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Tyranthraxus
Senior Scribe
Netherlands
423 Posts |
 Posted - 20 Sep 2011 : 18:31:54
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quote:
Originally posted by George Krashos
quote:
Originally posted by Tyranthraxus
Dear Ed and THO,
The last known Magister is Noume'a. Is she still around in the post-Spellplague era?
I'm currently reading Elminster: The Making of a Mage and I was wondering who the Magister is El met in Hastarl. Is it perhaps Azuth (before achieving a divine status), or will his identity will be revealed later on the novel? I haven't finished reading it yet so I apologize if it's a stupid question. Great novel BTW, I always wondered about El's past  .
The Magister featured in "Making of a Mage" was Dorgon "Stonecloak" Heamiiolothtar who reigned from 177DR to 241DR - the longest Magister reign (at that time) since Azuth himself.
-- George Krashos
Thank you very much mr. Krashos! Maybe you, THO, or Ed can also answer my next Magister question. I recently got my hands on the Magister miniature by Ral Partha, the same person as on the cover of FR4 The Magister. Does he also have a name?
Thanks in advance. |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 20 Sep 2011 : 18:41:38
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I can't remember the guy's name, but I KNOW he was specifically named and identified - - and has been discussed in the past.
Sage? Wooly? I seem to recall George Krashos talking about this once, here at the Keep.
BB |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36793 Posts |
Posted - 20 Sep 2011 : 19:08:04
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quote:
Maxiladanarr Torstren may not be the most famous of Magisters, but his breeding program looks likely to have influences far beyond the strivings of most who have held the office of the Magister. He perished not by magic or the hand of a challenger, but buried in an avalance while he slept on a mountain ledge. Torstren is the black-bearded Magister pictured on the cover of the out-of-print publication FR4: The Magister.
Page 82, Secrets of the Magister.
(Edit: cast banish typo  ) |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 21 Sep 2011 04:36:46 |
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Rhewtani
Senior Scribe
USA
508 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 00:17:34
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Ok, so I have a meta-chrono-geographical question. Since Baker rewrote Aesperus (essentially turning his blurb in the Moonsea supplement into an incorrect rumor) and created Thentur (existing roughly in the 1000s), what sort of NDA exists over the Moonsea northeast? How deep and wide is it?
Personally, I've theorized that the collapse and deepening of the Hulburg bay resulting from the spellplague also had something to do with Aesperus's magics down there and also possibly having something to do with its role in Pools of Darkness, as well. Anyways...
In that I'm working on a Hulburg campaign for 1351 to 1357 (with a PC having been married to Amali Hulmaster), I'm trying to figure out the reason. What sort of dungeons exist? What would delvers be prone to find in them? If I can't get this for the Thentur region, what about further west or east? The Moonsea folk are considered a mix of vikings turned bolsheviks, who always rebuild and never surrender.
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31716 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 02:10:13
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
"Is The Terraseer really the oldest being in Toril?"
Reply: No. Who is? NDA.
I thought it was Toril herself? [Sorry, Chauntea-based humour.]
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Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Eldacar
Senior Scribe
438 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 02:27:58
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I've got a few questions for Ed regarding the organisation known as the Knights of the Weave, following a read-through of Champions of Valour:
How long have the Knights of the Weave been around? There aren't many of them (the book states "two score" or thereabouts), but are they an organisation that has existed for some time - even a very long time - that is only now beginning to grow towards greater heights (and emerge into the wider circles of Toril from the background), or is their size a result of their being only a very recent initiative by the new Mystra (circa 1369 DR onwards)? As a sub-question, who was the first Knight of the Weave, and who showed him (or her) how to access the Weave for the now-signature abilities of a Knight? Mystra or Azuth? One of the Chosen? And as another sub-question, while they obviously range across Faerun somewhat, are there particular areas where they tend to be more concentrated and where they are more well-known than others? Have there been particularly large conflicts where multiple Knights congregated to fight together?
Second, who exactly is Elos Crownsilver (age, length as a Knight, even a description if Ed might have one), and how is he related to the Crownsilver family of Cormyr? A distant cousin, or more intricately connected? And how do the War Wizards (or similar organisations) react to having Weave Knights (who may not be "meddling Chosen" but do share similarities from time to time regarding the proliferation of magic, if nothing else) in Cormyr? Do they simply treat them as they would other wizards, or paladins, or some mixture of the two? The Knights evidently share many of the goals of the Chosen and Mystra's church in the proliferation and protection of the Weave, so I'd imagine that there would be some overlap between the different groups.
Which leads me to the question of what relationship the Knights of the Weave share with the Chosen of Mystra and/or the Magister? There's a bit in the book on their relationship to paladins of magic (serving Azuth and/or Mystra), to the Guardians of the Weave (another fairly new organisation, it seems), and that they have a friendly relationship with the churches of Azuth, Mystra and (to a lesser extent) Savras. They also presumably have at least a cordial relationship with groups like the Harpers. There isn't really much of anything about how they might relate to the Chosen, though, or to the Magister.
Thirdly, there are a few examples of names that might pop up among Weave Knights, such as "Spellwhisper" and presumably "Lichbreaker" (held by Janos, currently the most experienced Knight in the organisation). Are there any others, and what sort of events took place to provide the individual with the name?
Also, do worship services for Knights of the Weave differ greatly from the prayers of clerics or paladins? I wouldn't be surprised if the vast majority of them had Mystra (or Azuth) as a patron deity, but do they engage in worship, or is it the more "usual" relationship that one might have with a patron? Given their devotion to the Weave and subtle connection to it, it strikes me that they would likely share a closer relationship with Mystra than would most who have her as a patron, though it would undoubtedly be different to the relationship a cleric has).
Lastly, the Knights learn how to manipulate the Weave to call forth spellfire. Does this make them targets in the same sense that Shandril (and other users of spellfire) are/were targets? Given that "everybody and their dog" was chasing after Shandril for her spellfire, it would seem to stand to reason that if word got about that there was an order of mage-knights who had collectively learned how to call forth spellfire, then they would be almost swarmed under by everybody who wanted to know how it's done.
Anything Ed could share would be greatly appreciated. |
"The Wild Mages I have met exhibit a startling disregard for common sense, and are often meddling with powers far beyond their own control." ~Volo
"Not unlike a certain travelogue author with whom I am unfortunately acquainted." ~Elminster |
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Merrith
Learned Scribe
135 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 05:27:47
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all. Dennis, Ed tells me:
"Is The Terraseer really the oldest being in Toril?"
Reply: No. Who is? NDA.
I'd wager that many primordials still existing on Toril currently are older than the Terraseer. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 12:11:58
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Hi, Ed!
I hope you don't mind my rather long questions...
1.Was there an instance when a god violently reacted to a random citizen's joke? Say, a pirate shouted, "Talos is such a deaf, retarded god that even if you scream that he sucks you'll walk away unscathed." Then suddenly he's struck by lightning.
2. There's a thread on this in the forums. My fellow scribes offered a lot of interesting insights. And I'd like to hear yours as well. [Hopefully, not an NDA this time.]
Is time travel restricted in the Realms? If yes, who or what restricts it? And why? It's just that I very rarely see it being utilized in FR fiction, unlike the Magic: The Gathering novels, which almost always make use of it, in both grand and subtle ways. In MtG, they call it clockworking, and nearly every time it's used, it makes the plot interesting.
Off the top of my head I can recall only two instances. One is when Karsus used it to “get” his star and Candlemas (Dangerous Games). And the other is when Cera, a priestess of Amaunator, and Aoth employed it to spy on the dragons during their secret convocation (Whisper of Venom).
Time traveling could have undone a lot of realms-shattering events...or maybe worsened them... Whichever is the case, I guess one way or another, it could have helped develop some elements in the plot of some FR novels.
3. Page 13 of Netheril: Empire of Magic states:
quote:
Magical items couldn’t go with the travelers‚ and memorized spells were wiped from memory (many theorize that this stored mental energy is actually what powers the spell). Armor and weapons that didn’t exist at the destination likewise couldn’t go with the time traveler (so full- and field-plate armor can never go back in time to Netheril). Spell books and scrolls could go back in time, but spells that don’t exist at the destination time simply appear as blank pages (such spells reappear when the time traveler returns to his own time).
If so, when Karsus transported the “star” through time, the said star should have been stripped of all its magical properties when it arrived at Karsus's time frame. Does this mean Karsus found a way to bypass the restrictions that Mystryl placed in time traveling? Did he use a different spell far more advanced than the time conduit? Was the star too potent that it couldn't be subjected to the restrictions? Or did Mystryl impose the new restrictions after Karsus ferried the star?
Did Mystryl hide the star which was in Karsus's timeframe, knowing how powerful it was; and thought that the one from the future was out of his reach due to the restrictions she placed on time traveling? |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 21 Sep 2011 15:14:29 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 16:57:54
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Hi again, all. Dennis, Ed is howlingly busy right now (three novels and an outline for a fourth, a game book, a dozen webcolumns, and seven short stories all to turn in by end of year - - plus new assignments at his day job), so his in-depth replies might be slower in coming, but off the top of my own head, I can make some stabs at partial replies.
To your Question 1: Oh, yes. More than a few instances.
2. Yes, it certainly is. Back in the late 1980s, there was a deliberate TSR-imposed designers' restriction on time travel in the Realms (just as psionics was de-emphasized in the Realms because "that's Dark Sun," and heraldry was de-emphasized in the Realms "because that's Greyhawk").
And when you write: "Or did Mystryl impose the new restrictions after Karsus ferried the star?" the answer is definitely "Yes."
And that's about as far as I can go without Ed.
love,
THO |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 19:21:26
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Is the de-emphasis on time traveling in the Realms due to Magic: The Gathering? |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 19:28:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Rhewtani
Ok, so I have a meta-chrono-geographical question. Since Baker rewrote Aesperus (essentially turning his blurb in the Moonsea supplement into an incorrect rumor) and created Thentur (existing roughly in the 1000s), what sort of NDA exists over the Moonsea northeast? How deep and wide is it?<snip>
The original material regarding the Moonsea was written in the 'unsubstantiated 3rd party' style of 1e/2e, and therefor anything Mr. Baker wrote would not be "incorrect", but rather 'new information brought to light' (which is how most of 3e was written - as FACT).
Designers/authors CANNOT be wrong (especially in-house people) when they put anything in-print (what they say is merely heresay, even if they say it in a thread on the web... except for Ed...) - in other words, officially 'published', regardless of medium.
We hope they do all their research and consult every possible source when they write about something, otherwise they contribute to the unavoidable continuity-glitches so many settings suffer from, which in the end act like a cancer upon the setting itself.
Regardless, awhile back I proved - using maps - that what was written previously about that location (specifically Hulburg) does NOT contradict the new material. That thread is flaoting around here somewhere. Ed did indeed have some 'dark nation' existing in the Moonsea north, as per all of the 1e/2e sources, and all RB did was set a few things in stone. Most of what we had fell into the 'rumors' category, so chalk whatever strangeness you uncover to fall into the 'proven false' category.
So as not to get into trouble, and bring this back to the purpose of this thread - ED, were the 'People of the Black Sails' (IIRC) from your original? Am I correct in my above assumptions (above) about the region?
Hopefully that will skirt-around any NDA's he may need to avoid.
Edit: Oh, and I realize his 1st (published) tomb {I think - going by memory these days} was well outside what would have been considered Thentur, but there are plenty of instances of 'burial grounds' falling beyond the borders of the people who use them, and in this instance we are talking abut an incredibly powerful mage (one who became a Lich), who may have wanted the location of his final resting place obscured (and thus, had more then one built, to confuse matters, and actually used the secondary locations as laboratories/caches). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 21 Sep 2011 19:45:55 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 19:47:01
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Dennis, the de-emphasis on time travel in the Realms couldn't have been due to Magic: The Gathering back then...because Magic didn't exist back then; Richard Garfield was still several years away from first developing it. (It might well be due to Magic right now.)
love,
THO |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 19:53:23
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Thanks, THO! I thought Magic is as old as the Realms in terms of "conceptualization," if not in publication. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 20:09:17
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Nope. Richard designed his first game (not Magic) when he was 13, if I recall correctly, which would be 1976 (he was born in 1963).
Ed started work on the Realms in 1967 (yes, when Richard was four years old).
D&D got its first public release in 1974 (and din't really spread outside southeastern Wisconsin until 1975).
I remember seeing some of the prootype Magic cards used in playtesting/development (little green rectangles with game text, no art, no flavor text).
Hey, thanks for making me feel old, Dennis!
love,
THO |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 20:25:27
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Sorry. It was never my intention. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Rhewtani
Senior Scribe
USA
508 Posts |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 22:17:00
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quote:
The original material regarding the Moonsea was written in the 'unsubstantiated 3rd party' style of 1e/2e, and therefor anything Mr. Baker wrote would not be "incorrect", but rather 'new information brought to light' (which is how most of 3e was written - as FACT).
Didn't mean to insinuate otherwise. And Baker's been great at answering my questions I've sent to him on Aesperus, et al, too.
I'm just looking for any deeper insights into that area that I can get. Oh, and Markus - I've got a Thentur thread AND a Winterspear Valley thread that you should be in! |
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Barastir
Master of Realmslore
Brazil
1600 Posts |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 13:03:21
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Hi, Ed!
I hope you don't mind my rather long questions...
2. Is time travel restricted in the Realms? If yes, who or what restricts it? And why?
Dennis, for "ingame" reference, have you ever checked Chronomancer? In the end of this accessory there is an appendix that deals with time-traveling magic and the different worlds of D&D, including the persons or organizations in each world that controlled this kind of intervention. Netheril also states that, due to the intervention of Mystril, Chronomancer spells will not work for those who want to travel to Netheril Ages, but only the "time conduit" spell can take them there (uh... then). |
"Goodness is not a natural state, but must be
fought for to be attained and maintained.
Lead by example.
Let your deeds speak your intentions.
Goodness radiated from the heart."
The Paladin's Virtues, excerpt from the "Quentin's Monograph"
(by Ed Greenwood) |
Edited by - Barastir on 22 Sep 2011 13:05:36 |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 13:19:30
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quote:
Originally posted by Barastir
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Hi, Ed!
I hope you don't mind my rather long questions...
2. Is time travel restricted in the Realms? If yes, who or what restricts it? And why?
Dennis, for "ingame" reference, have you ever checked Chronomancer? In the end of this accessory there is an appendix that deals with time-traveling magic and the different worlds of D&D, including the persons or organizations in each world that controlled this kind of intervention. Netheril also states that, due to the intervention of Mystril, Chronomancer spells will not work for those who want to travel to Netheril Ages, but only the "time conduit" spell can take them there (uh... then).
I don't game. I read N: EoM, so I know what Mystryl did. If you notice, my question is in the "present tense." Which means---ahem---that I'm more concerned with who "currently" restricts it, if there's any. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Bakra
Senior Scribe
628 Posts |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 15:17:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Barastir
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Hi, Ed!
I hope you don't mind my rather long questions...
2. Is time travel restricted in the Realms? If yes, who or what restricts it? And why?
Dennis, for "ingame" reference, have you ever checked Chronomancer? In the end of this accessory there is an appendix that deals with time-traveling magic and the different worlds of D&D, including the persons or organizations in each world that controlled this kind of intervention. Netheril also states that, due to the intervention of Mystril, Chronomancer spells will not work for those who want to travel to Netheril Ages, but only the "time conduit" spell can take them there (uh... then).
I don't game. I read N: EoM, so I know what Mystryl did. If you notice, my question is in the "present tense." Which means---ahem---that I'm more concerned with who "currently" restricts it, if there's any.
I foresee a NDA in your possible future. |
I hope Candlekeep continues to be the friendly forum of fellow Realms-lovers that it has always been, as we all go through this together. If you don’t want to move to the “new” Realms, that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with either you or the “old” Realms. Goodness knows Candlekeep, and the hearts of its scribes, are both big enough to accommodate both. If we want them to be.
(Strikes dramatic pose, raises sword to gleam in the sunset, and hopes breeches won’t fall down.)
Enough for now. The Realms lives! I have spoken! Ale and light wines half price, served by a smiling Storm Silverhand fetchingly clad in thigh-high boots and naught else! Ahem . .
So saith Ed. <snip>
love to all,
THO
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Barastir
Master of Realmslore
Brazil
1600 Posts |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 18:19:20
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
I don't game. I read N: EoM, so I know what Mystryl did. If you notice, my question is in the "present tense." Which means---ahem---that I'm more concerned with who "currently" restricts it, if there's any.
Anyway, you could read Chronomancer, then. When I talked about "ingame" reference, I meant there you could see who restricts time travel in the Forgotten Realms world (in a "literary" view, which characters control time travel), and not in the publishing industry. |
"Goodness is not a natural state, but must be
fought for to be attained and maintained.
Lead by example.
Let your deeds speak your intentions.
Goodness radiated from the heart."
The Paladin's Virtues, excerpt from the "Quentin's Monograph"
(by Ed Greenwood) |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 23 Sep 2011 : 12:26:40
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Are there spas or beauty salons in the Realms? What do they call it? |
Every beginning has an end. |
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lachlain
Acolyte
USA
3 Posts |
Posted - 23 Sep 2011 : 15:03:43
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Greetings sages, The Hooded One, and the esteemed Mr. Greenwood,
I've two questions regarding food and trade. I've seen in past posts that salt isn't as prevalent in the Realms as a method of food preservation due to other methods being widely available, yet I cannot seem to find an answer to what methods are employed to keep meats from spoiling on caravan routes. Secondly, how are vegetables "refrigerated" to remain fresh when they come to market, or are they? I seem to recall that there are some foods (produce, herbs, etc.) that are part of the overland trade that are a commodity, but how do caravans prevent spoilage during long hauls?
Thank you for your time. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 23 Sep 2011 : 18:06:34
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Hi again, all. lachlain, Ed has talked about some of the methods of preserving meat before, but let me recall for you some, off the top of my head:
Meat is driven, live, on the hoof with some caravans, and slaughtered/butchered wherever sold.
Meat is made into sausages, and carried that way, wrapped in certain leaves and then coarse cloaks, to keep the air from it (unwrapped just to sell or eat).
Meat is smoked and or dried, then carried in chests wrapped to keep air/flies away, and kept from sunlight.
Meat is butchered, cooked, and then the small cooked cuts are sealed in barrels of oil to keep the air from them. (This method is very popular with long-haul costers, and sailors.)
Meat is minced, then made into patties, which are packed in ice and put into chests (for short runs to market). Where runs involve overnight camps, the caravans either stop at their own paddocks (which have "cold rooms" or stone-lined cellars dug deep into the earth), or bury their chests in loose earth at encampments they have used before/use regularly.
Note: many market buildings in important trading towns hire priests or wizards (or the building is owned by a temple that takes a cut of all sales, and provides its priests) to cast cooling spells, to retard decay.
Hope this helps!
love,
THO
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Edited by - The Hooded One on 23 Sep 2011 18:13:51 |
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Seabus Mythforger
Seeker
76 Posts |
Posted - 24 Sep 2011 : 06:38:22
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Well met, Ed!
My question to you is:
Of all the books you've ever read or written, who/what are your top 5 favorite characters/plot-lines and why? |
~Seabus Mythforger,
Renegade Mage |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36793 Posts |
Posted - 25 Sep 2011 : 04:22:07
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This will hopefully be a quick and easy one: what is asthma called in the Realms?
As an addenda, and one that I won't mind if it takes some time to answer: how is asthma treated, aside from using magic? |
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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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31716 Posts |
Posted - 25 Sep 2011 : 06:10:11
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
2. Yes, it certainly is. Back in the late 1980s, there was a deliberate TSR-imposed designers' restriction on time travel in the Realms (just as psionics was de-emphasized in the Realms because "that's Dark Sun," and heraldry was de-emphasized in the Realms "because that's Greyhawk").
As a follow-up for this, I'm wondering what other methods Ed may have employed [beyond those that he has briefly mentioned here] to both introduce and utilise the concept of time travel in his home-Realms campaigns?
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Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 25 Sep 2011 : 06:12:25
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I have a shadowdale question.
namely its FEy population.
the headless zhent; is it a Dulahan? |
why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power
My FR fan fiction
Magister's GAmbit
http://steelfiredragon.deviantart.com/gallery/33539234 |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
7989 Posts |
Posted - 25 Sep 2011 : 06:36:11
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While I can understand the need to underplay time travel (which is kinda manipulative and too easy) and psionics (which is a sorta redundant poor fit in a world filled with lofty magics), I personally feel the lack of heraldry was a poor decision.
My players love heraldric devices, mage sigils, trail glyphs left by dwarves and drow and Harpers and Zhents, and all manner of flags and banners and seals. They can tell who made a horseshoe or a sword hilt or a castle or a spellbook based upon symbols imprinted or contained therein, they can tell which is the general shoppe and which is the seedy tavern (and which is the assassin's guild, if it's not also the shoppe or tavern) by the symbol set upon the entryway. They can tell at a glance who's royalty, nobility, gentry, servant, serf, or slave (or damned fool adventurer) based on a glance at colour and styling of apparel, let alone any insignia or standards of station which might also be displayed. It's just part of what makes a medieval setting - most especially back in the dim times of early D&D when literate Realmsfolk were remarkable rather than ubiquitously assumed. In fact, it's also part of what makes our modern setting; even today we recognize symbols in every facet of our daily lives, from corporate and personal logos to traffic signs, map markers, computer icons, and officious governmental stamps. Not to mention the many more obvious and subtle symbols embedded within uniforms, social order, science and religion, culture and entertainment. The symbols randomly scattered throughout the FR0 Grey Box and FRA sourcebooks added much depth to the setting (and an inspirational launching point for DMs/players), 'tis a true shame that such things were gradually discarded in favour of shallow alternatives like "descriptor text" snippets. Textually proclaiming "King Arthur was the noblest of holy Kings" just doesn't capture the same indelible message as seeing a shield or pennant boldly emblazoned with the golden dragon rampant, not even the same message as an image of the legendary Round Table; an italic comment briefly describing the sharpness of Excalibur just cannot compare to an image of Excalibur piercing an obviously evil and mighty foe.
I suppose one major contributor to this loss would be that the graphics accrue some expense in both artistic talent and real estate on the folio layouts ... while text is cheap and small and readily available. Too bad. |
[/Ayrik] |
Edited by - Ayrik on 25 Sep 2011 07:13:01 |
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braunusvald
Acolyte
USA
13 Posts |
Posted - 26 Sep 2011 : 02:06:55
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quote:
Originally posted by Azuth
quote:
Originally posted by Therise, Markustay, and The Hooded One
<snipped out for space's sake>
Since the novels that deal with the afterlife focus almost exclusively on humans, it's not really known what Lolth would do if presented with a wicked, chaotic, malevolent sun elf's soul. Ao's decree said that the gods must serve their worshippers, and he didn't restrict that only to human gods. Lolth, much like Cyric, may think or have thought she was exempt, but that's hardly true given her own silence during the Time of Troubles.
It is for this reason that I believe we have "house rules" but with respect to the published works, consistency would be pretty important were I the editor. Which is a long way of bringing me to my next question for Ed & Tho...
As deities absorb or lose aspects of their portfolios, can their "alignments" change? If Lolth has the portfolio of all Drow, doesn't that mean she's absorbed Eilistraee and Vheraun? Wouldn't that have an impact on her CE alignment or her "allowed alignments" under the gaming system?
Thanks much!
Just a belated thought on the Loth issue :) The Evemeet novel by Elaine Cunningham touched on the evil sun elf issue, Kymil Nimesin fell under her influence, and possibly fated to "her" afterlife control. Someone else may have brought this up, sorry if so.
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Could a Kercpa swing a Rod of lordly Might? All hail the mighty rodent! |
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Foxhelm
Senior Scribe
Canada
592 Posts |
Posted - 26 Sep 2011 : 02:30:28
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In "Brad Meltzer's Decoded", they did an episode where it was suggested the Statue of Liberty is a monument to Lucifer, created by the Illuminati by way of the Free Masons (It is a symbol of Lucifer but not in the way you think).
He mentioned that a symbol has at least two meanings, the one that the create intends and the one people who view it give it.
I was curious of the most interesting or shocking change a symbol in the realms had from intended meaning to the meaning seen by most or certain people. Like a symbol of virtue turning into a symbol of sin, or vice versa and so forth. |
Ed Greenwood! The Solution... and Cause of all the Realms Problems! |
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2011)
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