened to the gnomish goddesses?
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Zandilar
~amor vincit omnia~
~audaces fortuna iuvat~
As the spell ends, you look up into the sky to see the sun blazing overhead like noon in a desert. Then something else in the sky catches your attention. Turning your gaze, you see a tawny furred kitten bounding across the sky towards the new sun. Her eyes glint a mischevious green as she pounces on it as if it were nothing but a colossal ball of golden yarn. With quick strokes of her paws, it is batted across the sky, back and forth. Then with a wink the kitten and the sun disappear, leaving the citizens of Elversult gazing up with amazed expressions that quickly turn into chortles and mirth.
The Sunlord left Elversult the same day in humilitation, and was never heard from again. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 01:40:41
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Hello again, all.
This time Ed makes speedy reply to Lorelord of the Realms George Krashos, re. this: “Hi Ed (and THO)
Whilst I could bug you in private, that would mean that realmslore might not unfold for the yearning masses, so here is my most recent "Realms ???".
I just got back my copy of 'Crown of Fire' from a friend I'd lent it to, and typically I started reading it again. My query relates to Tethgard and the fact that Mirt's ancestor is the watchghost there. Her claims that Tethgard pre-dates Cormyr sounds a bit like ectoplasmic hyperbole, but I'd love to hear anything you have to share on the place and how Mirt's ancestors got from there to wherever Mirt is from.”
Dargoth and The Sage noted two of Ed’s previous replies that mentioned Tethgard, and I’ve quoted them here:
2004:
Thom: Without giving TOO much away to Our Hooded Lady, what can you tell me about "Lost Tethgard" in the Hullack Forest? From its spelling I'm thinking it might be another Irongard mini-dungeon, a lost town a la Gauntulgrym or maybe a lost elven realm? I'll understand if you can't say too much because the Knights may go there someday...
Ed: Tethgard appears briefly in CROWN OF FIRE (Chapter 6), when Mirt guides Narm, Shandril, and Delg to its overgrown ruins. Before Cormyr existed as a realm, ‘very long ago,’ Lady Duskreene ruled a small area (now deep in the Hullack Forest) from her castle of Tethgard. Her watchghost still roams when ‘awakened,’ though not far from its crypt.
Today, Tethgard isn’t much more than a few tumbled stones, crazily-leaning low walls running among the trees, and a leaf-choked pit (collapsed cellar entrance) or two, with the stone stumps of what were once round towers here, and the heaved and broken-by-trees flagstones of what were once floors over there . . . yet tiny traces (glades, stone-and-stump farm fences, traces of cart-roads, foundations of stables and cottages and outlying huts) of Duskreene’s lands remain, overgrown by the forest. Yes, some of these cellars could well be ‘mini-dungeons.’
2006:
Dargoth: In CROWN OF FIRE Mirt says that Lady Duskreene had ruled here before Cormyr was founded. Now before Cormyr was founded Hullocks Forest would have fallen within the borders of The Lands of the Purple Dragon and the lands won by Iliphar Nelnueve. Neither of whom are likely to allow humans to setup in their mists . . . [dates snippage] . . . Given this I can think of the following 2 options: A) Mirt has Netherese ancestors (The Netherese would probably have been powerful enough to keep Thauglorimorgorus and his dragons at bay long enough to establish Tethgard), B) Mirt has Draconic ancestors of some sort
Ed: Mirt does indeed have some Netherese ancestors (Lady Duskreene and her people). He may also have draconic ancestors that he (and we) don’t yet know about (suggesting that Lady Duskreene and her people may have been under the protection of one or more dragons who were romantically linked to one or more of said people). I dare not say more at the present time [big cheesy grin].
Right. That “present time” was more than a year ago, some project plans went in another direction, and Ed is now pleased to comment as follows:
Certainly. Glad to sweep back the curtain on this essential and too-long-neglected little corner of Realmslore.
Iliphar Nelnueve had three weaknesses: like many powerful wizards, he was a loner who disliked a lot of social interaction (with anyone, but specifically he detested a lot of his “posing, sneering, hunting and clever-tonguing and socially jostling” elven kin); he was alone for many years, without servants or kin (and so, no one to feed him and no source of income that didn’t involve him interrupting his magical experimentations and wand- and scepter-crafting, and doing things for himself); and once he had won lands from the Purple Dragon, he needed someone to work to give the elves a “neutral ground” meeting-place and heart for the fledgling elven realm (without doing this itself, which would have consumed ALL of his time, from that moment on), or risk losing the realm into strife - - and having the dragons then find some pretext to reclaim it.
During his travels to gain certain substances as ingredients for his magic item making, he had met and befriended a wise, welcoming human woman (Duskreene, who was of Netherese lineage and then dwelling in now-vanished forests south of Evereska), who (purely out of curiosity as to his doings, plus her own warm nature) had assisted him and fed him when he was in need.
Not able to think of anyone else - - for he KNEW that exalting one elf or elven family above the others to be his “hostess” and center of the realm would lead to bitter divisions and an ultimate failure of the realm, with the dragons watching for divisions they could exploit and drive the elves out again, whereas an outsider and non-elf, even one despised by all, could serve as a unifying force [they could all enjoy hating her, together] - - Iliphar turned to Duskreene and invited her to be his hostess, hub of the realm, and despised-by-elves doormat.
Duskreene was quite shrewd enough to know exactly what she was getting into, and did so willingly, but set some conditions: she was to “rule” a small territory with clearly-defined borders and a stone castle at the heart of it, so that although it remained elven land, her writ governed it and she could thus control elves by denying them access to the “court” or social whirl of the crossroads (they could still meet with other elves freely, all over the elven woods, but they could not negotiate with enemies or rivals in a “neutral ground,” because she was the only neutral ground). Iliphar could store his most dangerous magics in spell-locked chambers inside the thicknesses of the castle walls (whereas natural caverns were known to others, and growing tree-rooms and homes could readily and tracelessly be magically opened by others and then closed again, using tree-shaping magics most elves knew), Duskreene could dwell in a place that kept the rain out, and could even have human visitors there (where they would find neither welcome nor comfortable accommodations anywhere else in the future Cormyr), and the castle itself could be fashioned as a gigantic dragon trap, with blasting magics set ready into its turrets and spires in case of dragon treachery (as the elves knew draconic minds could not help but regard it, the only stone structure of any size in the woods, as the heart and focus of the elven realm; “the” place to strike at).
So Iliphar’s magics built the castle of Tethgard, Duskreene and her family and a small hired human staff came and dwelt, Tethgard functioned as a feasting and negotiating moot, and it WORKED; all went well. Duskreene was despised by the elder elves, but many of the younger ones came to regard her as a friend (she mothered them when they were upset, gave them a place to rest, sleep, and hide when they’d done wrong or been hurt in love or were at odds with their families) and even (for a very few of them, including Iliphar) as a lover.
Duskreene’s family flourished (intermarrying with the hired staff and with other humans who found their ways to Tethgard or who were brought there after Duskreene’s far-traveling kin had met and fallen in love with them elsewhere), but (as all humans do) came to regard the small hold as “theirs.” When Duskreene died, Iliphar joined the other elves in politely but firmly driving all of the humans out, and letting the forest reclaim the castle. Duskreene “rose again” as a watchghost, and the castle was later riven in a dragon attack on the early humans of Cormyr (after the elves had lost control of the lands).
Duskreene’s kin went to places that are today Amn, northern Tethyr, Elturel, Waterdeep, and the vicinity of Starmantle. Just who and where Mirt’s immediate ancestors hailed from, I’m afraid I’m keeping NDA for now (future fiction plans, of course).
There you are; enjoy, George (I hope), and see you at GenCon! (Good news: American beer is getting better!)
So saith Ed. Who will indeed be in Indy for the usual annual festivities this year (though I, alas, shall not). All of you will just have to kiss Ed for me. 
love to all,
THO
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AlorinDawn
Learned Scribe
USA
313 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 01:49:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Zandilar
Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by AlorinDawn
Here here! GNOMES GNOMES AND MORE GNOMES! GIVE US GNOME LORE!! er...gnome lore please Ed =)
I've been playing a gnomish bard/druid of Larue and went back to the Gnomish Point of View article in Dragon Magazine and various other sources to find some information concerning the forgotten folk....man they really have been rather forgotten.
Err... and yes... Whatever happened to the gnomish goddesses?
I didn't pick my patron, Larue selected my gnome after a jaunt in the High Forest when she showed herself in the distance in a glade at my gnome's wedding to a water spirit named Uushmae. |
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Pardan
Acolyte
31 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 07:33:52
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| Thanks a great deal, Ed! Your reply was simply awesome! |
Do not knock on Death's door - ring the bell twice and run away.
He hates that. |
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Zandilar
Learned Scribe
Australia
313 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 08:43:15
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Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by AlorinDawn
I didn't pick my patron, Larue selected my gnome after a jaunt in the High Forest when she showed herself in the distance in a glade at my gnome's wedding to a water spirit named Uushmae.
Oh I'm sorry... Looks like I wasn't clear what I was talking about.
Lurue is a force of nature all to herself, and of course she could have worshipers of pretty much any race. (I presume that's who you're talking about!)
I was meaning to prompt Ed for an explanation of why the gnomish pantheon has no goddesses in it. |
Zandilar
~amor vincit omnia~
~audaces fortuna iuvat~
As the spell ends, you look up into the sky to see the sun blazing overhead like noon in a desert. Then something else in the sky catches your attention. Turning your gaze, you see a tawny furred kitten bounding across the sky towards the new sun. Her eyes glint a mischevious green as she pounces on it as if it were nothing but a colossal ball of golden yarn. With quick strokes of her paws, it is batted across the sky, back and forth. Then with a wink the kitten and the sun disappear, leaving the citizens of Elversult gazing up with amazed expressions that quickly turn into chortles and mirth.
The Sunlord left Elversult the same day in humilitation, and was never heard from again. |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jul 2007 : 21:38:06
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Hello All,
To Ed,
I have a twofold question about the topic of raising dead in Faerun, I know what the game mechanics are but I would truly like to grasp how such a ritual is done. Players often look at it as a spa treatment, "Hello, I'm looking to bring my companion back to life, we have gold to pay but we're looking for the tuesday special, ya know he comes back with all his leve..... no wait....lets see....ummmm,we feel he would only WANT to return to life if he doesn't lose xp...no ummmmmmmm.........HE COMES BACK JUST AS HE WAS RIGHT BEFORE HE DIED!" Players high five on applying OOG knowledge of True Ressurection.
So first off I assume the clergy of a any temple/church doesn't have a billboard showing the various types of rasing dead spells, as far as the non-clergy masses are concerned (excluding individuals well lored in religion), being raised from the dead is the common term. Yes?
Unless a child is royalty or a merchant has bags of money to offer, a child is normally not raised for what I assume are two reasons, no deity and just far more difficult and more likely to fail than trying to recall the sprirt of an adult. Yes?
It would require extensive knowledge and over abundance of wealth or have connections within clergy to have a powerful raising spell ritual performed, not simply meeting the book price. Yes?
Now how are these rituals performed, I assume the first thing asked is how long the deceased has been dead and the condition of body and most importantly who the deceased worshipped, I assume this plays a major role in whether the ritual will even be performed at all.
And what is the difference between druids performing such rituals as compared to clerics, and any other necessary information you could add that I'm overlooking at the moment?
And lastly what toll/effect does it have on the cleric/druid performing the ritual, what does he/she experience during and after such a thing, does it take from them, change them?
Thank you as always, I've mulled this over but after your response about follower of Sharess I'm sure your answer would be beyond what I would envision. |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 02:56:57
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| Wow, thanks for all the detail about Duskreene. |
"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) |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 03:11:03
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Hi again, all. This time Ed makes answer to ziresta, in regards to these queries: “I have a few questions and comments for Ed. None of this is urgent, so take your time responding.
1) Thank you for creating the Forgotten Realms. It's the only setting not of my creation that feels "real" to me.
2) Thank you for putting so much detail into the Realms that I don't feel like I'm a lunatic for putting maybe a quarter as much into my campaign/story settings. (My eventual goal is as much, but I've only been working at creating settings seriously for about three years so I'm still very far from it.)
3) In 1368 DR in Cormyr, what would the general reaction of nobles to the third (or fourth, can't recall) daughter of a lesser noble being part of an adventuring band be?
4) Any details/lore you can share on Lliira or Selune worship in the same time and area?
5) Really weird question, and backstory necessary so it makes sense: In another game I'm running, one of the PCs has invented a time/world hopping device (essentially the continua craft from The Number of the Beast by RAH) and is planning to use it to visit, among other fictons, the Realms. So, my question is how would the residents of Shadowdale (where she most wants to visit . . . she's enamored with Storm) respond (in the late 1360s, in case it matters) to the following characters landing in a strange craft in their midst:
a) A girl in her late teens with a platinum dragon tattooed on one arm and a chromatic dragon on the other. This is the inventor of the device, a brilliant, but highly eccentric, engineer and physicist.
b) A boy in his late teens in a kilt who has a tendency to say whatever he's thinking, regardless of how inappropriate it is. He's a musician and has come along with his friend to be exposed to different realities' music . . . and meet hot chicks. Protective of d, his wife, to the point of fool-hardiness.
c) A teenaged girl, very petite, with a habit of dying her hair random colors, who has come along because her fiancée (a) was so excited about the trip.
d) Another girl in her late teens, a xenoanthropology student, who is the only one of this group possessed of much common sense . . . which is why she insists on coming along, she'd rather her best friends didn't end up in jail in some weird reality. At the time they'll go there, she'll be just beginning to look pregnant.
They're from about 2391 AD and grew up on a planet about 200 light years from here thats guiding moral principles amount to "Don't harm others or their property without a very good reason."
(Yes, I'm assuming the Realms will survive that long . . . why not? Besides, even if it doesn't, they've already travelled to our real reality and visited a bookstore.)”
Ed replies:
1. You’re very welcome. I work at the Realms every day to make it seem more “real,” and I hope I succeed more than I fail.
2. You’re welcome. Not everyone wants as much detail as I provide, but I would rather that they choose what they want and ignore the rest, rather than have “nothing” when they go seeking lore. (After all, this is a setting people are paying for; I believe in providing harried DMs with my work, so they can concentrate on acting, plotting, and describing to make play memorable and exciting.) Thankfully, there are many dedicated people who agree with me, and have written, designed, and edited for the Realms down the years to back up and augment my lore, giving the Realms far more depth and colour than I’d ever have had time to do, all on my own. Yes, it takes time, as I’m sure you’re discovering. :}
3. Most nobles wouldn’t care one way or another, except as a source of gossip (assuming she didn’t loudly announce any intent to overthrow the Dragon Throne or slaughter Obarskyrs or many nobles, that is). Some of her elder kin (the “gossipy aunt” sorts) might be scandalized, or profess to be (all the while enjoying the juicy gossip, inventing tales if they could get none, and wildly embroidering all they did get). The aging uncles would be gruffly approving, and be just as hungry for the gossip. They’d LOVE it if she was good-looking, and any whiff of hanky-panky surfaced (cavorting nude in bedchambers, seductions, that sort of thing). A few stiff-necked conservatives among the nobles would pounce on it as “more proof” of how “decadent and ill-behaved our younger nobles are becoming, these days!” and would “cut her dead” at social meetings or pointedly exclude her from invitations to their feasts. However, far more nobles would eagerly invite her to feasts and revels, as an “attraction of passing interest.” Nobles disapprove of adventuring bands that rob nobles or burn things, but don’t care a whit if they break laws or damage Crown property (because they like to see the Obarskyrs “taken down a peg or two”). Young nobles might well become her fans, look up to her, and covertly help her whenever they could - - and the young rakes would be dying to seduce her, “just because” she’s now dashing and notorious. More than a few of their bored fathers would fall into this category, too.
4. In Cormyr of 1368 DR, worship of Lliira and Sêlune is flourishing, though neither are among the “foremost faiths” of the realm. As with many other faiths, nobility tend to worship in private chapels, and the public in public temples or out-of-doors services (Jester’s Green north of Suzail, for example). Specifically, nobles and the wealthy would venerate Lliira in revels (dedicating them to the Joybringer and inviting clergy to participate), and Sêlune by night, in private outdoor gardens or woodland glades at their hunting lodges across the realm. Commoners and rural folk would venerate both goddesses out in the countryside, Lliira around bonfires (with drinking, games, “chases” and lovemaking), and Sêlune in the moonlight (with soft singing and prayer, and the drinking of water that has been gathered in vessels and touched by moonlight). The worship of Lliira is largely noisy and energetic, the worship of Sêlune largely quiet and still (though on a personal level, a lone individual can sing a happy or comedic song to Lliira in prayer, and sing a happy or wistful song to Sêlune in prayer, and both are sufficient). Devout worship of Lliira is believed to lead one into the graces of Tymora (good luck), and devout worship of Sêlune is believed to protect the wayfarer (especially at night) from becoming lost, straying from the notice of others, and from surprise attack by beasts or brigands. Numerous clergy of either faith can readily be found, though there are few really powerful priests of Lliira in Cormyr (and the most powerful clerics of Sêlune tend to dwell in the wooded backcountry more than in the cities).
5. Reactions in Shadowdale to the arrival of such strangers would not be negative unless they wantonly attacked locals, wore Zhent emblems, or loudly professed Zhent loyalties or membership. None of which seems likely from your description of the characters.
Specifically, strangers are “the norm” passing through Shadowdale, and those who tarry are watched closely by the Harpers to make sure they’re not Zhent spies, but presumed by most people to be either Harpers (here to visit Storm) or Zhent spies whom the Harpers will soon deal with; either way, they are treated with cautious courtesy.
Character A: The dragon tattoos will attract interest. Storm will be eager to host her at the farmhouse, to learn who she really is. If the character “came on” to Storm or wanted to dwell with her, Storm would readily accomodate; she isn’t adverse to the company of bright, not-actively-unpleasant females in either sense.
Character B: His trait of speaking plainly might well get him in trouble on an individual basis, but in general Dales-folk admire such a trait. Nor do kilts seem strange; many men in the Dales often wear skirt-like loincloths, particular when expecting to wade in wallows, streams, and berry-bogs. As for meeting hot chicks, the dale can provide a few, and Storm and her fellow Harpers would be amused by (and generally welcoming of) any advances, leering, or flirtations. Nor would they think ill of him behaving in such a manner when wed; many of them have “easy” unions or multiple affairs.
Character C: The weird hair would mark her as an outlander, and she might of course be mistaken for a child from time to time, at a distance, thanks to her stature - - but otherwise the Dales-folk would merely accept her. Nor would her relationship to Character A bother anyone in Shadowdale; the Dales think such matters are a person’s own business, not everyone else’s.
Character D: A pregnant young woman with common sense sounds like many Dale lasses. She’ll fit right in.
So saith Ed, who always likes to see new visitors to the Realms.
love to all,
THO
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 03:20:40
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And a postscript, from both yours truly hooded and from Ed: to
createvmind, Purple Dragon Knight, Pardan, and Rinonalyrna Fathomlin,
you're all very welcome. Glad to be of help or at least entertainment. More Realmslore on the way.
love to all,
THO
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Zandilar
Learned Scribe
Australia
313 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 03:27:02
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Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
And what is the difference between druids performing such rituals as compared to clerics, and any other necessary information you could add that I'm overlooking at the moment?
You're overlooking the fact that the only spell a Druid gets that can return a person to life is Reincarnate. Druids do not have Raise Dead, Resurrection, or True Resurrection on their spell lists.
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Zandilar
~amor vincit omnia~
~audaces fortuna iuvat~
As the spell ends, you look up into the sky to see the sun blazing overhead like noon in a desert. Then something else in the sky catches your attention. Turning your gaze, you see a tawny furred kitten bounding across the sky towards the new sun. Her eyes glint a mischevious green as she pounces on it as if it were nothing but a colossal ball of golden yarn. With quick strokes of her paws, it is batted across the sky, back and forth. Then with a wink the kitten and the sun disappear, leaving the citizens of Elversult gazing up with amazed expressions that quickly turn into chortles and mirth.
The Sunlord left Elversult the same day in humilitation, and was never heard from again. |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 21:52:15
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Surely you jest Zandilar, I'm aware of the druid rezzing spell which is why I included druids to see what the ritual is for them in Faerun, notice the question was on the ritual not the named spell. I didn't name the specific spell as that wasn't my focus but rather how those capable of such "miracles" are viewed by those who are not druids and clerics.
As a follow-up I also assume there have been exceptions to the "mechanics" in that a cleric not of appropiate level may be given the spell "instantly" by his/her deity or possibly becomes a devout follower to a deity after being blessed with this "power".
I'm sure thats pretty rare, I also assume that just cause a cleric IS OF the appropiate level doesn't automatically mean we can cast such a spell, just my view of such things. I personally don't think clerics who have a soul meld with their deity really want to perform such a ritual more than a handful of times in their entire life. |
Edited by - createvmind on 17 Jul 2007 21:53:48 |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 22:02:55
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Hello All,
As a add-on to the rezzing question, what happens to a soul that has been raised repeatedly, does spell erase memory of previous death or deaths? Does the mind suffer any adverse affects over time, dreams, visions, nightmares etc...?
Does a soul become easier or harder to recall if person has died more than once and been raised before?
If I raise a person who follows another deity, how will that deity view such a thing if done repeatedly?
At what point will a cleric say, "Perhaps this one should stay dead if he keeps meeting his end over and over, sorry, I will not attempt the ritual, you know,..The Balance and all that." |
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 22:41:49
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Well met, all!
I'm presently finishing up Bruce Cordell's Darkvision and was entranced by the use of an Imaskari name for a spell (which wasn't actually cast, so we can only guess what it might have been). Dale Henson long ago provided us with the Netherese names for many spells which they "invented," but as we know, many cultures claim to have "invented" those very same spells. My question is: what (in English translation) would be the Imaskari names of some common spells with which we are all familiar?
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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.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 22:55:55
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quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
Hello All,
As a add-on to the rezzing question, what happens to a soul that has been raised repeatedly, does spell erase memory of previous death or deaths? Does the mind suffer any adverse affects over time, dreams, visions, nightmares etc...?
Does a soul become easier or harder to recall if person has died more than once and been raised before?
If I raise a person who follows another deity, how will that deity view such a thing if done repeatedly?
At what point will a cleric say, "Perhaps this one should stay dead if he keeps meeting his end over and over, sorry, I will not attempt the ritual, you know,..The Balance and all that."
The Conan RPG has a cool way of dealing with this: the first time a character returns from apparent death, his or her Reputation score goes up quite a bit; subsequent "miraculous" returns from the dead cause the loss of Reputation points, however, because the novelty of the thing quickly wears off.
I say "apparent" death, incidentally, because once you die in the Hyborian Age it takes world-shaking magic to bring you back (along with the sacrifice, perhaps, of several thousand other humans -- not to keep "the Balance and all that," but to appease the depraved, monstrous tastes of whatever benighted entity from the outermost gulphs of space and time trangressed against Nature to return a dead being to life).
If a deity in the Realms was concerned with "the Balance and all that" because a character kept being brought back from the dead, I, as a DM, would have Jergal, or Kelemvor, or whoever is the current holder of the Death portfolio, take the life of someone beloved by (or at least close to) the ever-returning one. Heck of a bummer if bringing your character back to life costs the life of some umpteenth level cleric or wizard ally, especially if it's the person who pays the bills or provides the mojo you need to defeat high-CR monsters ... or perhaps the life of a single innocent child would do.... Hark! Is that the sound of someone's alignment shifting? 
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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.
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Zandilar
Learned Scribe
Australia
313 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 23:25:58
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Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
Surely you jest Zandilar, I'm aware of the druid rezzing spell which is why I included druids to see what the ritual is for them in Faerun, notice the question was on the ritual not the named spell. I didn't name the specific spell as that wasn't my focus but rather how those capable of such "miracles" are viewed by those who are not druids and clerics.
Sorry, it seems like I misread what you wrote.  Prior to that point you hadn't made mention of Reincarnate - and while some of the mechanics are the same, Raise Dead (et al) and Reincarnate are two entirely different things, and it would be strange to treat them exactly the same way.
[rant]
On the general issue of bringing PCs back to life after misfortune... Well I have to say, some DMs sound like real sadists. Punishing a player because a dice rolled badly (or, yes, the player was stupid, or the DM underestimated the foes he/she put his/her PCs up against) is not good DM policy in my book (punishing players is not good DM policy at all - yes, their PCs should have to face consequences, but this should not be punishment for the players also... This is supposed to be a game we all play for fun, after all!).
The spells exist, they are hideously expensive (even if they have plenty of gold, they may not be able to find enough diamonds in order to meet the material requirements of the spell, and if it's not a PC cleric casting it, they will owe the temple casting the spell big time, TANSTAAFL and all that), and have a terrible cost associated with them (Reincarnate too - has a level cost and changes the character's form, and may not be a desirable change (ie: elf to bugbear)). PCs are not going to be raised over and over and over again, because eventually they'll be level 1 with 0 Con (ie: dead, and his/her friends so far in debt it wouldn't be funny). The game itself has mechanics built in to restrict the spells. And if your PCs are casting them every single week in your campaign, then there's something wrong with the campaign, not with the spells. (The you in that last sentence is not aimed at anyone in particular.)
[/rant]
Here's a little anecdote... The last time such a spell was cast in a game I played in - the player who's PC was raised (not mine) had made a sequence of bad dice rolls that resulted in his halfling monk's demise. My PC (an elven sorceress) carried his body to her destination - an ancient city of elves, where they had been going to warn them of the rise of a particularly evil (vile) empire, and to ask for their help. The elves did raise Dair (the monk), and it had a profound effect on him. He began to revere the elven deity (Corellon in this case), and it effectively changed his life.
That was the only raise dead type spell that was cast during the game. |
Zandilar
~amor vincit omnia~
~audaces fortuna iuvat~
As the spell ends, you look up into the sky to see the sun blazing overhead like noon in a desert. Then something else in the sky catches your attention. Turning your gaze, you see a tawny furred kitten bounding across the sky towards the new sun. Her eyes glint a mischevious green as she pounces on it as if it were nothing but a colossal ball of golden yarn. With quick strokes of her paws, it is batted across the sky, back and forth. Then with a wink the kitten and the sun disappear, leaving the citizens of Elversult gazing up with amazed expressions that quickly turn into chortles and mirth.
The Sunlord left Elversult the same day in humilitation, and was never heard from again. |
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Penknight
Senior Scribe
USA
538 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 23:35:58
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quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
Hark! Is that the sound of someone's alignment shifting?
I just had to post when I saw this line because it reminds me of someone I know that plays D&D. They basically feel that just because their alignment shifts, (with something like this), that they can just 'go back' to their old alignment by proper play merely because (in my opinion) they can't roleplay and their character... well, all their characters are the exception to every rule. Even when we play Ravenloft. A true shame, isn't it? Sorry for my stepping in, friends. |
Telethian Phoenix
Pathfinder Reference Document |
Edited by - Penknight on 17 Jul 2007 23:36:26 |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 00:05:26
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| Understood and all but I'm really looking for the "experience" of such a thing, as DM I'm wondering what the actual caster will experience so I can apply that flavor to the players if and when they are in such a situation. Really not about the mechanics but how it goes down in the realms. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 02:01:47
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Hi again, fellow scribes. This time I lay before you Ed’s words of response to createvmind’s query: “What was recently floating through my head was if you could share any info on Crossroads and Guardians if possible, specifically looking if you actually have Crossroads in Reaching Woods or any land region, and are they always above ground?”
Ed replies:
I prefer to keep the precise locations of crossroads and the nature of their guardians as mysterious as possible in print (mainly because doing so really does make them more useful to DMs than otherwise), but let me say this much:
Crossroads are usually (not always) above ground, many of them are now actually OFF the ground (they opened atop mounds or battlements or in rooms that no longer exist, in structures now vanished or fallen into ruin), and yes, there are several in Reaching Woods. Their guardians quite often try to keep unseen, speaking in whispers at a being’s ear only when they believe the being is requesting to use the crossroads or trying to address them. Some guardians employ a floating, flying-about skull, empty helm, or light-mote as the apparent source of their voice, but they are in truth hidden elsewhere, nearby; this ruse is done to prevent hostile spellcasters from successfully destroying, capturing, or magically controlling them.
Aside from a few fictional references (some of them mine) MAGIC OF FAERUN details all we know of this subject in canon printed Realmslore. If you sense NDAs standing menacingly all around me, your senses are working quite well. :}
So saith Ed. Who has used such “hidden ways” thousands of times in our home Realms campaign, down the years, though he never named or described them as MAGIC OF FAERUN does.
love to all,
THO
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 03:44:56
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Thank you Ed,
I kind of figured it was made intentionally vague about the crossroads, I wonder if this question has a simple answer, do the lower lvl illsion spells also change the shadow of the creature under an alternate guise?
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 04:01:13
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quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
Hello All,
As a add-on to the rezzing question, what happens to a soul that has been raised repeatedly, does spell erase memory of previous death or deaths? Does the mind suffer any adverse affects over time, dreams, visions, nightmares etc...?
Well, we know that Nain Keenwhistler's hair turned white from all of his trips through the Revolving Pearly Gates (a term that is, I believe, trademarked by Marvel), and he certainly had no wish to add to his standing record of most round-trips to Kelemvor's pantry... |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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Hoondatha
Great Reader
USA
2449 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 06:03:04
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| Belkram was raised several times before he appeared in Shadows of the Avatar (which, being back in 2e, was an even more momentous occasion) and he didn't seem to be unhinged. Well, he *was* a Harper... |
Doggedly converting 3e back to what D&D should be...
Sigh... And now 4e as well. |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2007 : 01:22:46
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Hello All,
I'm on a roll it seems here, I think I have a good idea about this question but decided to post it lest I forget.
How are Half-dragon humanoids affected by the rage if it affects them at all?
One of my PC's is a half-dragon/ half-wood elf, Amethyst if I recall correctly and with 1373 looming I'm wondering how to drop hints without dropping hints. He doesn't read the novels but probably has the Dragons of Faerun scourcebook by now.
MY thoughts are in the early months of rage he will find himself easily distracted, difficuly to awaken at times suffering bouts of deep sleep, annoyed when made to repeat himself or answer constant questions.
If attracted to someone their every action or inaction will change his mood instantly, probably not for the better.
During combat he will find it difficult to restrain himself from doing lethal damage especially to enemy that has hurt him in some form. Will sometimes use natural weapons in a situation that clearly calls for something else before restraining himself, such as against a creature that has resistance/immunity to slashing damage.
Sense of humor will become more jaded.
As the rage persist these "moods" will become more intense, his sleeping pattern will range from occassional deep sleep to very little sleep, or vice versa depending on your take on sleep.
I think him seeing extreme violence, blood and gore will cause him to grow highly agitated if not in combat, more bestial if in combat. And his perception while in combat will suffer as he will focus on slaying and not group tactics, even using his breath weapon with companions/noncombatants in area.
My main point is what will his dreams and daydreams/visions be of and being part elven will that help him in anyway during the various stages of the rage?
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2007 : 01:42:29
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Richard Byers, before Dragons of Faerun came out, said in his thread so many years ago that the Rage would effect half-dragons but with lesser symptoms. Check his thread or my compiled logs. :)
Also, Dragons of Faerun, in the Dracorage Mythal, backs up what he says because it effects all dragon and dragonblooded. |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2007 : 03:36:46
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Well met again, fellow Realms fans. This time Ed answers Blueblade, re. this: “Hi, Ed and Lady THO,
ziresta recently asked (among other things) about Lliira worship in Cormyr.
I’d like to ask about the Cormyrean worship of the soundalike goddess, “Leira,” the illusion and deception one, before the Time of Troubles. HOW was she worshipped? I don’t need NPC names or precise temple locations or anything, just some idea of how the faith operated - - and so, what they might have left behind. Thanks!”
Ed replies:
Leira worship still exists, of course (divine spells are still granted, and so some true believers are of the firm opinion that “nothing bad happened” to Leira; her “destruction” was merely her grandest deception yet). Veneration of the Lady of the Mists is secretive and “underground,” being done in private chapels by the nobility and in “upper rooms” in Suzail, Arabel, and Marsember by “private clubs” of cultists who use chambers above unrelated businesses owned by cult members, at night. Aside from the damage any sort of deception can do, they are not necessarily “up to no good.” They merely need to hide and deceive in all things, as an end in itself. See the Fowles novel THE MAGUS or the old TV series THE PRISONER for the “normal” sort of deceit and secrecy among Leirans.
Leirans believe they must personally practice at least one “important” deception (not necessarily something illegal or harmful) per year, so as to always have a large and growing count of personal secrets. As a group, working with other Leirans in a local cult, it is a sin to deceive other “Dedicated” (those who venerate Leira more than any other deity), but the cult must benefit its members (in wealth, rank, influence, and personal achievement) through secret means. This often means smuggling or tax evasion to achieve wealth; giving false testimony or starting spurious rumors or arranging deceptions so as to enhance the reputation of cult members so they are named to higher offices or win stronger reputations; and aiding cult members with alibis, false testimony, and “red herrings” so they escape Crown punishment for mistakes or crimes.
In Cormyr, municipal officials (the clerks and scribes) are riddled with Leirans, but the War Wizards keep their activities small-scale, delighting in deceiving the Leirans as to how much they know about Leiran cult members - - and about the fates of those members they do apprehend (murderers, rapists, and serious traitors to the Crown). For years, Vangey let Leirans get away with small tax evasions, but moved to close loopholes they used after the fact, just to watch how they found and exploited new loopholes (so he could in turn close them, in an ongoing game).
Certain nobles with “grave” secrets to hide often turned to private worship of Leira, and cult members exploited them for funds and aid in deceptions. This ALWAYS attracted War Wizard investigations, but again the War Wizards appeared to “notice nothing,” moving to crush real treason or problems that they “seemed” to discover by other means.
This could well form the basis for a fun little “cloak-and-dagger in the shadows” urban Suzail campaign. I ran one thirteen-episode one at the Brookbanks Library back in 1984, centered on this very matter. The participants were initially disappointed not to have bastard offspring of Azoun in the ranks of PCs (as the previous mini-campaign had done), but ended up enjoying this “Whispers In The Palace” caper far more. Hint: the pillars of any ornate four-poster usually contain a hiding place or three, and such hiding places are always hiding something interesting.
So saith Ed, taking us back (flourish of gently-plucked harpstrings, please) into the past. When I was young and beautiful, and thought underwear should be left behind like calling-cards. Ahem.
love to all,
THO
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Thangorn
Seeker
New Zealand
84 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2007 : 13:15:26
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Hi there Ed and THO,
I hope today finds you both hearty, healthy and inspired.
I have a couple of quick questions for my Dales campaign concerning river traffic in the dales.
Basically what I'd like to know is are the River Ashaba and its tributaries (Glaemril stream, etc.) used as tradeways for raft/barge traffic? If so to what extent? If not, why not?
Also I'm interested in any lore you can share concerning the Pool of Yeven including what its surroundings might be like and any notable happenings there.
Thanks very much for all the wonderful lore you freely share with us.
Cheers |
Ex-A Land Far Away (ALFA) DM/Builder
Faerunian Canon Despot |
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Alaundo
Head Moderator
United Kingdom
5692 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2007 : 16:52:38
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Well met, Ed and Lady Hooded One
Aye, 'tis not often I raise my head herein (too many tomes and scrolls to sift through, despite not being able to get a word in edgeways  )
Ahem, well onto my purpose. I have a scroll to pass on which was handed to me by Don Lee, for the attention of Ed:
quote:
Dear Ed,
I hope this gets to you; I couldn't find an address so am forwarding it hopefully.
Last year I was stuck in jail for three weeks (long story), and practically the only solace I had was the weekly book cart, which was basically a little cart piled high w/ much-read and collapsing paperbacks of every possible variety. Anyway, I just wanted you to know that of all the stuff I read, frantically, so as not to lose my mind in there, the one book that stuck out was one of your Elminster novels. Better than Stephen King, better--in this case--than the Bible or the annotated DRACULA and, actually, better than the other one really great book I (re)read, Josephine Tey's THE DAUGHTER OF TIME.
Just wanted to tell you.
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Alaundo
Candlekeep Forums Head Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
An Introduction to Candlekeep - by Ed Greenwood
The Candlekeep Compendium - Tomes of Realmslore penned by Scribes of Candlekeep
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jul 2007 : 02:16:20
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Well met again, all. Alaundo, Ed and I thank you very much for passing on the message from Don Lee, and hope that you can get this response from Ed back to him if he doesn’t read this forum:
Thank you very much, Don, for letting me know how much you enjoyed the Elminster novel, when you very much needed “good reads.” I’m glad I was able to be of help, and I thank you very much for telling me how much you liked the book.
I write them for folks to enjoy, and very much appreciate it when someone tells me they did. That means a lot to me.
Money from the publisher or not, there’s something soul destroying about putting books out into the Great Silence and hearing nothing back. So when you tell me you really liked it, I perk up and really smile for a day or so. And when you prefer it to Tey's THE DAUGHTER OF TIME, I am awed and humbled. Thank you!
So saith Ed. Who really is, and is doing the happy dance right now. And promising a “longish” Realmslore answer next time, too.
love to all,
THO
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2007)
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