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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
 Posted - 22 Jan 2006 : 01:23:09
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Hi again, fellow scribes. This time, Ed makes reply to Milith holder of HB8, regarding Shar and the Shadow Weave:
As Wooly Rupert said, Shar controls the Shadow Weave . . . “and it’s composed of shadows within the proper Weave.” Which means that if any being attempted to wrest control of the Shadow Weave from Shar, they’d have to fight and defeat Shar - - and immediately (in whatever weakened condition they were in) face attack from Mystra, Azuth, and Mystra’s Chosen (all of them seeking to defend the Weave by preventing any new power gaining control over the Shadow Weave), aided and abetted by any other deity who felt like upholding the stability of Toril (in other words, any lawfully-aligned greater deity, and any nature deity, who would act either to stay on top in the current power structure, or against chaos and resulting natural destruction). Which is a polite way of saying your Godling hasn’t a chance.
As a DM, I’d doubt the Godling could achieve any result better than being duped into thinking he’d (or she’d) emerged victorious over Shar, when in fact Shar had totally subsumed the Godling, transforming him or her into a servitor.
As I said, that’s the best possible result. More likely, of course, would be instant destruction.
Given the nature of Shar as I see her (and I * did * create her, way back when), I’d say no being, divine or otherwise, could even concentrate on the Shadow Weave (let alone “reach out for it” or try to even practice any attempt at trying to achieve control over it, without coming to Shar’s attention. Which would inevitably mean, through the Shadow Weave, that your Godling’s INTENT would become clear to Shar . . . and then you might not have a choice about fighting her. In other words, no, you couldn’t just take the Shadow Weave “from under her nose without a fight.” Shar is one of the most powerful, subtle, patient, and street-smart of all the greater deities; if you really must go after a greater deity, I’d try an insane one, like Cyric. It’s still playing with (stellar, chain-reaction) fire, but at least the deity’s insanity gives you a shred of a chance.
So saith Ed. Whew. Well, Milith holder of HB8, it’s your character’s funeral, as the saying goes.
More Realmslore next time, all.
Love,
THO
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Skeptic
Master of Realmslore
Canada
1273 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jan 2006 : 03:27:16
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Hi, I found a little tidbit of lore I would like to explore...
From "Ruins of Undermoutain" : In a crypt of Bane on the first level there is a coffin with the remains of the Dread Master of the
now-destroyed Temple of Bane that stood northeast of Secomber ages ago.
Has any other info have been given on this destroyed temple ? If not, could we get some ?
I ask because one of the PC in my current campaign (based in Waterdeep) is a cleric of Bane. I decided to put the "suggest Bane temple" of the "Lords of Darkness" near Secomber on top on those ruins in my campaign. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 01:11:16
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Hello, all. Ed e-mailed me this for Dargoth (re: “This particular NDA wouldn’t happen to expire in say August 2006 would it?”):
“No.”
 So there you go.
In more substantial news, Ed makes VERY swift reply (which makes me guess he was at work on something that touches on this topic, though I really have no idea what) to Feanor, who posted: “Greetings. A question for Ed : - which would be the best swordsmen in the Realms ?”
Heeeere’s Ed:
Well, now. “Swordsmen” you say, so I’m going to narrow my reply down to: male living (not dead or undead) humans.
I’m going to further qualify my reply by saying that among the most skilled masters of bladework, “best” becomes a matter of opinion regarding style, and the average observer can’t identify (let alone properly interpret) most subtle differences because they’re either dead too quickly, or too dazzled by things that happen too swiftly for them to see properly and too deftly for them to measure or grasp the implications of (matters of shifting a foe just a little off balance, or forcing a movement in stance or location, that will lead to a killing stroke three or four maneuvers later).
Moreover, “best” is a steadily shifting title, even when one sets aside divine and magical meddling, because (as with real-world tennis) youthful speed and acrobatic suppleness, plus freedom from injuries and the slowing and crippling effects of aging (on, say, the human knee), must always be balanced against the experience gained in duel after duel after battle: young swordsmen are always rising to the fore, but only step into the ranks of the “best” when those more expert through real-life practice grow too slow to defeat the most skilled younglings (or the younglings overcome their inexperience).
I’m also going to restrict myself purely to matters of bladework, in a one-on-one fight in surroundings that favour neither combatant. In other words, I’m minimizing “street smarts” or dirty fighting or the adventurers’ experience in exploiting traction, lighting, obstacles, distractions, and all of that: factors that seasoned adventurers (like Durnan of Waterdeep) can use to defeat foes who might be a shade faster or a whit better in pure bladework. This will work against Artemis Entreri, for example, but also against a host of other adventurers whom I won’t even mention in this reply, but who might otherwise show up in my answer.
(Personally, I’d rather not do any “best of” rankings, because I think they’re subjective, snapshots of moments in time that are dated even as they’re made, and a bit pointless. Even in pure-skill tournaments, upsets occur, and if a DM wants to create an unknown who’s better than the individuals mentioned here, go right ahead.)
However, I probably possess the best overview of the entire tapestry of the Realms of anyone (though not all that far ahead of, say, Messrs. Boyd and Krashos, closely followed by Schend, Hunter, and Grubb), and can speak from that strength - - not being limited, for instance, by published Realmslore.
So you’re really going to have to trust me here, when I say that the best bladesman in the Realms right now (1375 DR) is: Harmel Artru, a darkly handsome, agile, glib-tongued and lady-charming merchant seacaptain (and sometime pirate), who sails The Winsome Lady independent caravel out of Saerloon (and a secret base somewhere in the Pirate Isles).
Only a whisker-width behind Artru is Loaros Hammarandar, a broad-shouldered, grim giant of a man who can hurl his prodigious strength and bulk around like an acrobat, and is an ever-wary-of-treachery mercenary warmaster currently under hire by Narubel, who commands “the Swift Sword” cavalry force used to quell bandits and unrest in that city and its surrounding farms (and dedicates himself to quietly eliminating all threats to the current rulership, prosperity, and status quo in Narubel).
Close behind Artru and Hammarandar are Skoalam Marlgrask and then Sraece Telthorn.
Skoalam Marlgrask is a professional duelist who travels Chessenta as the champion of whomever sponsors him in duels, making huge sums (because everyone locally knows he’s “the best” in duels, and so tries to outbid opponents seeking to hire his services) that are usually paid in gems and used by Marlgrask to immediately buy property, notably an ever-expanding string of inns and taverns. Marlgrask is polite, saturnine, nondescript of looks but quietly luxurious of dress, and seems able to sense danger (crossbow snipers, for instance) before it can reach out for him. He’s known to be resistant to many natural poisons (having learned this the hard way), but now takes great care regarding what he eats and drinks (hence his purchase of many inns and taverns).
Sraece Telthorn is a smallish, agile, almost feminine man who can dance, tumble, balance, and spring with a skill and precision matched only by the greatest acrobats (once leaping off a parapet to land perfectly balanced on a sloping, protruding flagstaff far below, for instance, and often springing over the slashing swords of opponents). He teaches “swordplay” (fencing) in Yhaunn and Waterdeep, and is believed to travel between the two by means of secret portals of unknown origin and location. Telthorn lives simply, is unambitious (avoiding power and important patrons, and giving much of his coins away), and is beloved by many pleasure-lasses of Waterdeep, who regard him as a kind friend or honorary brother as well as a frequent client.
I’d put the infamous Artemis Entreri after Telthorn, though I could be persuaded to rank two other male human bladesmen between them: Ulmaer Rivrymm of Sheirtalar (a smiling, wax-mustached man of good nature but lightning-swift reflexes and keen sight, who is personal bodyguard to the Overking of Lapaliiya, and can juggle scimitars to entertain), and Aka ‘the Questmaster’ (the mysterious sponsor and trainer of adventurers) who dwells, these days, in the wilderlands of the Sword Coast North.
If I widen my reply to include human females, two must be inserted: Ember Tsartaera between Hammarandar and Marlgrask, and Lyaunthra Aldegal between Marlgrask and Telthorn.
Ember Tsartaera is the tall, cool of manner and sparing of words Knight of Arms (weaponsmaster, or trainer of bodyguards and soldiers) to Lord Albin, ruler of Furthinghome in Aglarond, where she dwells. Ember dresses plainly, lives in spartan surroundings, and is always under iron self-control, keeping to herself and crafting masterwork swords when she’s not practising using them or training others to do so; she never raises her voice (though she can be coldly, cuttingly firm), is always alert and anticipating trouble, and has an acrobatic fighting style; she’s famous in Furthinghome for catching hurled daggers and arrows in flight.
Lyaunthra Aldegal has recently settled in Waterdeep, though she still retains homes in her three previous bases: Silverymoon, Neverwinter, and Secomber. “The Lioness” is a superb maker of bladed weapons and tools (who learned her skills from her now-dead parents), who can resharpen and balance almost any fragment of a mistreated item. She owns and travels between small weapon shops in Waterdeep, Silverymoon, Neverwinter, and Secomber, and specializes in finding just the right weapon for a client, and in weapons-training and -practising with select clients. Known to have ironguard protection afforded by a wearable item (a choker or anklet, most believe), she’s also known to be able to withstand great pain, once (in the days before her ironguard protection) slaying a killer who’d put his blade through her hilt-deep, and then (despite being hit by both acid and fire magics) staggering through four rooms to get healing potions, managing to drink them and pluck forth his blade without passing out. Aldegal is a fire-haired, rugged-looking woman who takes numerous lovers, arrives and departs quietly and unexpectedly, and is seldom to be found where one expects to find her.
Quite a roster.
If I now widen my reply further, to include elves, half-elves, dwarves, halflings, and gnomes (note that I’m still excluding shapechanging races and multi-armed intelligent “monsters”), I’d put Maethrammar Aerasume between Artru and Hammarandar, and Drizzt Do’Urden JUST behind Marlgrask.
However, ask me this a year from now (Realms time), and - - even if there haven’t been fatalities - - these rankings may have shifted around quite a bit. As I said, among individuals of this skill, determinations are whisker-thin.
So saith Ed. Whew. Warned you, didn’t I? What Ed and all of we original players share when reading or listening to debates about “bests” and most this or that of the Realms is that there’s so much as-yet-unpublished Realmslore about this everchanging world that Ed crafted and continues to detail and expand, right alongside other writers (so the argument that “well, we can’t go by Ed’s original, we can only discuss the published Realms, that’s diverged so much from his original” goes right out the window). I happen to agree with Ed that rating “best” bladesmen is a bit pointless because it’s so subjective, changes so fast, and has such little practical roleplaying value - - but I fully understand Feanor’s curiosity in wanting to know. It’s a longing to know and understand the Realms more fully that we all share.
And I hope we will always continue to do so!
love to all,
THO
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Edited by - The Hooded One on 23 Jan 2006 01:12:49 |
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George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6643 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 06:41:45
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What a fantastic response. And not a mention of such esoterica as 'levels', 'PrCs', 'feats' and other similar frippery. Thanks Ed and THO.
-- George Krashos
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"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
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George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6643 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 06:45:56
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Right then.
I’ll lean forward,
part my lips just enough for you to see the tip of my yearning, yielding tongue,
and breathe (longingly, with the faintest hint of a wanton, needful purr), “George.”
Umm. Sounds good, yes?
love,
THO
"Good" doesn't even go close to describing how that sounds. I can't wait to arrive in the wilds of Canada - to see our wonderful THO "in the flesh" as it were. No digital pics of that meeting unfortunately, my fellow devotees! 
-- George Krashos
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"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 07:13:48
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quote:
Originally posted by George Krashos
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Right then.
I’ll lean forward,
part my lips just enough for you to see the tip of my yearning, yielding tongue,
and breathe (longingly, with the faintest hint of a wanton, needful purr), “George.”
Umm. Sounds good, yes?
love,
THO
"Good" doesn't even go close to describing how that sounds. I can't wait to arrive in the wilds of Canada - to see our wonderful THO "in the flesh" as it were. No digital pics of that meeting unfortunately, my fellow devotees!
-- George Krashos
*chuckle*
Im sure your WIFE will be more than willing to take a few for us George! |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
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Kajehase
Great Reader
Sweden
2104 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 09:16:00
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Wonderful answer about the swordsmen Ed My heartfelt thanks to you for writing it, and to our dear Lady Hooded One for bringing it to us. I hope none of you mind if I come with a few follow up questions brought on by the details in Ed's reply:
How common are fencing-tournaments in the Realms (or other athletic competitions for that matter)?
Come to that, are there any recurring competitions - say an All-Dalelands competition held at each Shieldmeet?
And how are athletes generally regarded by the general populace - adulated and adored, or seen as little better than travelling entertainers (assuming there are in fact people making a living by attending various competitions)?
Oh, and how far up the list of fencers would my favourite Knight of Myth Drannor, Sharantyr, be, with no dirty tricks (like the baring of breasts    ) allowed? Upper half? Mid third? |
There is a rumour going around that I have found god. I think is unlikely because I have enough difficulty finding my keys, and there is empirical evidence that they exist.
Terry Pratchett |
Edited by - Kajehase on 23 Jan 2006 09:17:39 |
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Gerath Hoan
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
152 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 18:36:32
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Sraece Telthorn is a smallish, agile, almost feminine man who can dance, tumble, balance, and spring with a skill and precision matched only by the greatest acrobats (once leaping off a parapet to land perfectly balanced on a sloping, protruding flagstaff far below, for instance, and often springing over the slashing swords of opponents). He teaches “swordplay” (fencing) in Yhaunn and Waterdeep, and is believed to travel between the two by means of secret portals of unknown origin and location. Telthorn lives simply, is unambitious (avoiding power and important patrons, and giving much of his coins away), and is beloved by many pleasure-lasses of Waterdeep, who regard him as a kind friend or honorary brother as well as a frequent client.
Wow, this character sounds amazing! I don't suppose we could trouble Ed for slightly more detail on him, could we? I'd love to get any more detail you could give, but a bit more physical description and what his favoured weapon(s) and fighting style(s) happen to be would be very helpful. Is he a native of Sembia who frequents Waterdeep or vice-versa? I could really use this character, especially since he happens to frequent Yhaunn, a city I've become increasingly fond of in the last few months.
Ed strikes again, throwing out some sample pieces of Realmslore that helps to captivate the scribes here at Candlekeep and it certainly reminds me why the Realms is such a great place to explore.
Thanks in advance if any more detail can be supplied,
GH |
Knight of the Order of the Keen Eye - Granted by Ed Greenwood, 30th January 2005 |
Edited by - Gerath Hoan on 23 Jan 2006 18:38:23 |
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Verghityax
Learned Scribe
131 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jan 2006 : 21:04:18
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Just a quick question to Ed. For those who didn't read The Return of the Archwizards trilogy - my question may contain minor SPOILERS. And here it goes:
I just finished Troy Denning's "The Siege". In chapter fourteen (in the scene when phaerimms seize control over minds of most soldiers in Laeral's army) it is said that Bloodaxe Company from Sundabar has suffered severe damage and their entire camp has been destroyed. Does it mean that the company doesn't exist anymore? What is their current status? |
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Mkhaiwati
Learned Scribe
USA
252 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 02:47:31
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Gretings to Ed and the Enticing Enchantress of the Realms,
Just a few more questions to add to my list, these times more Cormyr specific following the most recent books (Cormyr series, Archwizards, Elminster's Daughter)
1. The Path of the goblin army and Devil Dragon. In the Death of a Dragon, there is a fight at Calantar's bridge after Arabel is lost. Looking at the maps, the easiest way for a retreating army would be along Calantar's Way, and I would assume the goblins and dragons followed. What happened to Blisterfoot Inn, Immersea, and Hilp (which Volo mentions has a wall)? Would anything be left, or would the goblins ignore since they were being driven by the Dragon?
2. What percent of Cormyr is still blighted at the time of Elminster's Daughter? I seem to recall that the cleric of Chauntea saying something along the lines that if they discovered the ruined fields early, they could repair them.
3. What happened to the Red Raven company in Arabel? Did they try to fight the goblins and get destroyed or did they flee and regroup later?
4. For that matter, what is the current policy towards adventurers in Cormyr, still the status quo? I ask because on one hand Cormyr really would need help with the Stonelands and roving bands of goblins, but on the other hand, with Gondegal in everyone's minds, would they (Alusair) actually be more strict towards adventurers, feeling that with Cormyr weakened parties of armed adventurers could make more trouble?
5. What actually is the policy towards mages. In the Cormyr accessory, is says every mage of 5th level on up needs to register, but it seems (I could be mistaken) that I read in a later publication that it was every mage, or just Cormyr born, or something different (memory is a tricky thing).
6. Which power groups still operate in the Stonelands? In my mind, I would think the Zhents would still be there, but might be pushed out by the Shadovar if the Shadovar thought they could weaken Cormyr. Of ocurse, the Shadovar would also operate behind the scenes and maybe just have the Zhents thinking they still have control of the Stonelands.
7. How about the "Pauper's Town" and bands of refugees near Arabel that are presented in the last of the Archwizards book. What becomes of them? How long did it take for conditions to even become close to being normal (or at least as normal as it could be in Cormyr)?
8. I expect a BIG NDA here, but what about Tilverton? A story in Realms of Shadow presents a view of a nasty Tilverton that could at least still be entered and exited, but other sources (Campaign Setting, Doorway to Everywhere adventure in Dungeon) suggest that anyone going in does not come out. I don't expect a full rundown of what is going on, but instead how it is best to incorporate the ruins into the world would be good, as well of a good description.
Thanks for your replies
Mkhaiwati |
"Behold the work of the old... let your heritage not be lost but bequeath it as a memory, treasure and blessing... Gather the lost and the hidden and preserve it for thy children."
"not nale. not-nale. thog help nail not-nale, not nale. and thog knot not-nale while nale nail not-nale. nale, not not-nale, now nail not-nale by leaving not-nale, not nale, in jail." OotS #367 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 03:09:36
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Hello again, fellow scribes of the Realms. This time, Ed makes (the first part of his) reply to Karth’s queries: “ . . . I am here with the need to know what a person cornered in a tavern/nightclub privy in the heartlands - Marsember, The Masked Merfolk, if we must be specific - would find ready at hand. Realms equivalent of toilet paper? What is the Realms equivalent of toilet paper anyhow, and how would it be stored/dispensed? A cupboard with cleaning gear and supplies? Some variation on a bidet? A small plate of gravy? Think: MacGyver (or THO herself, apparently) in a Realms privy. Also, what stops various deadly slimes/oozes from crawling up the average privy plumbing from the sewers beneath and turning an urgent visit into a sudden grave for various unsuspecting folk?”
Ed speaks:
I could, of course, go on for pages on the specifics of these related topics, but I’ll try to be brief. Toilet facilities across the Realms vary, from plain “seat with hole over pit” (some caravans carry along portable fold-flat wooden benches with hole-seats; folk who “need to go” tramp away behind cover, with folded bench under arm, and unfold it on any more-or-less level ground to “do their business;” many less equipped rural Realms inhabitants simply shuck clothing and squat) to the more elaborate outhouses and city facilities.
Aboard ships, chamberpots - - emptied by being let down into the water and “trailed along,” and then scrubbed with “swab-sticks” if need be - - are used (for seasickness as well as elimination), and there are “thunderchutes” in the overhanging cabins, or out on spars shrouded in tents of sails, for defecation directly down into the waves.
In city buildings, most toilet facilities consist of under-bed (or -inside chair, or inside-handy-cupboard) chamberpots. After use, these get emptied (and then rinsed out with jugs of water, and “swab-sticks”) into covered nightsoil buckets for dumping into cesspools, or into street wagons to be taken away. The grandest homes have “sluice-privies” (go into a closet-like room or into a curtained-off corner, sit on a permanently-emplaced seat, and flush when done by pouring jugs of water down the hole, perhaps sprinkling some flower-petal-scented water about to quell odours), though these facilities may be called anything from “jakes” to “garderobes.” In warm-clime cities, pull-chains may bring wash or flushing water down from roof cisterns.
As for the wiping of the behind, we have everything from “hand and sand on the riverbank” (or creekbank) to the “skid your bum along in the snow” practiced in rural areas, right up to elaborate scented brown “thareea” (wiping cloths).
Generally, in the wild away from handy water or snow, certain fresh-plucked green leaves are used (those that don’t have spines, cause skin reactions, or disintegrate in use), and the most popular leaves in the Heartlands are thallow leaves (think: really tough, almost rubbery green rhubarb leaves), which are large and so tough they can even be rinsed clean and re-used (if carried along in a pack or on a wagon, they dry up and shrivel into ragile uselessness in about three days). Smaller and less long-lived (but more plentiful) alternatives are the leaves of the arch-head and the yahllavur-fern; other regions of Faerûn have their own equivalents. “Skid your bum along the moss” is one alternative, but to avoid painful itching or worse, one must be careful just what moss.
Typical inn and tavern privies will only have stacks of leaves (kept in covered wooden buckets to maintain the damp and therefore keep them usable longer) if close to fairly safe large wooded areas and having plentiful labour (children) available for gathering.
Most inns and taverns have “garl-sticks” or thareea. “Garl-sticks” are smooth, stout, usually slightly curved sticks whose lower ends are wrapped in old scraps of cloth (sometimes tacked on, but usually the stick is slit in several places and the ends of the cloth are firmly seated in these clefts before the rest of the cloth is wound tightly around and around the stick). Garl-sticks “live” (cloth ends submerged, handles standing free) in buckets of red-wine vinegar, with another bucket of scented mintwater (or a sink with a pump, if well-water is plentiful enough) lashed in place beside it.
The user defecates, then takes the stick out of the vinegar, dips it in the mintwater to “cut” the vinegar, uses the stick to wipe their bum throughly, and then plunges it back into the vinegar for the next person. The wet but clean behind is dried on a “long-roll” (a bum-height shelf, all around the room, over the edge of which old cloth scraps have been tacked, and against which folk rub themselves; soiling a long-roll is the insulting height of boorishness), the clothes are restored to position (I covered Faerûnian undergarments in this thread two years back, I believe), and the relieved individual departs.
Thareea are almost always deep brown in hue, so as not to “boldly show forth” human excrement, and range from rough old scraps to washed-after-every-use, scented fineweave linens, depending on whose facilities you’re using, and either discarded after a single use, down a (dedicated to this purpose only) laundry-chute into a metal-lined cellar basin, for some poor servant to wash (in most palaces and noble mansions), or stacked on a handy stone (marble or polished granite) or tile counter inset with metal sinks and lined with rows of scented “cleaning waters,” for washing them clean after a use (there will be a broad drying rail to hang them on).
By contrast, a typical person dwelling alone in the countryside somewhere in the Heartlands will have an outhouse (a shovel of earth after every use keeps the flies and smell down, and the privy gets moved when the hole fills up), with a single seat-over-the-pit, two wooden buckets (or stout earthen jars set into hole-frames to keep them from being spilled or broken), and some hanging pegs. Most of the pegs are left vacant, for hanging cloaks and perhaps a lantern at night, but one will have the “guest yarhand” (a bum-scrubbing sponge for guests) hanging from it, dry and clean. One bucket will be full of water, for cleaning hands and the guest yarhand. The other bucket will be full of vinegar (usually soured wine), in which is soaking the owner’s personal yarhand, awaiting its next use. Yes, defecating involves a stinging behind - - but everyone’s used to that, from childhood.
There are other variants in various corners of the Realms, but that generally covers the subject.
So saith Ed. Who will return on the morrow with the second part of his reply. Hmm, election time here in Canada, and fittingly, we’re talking about hurling excrement around. 
love to all,
THO
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 04:41:36
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed. Who will return on the morrow with the second part of his reply. Hmm, election time here in Canada, and fittingly, we’re talking about hurling excrement around.
love to all,
THO
HAHAHAH. :) Sorry, I have a sick sense of humor and find that amusing. |
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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Sanishiver
Senior Scribe
USA
476 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 07:43:19
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I'm excited at the thought of Ed answering Mkhaiwati's questions, because they are all of them germane to mine own Campaign as well.
quote:
Originally posted by George Krashos
What a fantastic response. And not a mention of such esoterica as 'levels', 'PrCs', 'feats' and other similar frippery.
Truth be told, Ed gave us enough details (and then some) that any competent DM could use the wealth of feats and PrCs available to render any of these NPCs in terms of game mechanics, so that said NPCs abilities precisely matched during play what Ed described them to be, and at the proper level of play to boot.
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09/20/2008: Tiger Army at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz. You wouldn’t believe how many females rode it out in the pit. Santa Cruz women are all of them beautiful. Now I know to add tough to that description.
6/27/2008: WALL-E is about the best damn movie Pixar has ever made. It had my heart racing and had me rooting for the good guy.
9/9/2006: Dave Mathews Band was off the hook at the Shoreline Amphitheater.
Never, ever read the game books too literally, or make such assumptions that what is omitted cannot be. Bad DM form, that.
And no matter how compelling a picture string theory paints, if it does not accurately describe our universe, it will be no more relevant than an elaborate game of Dungeons and Dragons. --paragraph 1, chapter 9, The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene |
Edited by - Sanishiver on 24 Jan 2006 07:57:25 |
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Borch
Acolyte
Germany
21 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 12:26:03
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Greetings all,
due to only sporadic access to the net at the moment, I collected some lore requests I'd like to add to Ed's ever growing pile, thus adding to my already posed questions..
As always, many thanks to Ed and THO for taking the time to provide for us all.
So here the requests come...
First, Hunnabar: What lore can be shared on this dwarven duchy? Who were the famous rulers and over what delves and holds did they rule? Do any famous ruins remain? And finally, over which period of time did Hunnabar exist?
Next, Humanoid Realms: What famous/infamous humanoid (mainly goblinoid and orc) realms did exist in the Sword Coast lands and Western Heartlands apart from Uruth Ukrypt and what are their stories?
Sword Coast Stories: Who are the famous pirates in the lands up and down the sword coast? And further more, what famous ghost ships are feared along the coast and what are their tales?
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Sprich aus der Ferne,
heimliche Welt,
die sich so selten
zu mir gesellt |
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WalkerNinja
Senior Scribe
USA
573 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jan 2006 : 19:39:35
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THO and Ed,
Thanks so much for the valuable resource that you provide here. I've a question or two concerning the nobility of Cormyr and hope to narrow it down to things not yet covered in this thread and steer clear of NDA infested waters.
I have a PC that will be coming from House Truesilver (Royal clan of Cormyr as I'm sure you know), and wanted to get a bit of information on them. The Royal Clans seem to have been glossed over. I know that they are considered Royal Clans because they have intermarried frequently with the Obarskyr line, but I wanted to get a little more information. The PC will be @15-16 and (in theory) will be learning the life of a noble in Cormyr before setting out upon grand adventures about 3rd level.
-Aside from their palace in Suzail (clearly marked on the FR Atlas) what other holdings do they claim in Cormyr?
-What are their specific duties to the King (or Regent)?
-Where does their income come from? Property taxes that they exact or do they engage in Mercantile interests like the nobility of Waterdeep and Amn.
-Ayesunder Truesilver appears to be the only NPC hailing from that (presumably) ancient and noble family, are there any other Truesilvers worth noting, or perhaps some figures of interest within the family?
-Who is the familial Head of the Truesilver clan?
-What is the Heraldric device and motto of the clan?
-Any preferred deities?
Thanks in advance,
Walker
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*** A Forgotten Realms Addict since 1990 ***
Treasures of the Past, a Second Edition Play-by-Post game for and by Candlekeep Sages--http://www.rpol.net/game.cgi?gi=52011 |
Edited by - WalkerNinja on 25 Jan 2006 00:25:54 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 00:18:03
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Hi again, all. Ed continues his reply to Karth re. toilet matters, to whit:
As for The Masked Merfolk, specifically: servants (young lads and lasses sitting on ready-seats in the right locations, behind translucent curtains) know from observation when patrons are using the various facilities (there are gender-specific “mercy halls” [privies] on each floor, adjacent to the main stair).
After anyone exits, a servant works a foot-treadle pump that “jets” water from an overhead seawater cistern (the reeking harbour water is treated with strong perfumes in every cistern) down the sculpted-stone sloping trough (a narrow but smooth-bottomed channel) that underlies every row of sitting-stalls. The urinal “golden holes”-in-the-wall at the high end of the slope provide another rinsing stream, and from time to time the servants pop in, between guests, to smell; they have handy cupboards with buckets of powdered lime and scrubbing-sticks they can thrust down the holes to do more thorough cleaning. Excrement is sluiced out of the privies down pipes into the cellar, where the pipe takes it into the open hatch of a tank on a little barge (one of two such barges) floating in its own little slip in the cellar, walled off from the rest of the covered-over “undercanal” that services businesses all up and down that street with its own barred and chained doors. When the tank nears full, very late at night (or, if you prefer, early in the morning), a bell is rung in every mercy hall, the relevant servant closes the hall, the cellar doors are opened, and the full-tank barge is poled out. The other barge is moored in its place (and the mercy halls above re-open for business), the full barge is poled through the undercanals out into the harbor and lashed to other barges (the “stinkboats”), and then towed well out to sea AWAY from where the prevailing currents and winds would bring it back into the city, and barge after barge is overturned (by means of handles in their sides and long reaching-hooks) and dumped. In severe winter weather and in storms, the stinkboat fleet simply gathers in the center of the harbor, growing larger as more and more barges join it; Marsember’s harbour never truly freezes thanks to the warmth of all the people, their activities, and the underwater rottings their presence and filth causes. The next evening, the emptied barge is brought back, the mercy halls close again, the two barges are swapped so the newly-emptied one is waiting ‘above’ the now-filling one, and so the process continues, in the Merfolk and in many, many other places in Marsember (poorer abodes and establishments are served by wagons taking away full nightsoil buckets, for small “dumping fees”).
So saith Ed. Who will (for now) finish with this rather noisome subject next time, when he covers Karth’s ‘why nasties don’t crawl up the hole’ question. Something we should all stay tuned for, I think.
love to all,
THO
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George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6643 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 02:44:46
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quote:
Originally posted by Borch
First, Hunnabar: What lore can be shared on this dwarven duchy? Who were the famous rulers and over what delves and holds did they rule? Do any famous ruins remain? And finally, over which period of time did Hunnabar exist?
No doubt Ed could furnish you with information on Hunnabar but he (as I) would be ... ahem ... making it up. Eric Boyd and I created Hunnabar during our Fallen Kingdom project. Here are a few of my musings - I trust Mr Greenwood won't mind me playing in his sandbox.
Dominated by the Dragonsteel and Arlspar clans, the dwarven duchy of Hunnabar was formally created witn the establishment of Phalorm, the Realms of Three Crowns (more popularly known today as the Fallen Kingdom, although many other lost realms through the ages have had this moniker attached to them also) in 523 DR and encompassed the south-western section of the High Moor near present-day Dragonspear Castle. Dwarves first settled the underground cavern networks of the southern High Moor region around two thousand years after the establishment of the dwarven realm of Ammarindar, to the east and north. Prior to that many wandering dwarves, most of them clanless, had prospected and mined the region since the time of the Shanataran diaspora, moving northwards to found such realms as Delzoun, Gharraghaur, Besilmer and others lost in legend.
What drew the Ammarindan dwarves to settle the area for the first time were the rare but rich seams of mithral ore that lay deep beneath the High Moor, metal that had been coveted by the Fair Folk of Miyeritar millenia before. Fighting the drow of Eryndlyn, the dwarves of Hunnabar (named for the axe of Hunn "Smokebraids" Dragonsteel, a long-dead champion of that clan ['Hunnabar' is literally translated as Hunn's keen cutter]) took advantage of the chaos caused by a derro "Uniting War", to build the underground fortress of Kanaglym (some details on which can be found in the old paperback FR Atlas), thereby cementing their presence in the area and giving them a defensible base against attacks from other Underdark races and predators. The dwarves of Hunnabar did not have any surface settlements of note until the time of Phalorm, building the sea tower of Ilynth (see FR11 Dwarves Deep - The Fallen Kingdom) and another fortified tower known as Borgan's Hold a day's ride north of present-day Dragonspear Castle. Both were completed by 540 DR. Both are now ruined, the duergar totally obliterating the latter after it had been abandoned (see Lost Kingdoms of Faerûn - High Forest and Old North timelines) - although loremasters say that a forgotten armory of the dwarves survived the onslaught, accessed as it was only by means of a keyed portal. Tomes of lore to be found in the ruins of Ammarindar may hold the secrets to this armory, believed to contain, amongst other things, the hammershield of Dorn "Blackcloak", Faerin's forgegauntlet and a construct known as the stone kuldjhargh. The Sea Tower of Ilynth was destroyed by "fell sorcery" (rumored to be a cabal of Shoonite wizards known as the Mask of Darkness who had fled the fall of that realm in the previous century and established a stronghold somewhere in the lands north of Amn), but its deeper levels remain, many of them accessing the sea of the Sword Coast and believed to be inhabited by kuo-toa, aboleth and worse.
The dwarves of Hunnabar fared badly against aboveground concerted humanoid and troll attacks in the century of Phalorm's existence coupled with increasing underground assaults from duergar. Kanaglym was sacked by duergar in 557 DR whilst much of Hunnabar's battle-strength was fighting alongside other armies of Phalorm against a hobgoblin horde. Weakened, Hunnabar continued as a separate entity of the Fallen Kingdom until 592 DR when troll attacks made their holdings and position in the area untenable. The surviving dwarves travelled north to their kin in Dardath over the next decade, the other dwarven duchy of Phalorm, and lived there until the fall of the realm in 615 DR. Many dwarves of Hunnabar settled in Ammarindar following the fall of the Realm of Three Crowns, but the once-proud Dragonsteel and Arlspar clans were but pale shadows of their former strength and glory. With the eventual fall of Ammarindar in the Year of the Curse 882 DR, it is thought that these clans are both now extinct.
Hope this has been helpful.
-- George Krashos
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"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 03:22:22
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quote:
Originally posted by George KrashosNo doubt Ed could furnish you with information on Hunnabar but he (as I) would be ... ahem ... making it up. Eric Boyd and I created Hunnabar during our Fallen Kingdom project. Here are a few of my musings - I trust Mr Greenwood won't mind me playing in his sandbox.
Oh George... It's times like this I wish you were a full-time writer for all-things-FR at WotC  .
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Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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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 |
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Scarabeus
Acolyte
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 04:09:46
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed. Who will return on the morrow with the second part of his reply. Hmm, election time here in Canada, and fittingly, we’re talking about hurling excrement around.
Nice timing indeed. Now that is done, the country will need some of those thareea. But, we don't have to worry anymore, the "Harpers" are there to save us all.
Another quick question on the subject: What do adventurers do for the wiping of the behind when deep into a dungeon or similar areas?
No leaves, no vinegar, no moss ... hummm ... what about my cloak of protection +3 ?
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Kes_Alanadel
Learned Scribe
USA
326 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 04:32:09
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quote:
Originally posted by Scarabeus
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed. Who will return on the morrow with the second part of his reply. Hmm, election time here in Canada, and fittingly, we’re talking about hurling excrement around.
Nice timing indeed. Now that is done, the country will need some of those thareea. But, we don't have to worry anymore, the "Harpers" are there to save us all.
Another quick question on the subject: What do adventurers do for the wiping of the behind when deep into a dungeon or similar areas?
No leaves, no vinegar, no moss ... hummm ... what about my cloak of protection +3 ?
That's just.....I mean.....EEEWWWW! |
Ack! I seem to have too much blood in my coffee stream!
When did 'common sense' cease to be common? |
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 04:42:40
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quote:
Originally posted by Scarabeus
Another quick question on the subject: What do adventurers do for the wiping of the behind when deep into a dungeon or similar areas?
No leaves, no vinegar, no moss ... hummm ... what about my cloak of protection +3 ?
You dont happan to play a Cleric or Follower of Moander do you?..... |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
Edited by - Dargoth on 25 Jan 2006 05:24:00 |
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Mkhaiwati
Learned Scribe
USA
252 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 04:53:10
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quote:
You dont happan play a Cleric or Follower of Moander do you?.....
how about a follower of Ghaunadaur.....
Mkhaiwati |
"Behold the work of the old... let your heritage not be lost but bequeath it as a memory, treasure and blessing... Gather the lost and the hidden and preserve it for thy children."
"not nale. not-nale. thog help nail not-nale, not nale. and thog knot not-nale while nale nail not-nale. nale, not not-nale, now nail not-nale by leaving not-nale, not nale, in jail." OotS #367 |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 15:00:05
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| Beautiful lore, Mr. Krashos. Just beautiful. Thank you. |
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Gray Richardson
Master of Realmslore
USA
1291 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2006 : 20:21:32
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| Agreed! Marvelous George! Your dwarf lore is so good it conjures for me the sounds of picks striking rock, hammers clanging on hot mithral, and axeheads cracking against duergar skulls. Great stuff! |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 03:10:36
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Hi again, all. Ed finishes with Karth’s related plumbing questions, specifically: “what stops various deadly slimes/oozes from crawling up the average privy plumbing from the sewers beneath and turning an urgent visit into a sudden grave for various unsuspecting folk?”
Ed replies:
The obvious answer to this is that the “average privy” isn’t directly connected to any sewers beneath: it either empties directly into a small pit (and some have foot-treadle or floor-pull collapsing or sliding-aside “underfloors” a few feet under the seat, to be opened momentarily for dumping-down purposes only after the defecator is finished), or it empties into some form of storage that’s taken in buckets (sometimes via a wagon or barge) to a cesspool or dumping place elsewhere. In “dungeons” (and cellars built over known caves or Underdark connections, where monstrous intrusion may be feared or historically known), the aforementioned moving underfloors are usually built in.
In certain cities (Waterdeep or Zhentil Keep, for example; see scenes in CITY OF SPLENDORS or CROWN OF FIRE), an average privy may well be connected directly to sewers, and the danger you point to may be very real. Which is why places like that have sewer patrols, and hire adventurers or call in mage-guilds or wizards-for-hire to deal with nasty monsters - - sometimes, yes, after Aunt Aurauma has met with an unfortunate and undignified fatality.
Such bad things happen, but not as often as popular lore (where, like real-world “urban legends,” tales get told and re-told with local embellishments and additions) would have one believe.
So saith Ed. Who can now obviously add dunghandler to his resumé, if he’s minded to. Or not, as the case may be.
love to all,
THO
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RevJest
Learned Scribe
USA
115 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 07:02:37
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Lovely Hooded One, another question for Master Greenwood.
Ed,
I would be interested in anything you might wish to say concerning the social order amongst the faithful of Eilistraee. Do they marry? Specifically, what role do males play in Eilistrean communities / households?
- RJ
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Neriandal Freit
Senior Scribe
USA
396 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 15:11:21
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You know, I decided I had to ask this of Lady Tho and Ed.
I'm in the works of creating a Redeemed Order that is dedicated to Lathander. There is a whole back story that I won't go into to save you from reading. Kuje has given me his blessing and has helped a great deal, and told me this is a unique idea, which I appreicate and enjoy knowing, and Warlocko has helped a great deal too and is muchly appreicated.
My question is more of a broad question, but who in your knowledge would hold it against the Redeemed and their ways, (which is to redeem more Demons, Devils and Fiends who have lost their way, and also to help those who need help and to accept those like them IE: Orge Mage who have changed his/her ways.) reguardless of who they are, what they do, and who they follow? If any more details are asked of, I will be more then glady to comply and do!
Hope you are doing well THO, as to you the same Ed
~Charlie |
"Eating people is wrong...unless it's on the first date." - Ed Greenwood, GenCon Indy 2006 |
Edited by - Neriandal Freit on 26 Jan 2006 15:32:07 |
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Octa
Learned Scribe
USA
138 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 17:45:31
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Ed +THO, I've been trying to think up a question and I think I have one of general interest.
It concerns the Arn Rock in the center of the lake of steam. Everytime I look at it it screams Melnibone. There seems to be very little lore on the island. So my question is this:
Who was living on the Arn Rock before it went all Santorini? Were there any ancient civilisations centered there? We know that the lake of steam has been populated since pre-history, but it mainly considered a crossroads between Coramashan and Jhaamdath rather than a region in its own right. Were there any empires centered there, other than the Occasional Aencar uniting a few of the independent cities together for a single lifetime.
And the Arn Rock, any chance for an empire of draconic-human hybrids living there in the age of dragons or some other prehistoric time.
thanks for any additional information you can give, I know how busy you are and am just shocked at how accessible you make yourself to the fans. |
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Scarabeus
Acolyte
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 22:21:34
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quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
You dont happen to play a Cleric or Follower of Moander do you?.....
how about a follower of Ghaunadaur.....
It can be both. No, in fact I'm DMing and Ed's answers on the subject made me smile on a couple occasions when I thought about not-so heroic situations that can happen like that. My PCs are on a ship for now, right time to make them learn about“thunderchutes”. They are heading to Corwell Town festival, in which they will find a smith friend who made a stand about minting Corwell Royal coins. So thanks Ed for all this great Realmslore.
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Karth
Seeker
USA
81 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2006 : 22:24:16
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quote:
So saith Ed. Who can now obviously add dunghandler to his resumé, if he’s minded to. Or not, as the case may be.
Outstanding. Question answered and then some, as usual. Many thanks, Ed and THO, both.
I'll torture my players accordingly.
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
Well met, Karth!
I think Ed answered the question about "toilet paper" in the Realms last year - if I remember it correctly, he might have said that they commonly use a barrel full of dry hay (or moss?), at least in tallhouses. I may be wrong here, though
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ed talked about Tallhouses... yes.
Here's the full reply -
Thanks for the assist, Asgetrion and Sage. I wanted a bit more detail though, which Ed most definitely gave... ;)
While I (briefly) have the floor: Yes, Ed's ranking of top fighters is eminently useful on its own. That said, I'd still like to see Ed's 2E-style quick summaries of that list, such as the ones he did for the FR Adventures hardcover, Volo's Guides and various other 2E products he designed.
Example: Laspeera Naerinth (NG hf M14)
Always a treasure to be sure about the general size of the
ballpark you're manufacturing detail in - straight from
the man himself... ;)
Cheers,
-Karth
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2006)
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