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Aryalómë
Senior Scribe
USA
666 Posts |
 Posted - 18 Feb 2012 : 15:35:25
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I've been working on creating a great Dark Elf city for my fantasy setting and for use in other fantasy settings. I need help on finding images that can represent it well, help with building styles, names, and some few other things.
Okay, first off: naming the city. I really liked the name 'Erelhei-Cinlu' because it sounded right for a dark elf city (not that Menzoberranzzan doesn't), and I feel that that sound of the word creates the feeling that I want for my city. I've been trying to work on variations of the name, but haven't come up with any that I like.
For the buildings and building style, the buildings have the exact style of this map of Menzo:
http://drowblog.eshost.es/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Menzoberranzan.jpg
Though it has more buildings than this map shows (my city). I would appreciate if anyone could find images that show these buildings better.
Here's a basic description of the city:
(name), City of Spiders
Aliases: The Jewel of the Underdark, The City of Dark Lore, Lolth's Fane, The City of Silver Webs
(name) is one of the most ancient dark elven cities in the world. Founded millenia ago by a priestess of Lolth who was exiled by another dark elf city long since destroyed, she found an extremely large cavern filled with mushroom groves, tall, large stalagmites, glowing violet rocks. In the centre of this cavern, she found a shrine. At this shrine, there was a large adamantine statue of a drow female with the lower half of her body being that of a spider. In short, the statue of Lolth spoke to her and told her to guide more of her children there, to erect the city, and lay waste to the city that banished her (this story is still a work in progress and will be detailed later on).
The city is well known for its magic users and military traditions. It has the greatest collection of lore in all of the Underdark and has more mages and other spellcasters than any settlement in the Underdark. It is the second largest city in the Underdark, only rivaled in size by Valgarth, and city of many different races in the Upperdark and (another drow city), the third largest city in the Underdark.
(city name) has a legendary academy of spellcasters, known as (name). It has protected the city on numerous occasions. Everyone of the eight noble houses sends sons and daughters (though there aren't very many females in the acacdemy) there in hopes of raising a great mage to bring power and protection to them and the city. It has a vast library of ancient lore that has been sought after by countless enemies.
There are also other orders that I need names for: a warrior army that defends the city, a company of rogues that patrol the inner workings of the city, a band of rangers that protect and scout outside the city, a name for Lolth's grand temple, noble House names, the names for the warrior and priestly academies, district names, and other ideas that I could use.
Districts:
Noble and wealthy distric
bazaar
A middle class style district
A more stately marketplace type of district, for wealthier patrons
Temple district
Academy district
A lower class district
A prison ward
Slave pens
Mushroom groves gardens
Arts district (where various forms of art are displayed)
Also, come up with some characters for the city! I'd love to add a wealth of people to it. Come up with some lower noble houses as well. I have the top four, I just need four more to make up the council of eight. Be very creative!
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Aryalómë
Senior Scribe
USA
666 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2012 : 15:48:31
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Here's a better example for the architecture of the city, though it is extremely small:
http://th04.deviantart.net/fs23/150/f/2007/331/b/a/Drow_City_by_Arveriaturace.jpg
The city has mostly stalagmite buildings that are pointed or connected to the ceiling (though there aren't that many that do). Some of the buildings have pointed tops, others are rounded.
A HUGE reminder: Lolth in my setting is NOT evil, nor are the other dark elven deities. They all are within the whole Elven pantheon. There was never any war between the dark elves and the other elves. Some of their portfolios have changed very slightly, but most are the same, though without the 'evil' element or the other elf race hate. (This does not apply to other D&D settings) Nor are the dark elves strictly matriarchal. Males can achieve the same ranks as females, though most priestly and matron/patron positions are held by females. There IS a slight matriarchal slant, but not to where males are oppressed. |
Edited by - Aryalómë on 18 Feb 2012 15:50:26 |
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George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6680 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2012 : 22:40:46
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IMHO you should always go with canonical sources. "Drow of the Underdark" (2E), p.98 has a host of names for grow cities of the Realms. A few have been used already:
Chaulssin, Ched Nasad, Eryndlyn, Guallidurth, Llurth Dreier, Maerimydra, Sshamath, T'lindhet, Uluitur, Undraeth, V'elddrinnsshar.
Of the remainder, I suggest you use Luihaulen'tar or Fanaedar for "softer" sounding names.
That book also provides grow family names on the same page, however more than a few have been used up already - especially the ones that come from Greyhawk.
-- George Krashos
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"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
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Help With Creating a Drow City
