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Bookwyrm
Great Reader
USA
4740 Posts |
 Posted - 06 Nov 2004 : 08:03:39
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I think that if he doesn't get hit with some NDAs on that, Mr. Greenwood might just declare NET -- Not Enough Time. But then, he's surprised me before!  |
Hell hath no fury like all of Candlekeep rising in defense of one of its own.
Download the brickfilm masterpiece by Leftfield Studios! See this page for more. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 06 Nov 2004 : 08:33:19
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quote:
Originally posted by Taelohn
And best of luck to you, THO. Any other special powers you're looking for? 
With her great charm and beauty, and her ability to entrance men and Giant Space Hamsters alike, does she really need more powers? |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 06 Nov 2004 : 15:19:44
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Oh, Wooly, now you’ve told the world! Thy hamsters, with their soft fur and enthusiastic wrigglings, their bright eyes and breathless - -  Ahem. Sorry. 
Now, where was I?
Ah, yes, Sourcemaster 2’s post.
Oh, Sourcemaster, I love suitors who lay on the sarcasm so thickly that it almost buries me. Accordingly, you may, just as much as you like, beat around MY bu--
AhemhemhemHEM. Yet perhaps I should say rather less about things, lest Wooly and his ferocious hamsters run amok and do damage enough to upset the noble Alaundo, our long-suffering host (to whom we owe so much for making this ongoing revel possible). I wasn’t sure if you wanted my answers to your questions or Ed’s, but as it happened, we chatted about them back and forth this evening, and agreed on things, so you may take the following as coming from both of us:
1. Probably, given your use of the word “eventually.” However, until a new deity rose to control whatever new system of magic replaced the Weave (remember, Mystra IS the Weave; for her to be destroyed “beyond re-creation,” Azuth and all of Mystra’s Chosen, in whom parts of her power reside, would have to be destroyed, too), magic would be wild or simply wouldn’t work. Probably magic items would do SOMETHING when their stored powers were unleashed, but not function as their wielders expected them to (and not under any precise control or exhibiting any consistency of effects).
It’s doubtful if most spell-using beings would survive such a cataclysm. None of them would survive it unchanged, to be sure. Nor would the Shadow Weave just ‘step in and take over’ if Mystra were destroyed utterly, because the Shadow Weave depends on the Weave; without the one, the other (which opposes it, and is ‘balanced’ to do so) will inevitably collapse too.
So the gods who remained would probably battle for control of magic, in a world in which all magic will have a governing tendency to ‘go wild.’ Farewell Realms as we know them, and so on.
We’re both curious: why do you ask this? :} Is a particularly foolish PC in your campaign planning to assassinate Mystra? (And if so, HOW?)
2. Psionics might be seen as a threat by particular gods in particular passing situations, when wielded by particular other gods or beings, but in general: no. Most gods themselves use psionics, so it’s just another ability (like breathing, and it’s a rare god [except one whose portfolio is unconcerned with the dead] who’ll look down at mortals and seriously say, “Look at all those dangerous beings! Yes, dangerous, I say: see? They’re all BREATHING!”).
3. Your third query is so important that I’m going to start by quoting it straight: “Just how much control do Faerunian clerics have over the spells they are given? Can a priest trust that the spells he prays for will be granted, or will the gods deny a spell they believe will be used for unworthy aims? Might a deity slip in a different spell if it thinks it will be needed, or is such intervention extremely rare?”
In the PUBLISHED Realms, particularly in Third Edition, it seems to be against design principles to have the gods use their extraordinary powers in ways “unfair” to mere mortals. To put it another way, if the PCs have to follow spellcasting rules, so do the gods.
However, in the ‘home’ Realms, the gods have ALWAYS showed their displeasure (and sometimes approval) of PC performance by controlling what divine spells are granted in return for prayers. In other words, the god can see if Priest X intends (at the time of asking) to use a spell for selfish purposes not in accordance with the faith, and bestow a lesser spell or nothing at all (or the spell plus a warning lecture).
If the deity is particularly pleased with the performance or aims of Priest X, a spell or spells might be placed in the PC’s mind that they could never hope to gain by prayer (i.e. something beyond their level limits).
In all cases, cleric PCs are on constant ‘performance review.’ If you fail in your mission due to circumstances honestly beyond your control, that’s fine, but if your actions and motives stray from the faith (or the commandments, however mistaken or foolish, of your clerical superiors, EXCEPT when you knowingly disobey because you can clearly see THEY are straying from the faith and by your disobedience you will be cleaving to it and furthering the aims and influence of the deity), you will pay a price. Sometimes it’s a penance, sometimes a difficult mission or test assigned to you, and sometimes it’s ‘shorting’ your requested spells.
This is one of the key DM tools to making priests very different from “fighters who can cast healing spells, so the rest of the party had better suck up to them, or at least pay lip service to the priests’ gods.”
So say we both, Ed and I, and I know from experience that he does this. Which is why priests and credos and priesthoods in the ‘home’ Realms have always felt real and meant something, long before the superb series of books crafted (in part using Ed’s notes, of course) by Eric Boyd and Julia Martin and others.
love to all,
THO
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Athenon
Acolyte
USA
43 Posts |
Posted - 07 Nov 2004 : 13:32:58
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THO or Ed,
I have a question that I have wondered about since around 1988 or so. I really like the picture on the top of the Old Grey Box. I've always wondered who the bearded rider is supposed to be. Any hints or clues would be appreciated...
Thanks, |
Will Maranto
Representing the Realms in the Wilds of Northern Louisiana |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 07 Nov 2004 : 15:18:18
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Hello, all.
Athenon, Ed asked Keith Parkinson (the artist who did that particular piece) that back in 1987, and Keith shrugged and said, “Whoever you want it to be. I dunno.” So there you have it. Ed wanted a more Merrie Olde Englande/Sherwood Forest look, and in fact was asked to prepare (and did) an exhaustive art order of three figures (with particular attention to every last little detail of what they’d be wearing).
Faraer, I passed your post about wanting to see The Haunted Well on to Ed, whose reply follows:
In design terms, it wouldn’t be hard to convert it to 3.5e, but it would have to wait for three things: next year (Hasbro budgets done and set for 2004, so no more web acquisitions), approval from those who do such buying that they want to see it at all (and remember, there are ‘orphaned’ EEE and Volo’s columns from DRAGON floating around that WotC already owns and has paid for, that haven’t seen publication because of lack of desire to show them to the wider world), and -- being as it’s an adventure that uses some hitherto-unseen (but very minor) magic items and spell effects -- approval by the internal WotC ‘Rules Council,’ who have a lot of far more important work on their plates to review.
So I’d like to publish it, somewhere and somewhen, as much as you’d like to see it, Faraer, but neither of us should hold our breath awaiting it. I’ll mention it to certain Mysterious Masked WotC Masters, though, and see what befalls.
So saith Ed. I suspect Ed also wants us Knights to return to the Well and play through it before he unleashes it on a waiting world, too. And as you may have gathered, we’re an oh-so-obedient lot.
love to all,
THO
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Lord Rad
Great Reader
United Kingdom
2080 Posts |
Posted - 07 Nov 2004 : 17:55:23
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Hi Ed and Hooded One
I wondered if you could provide a bit of information on some of the poisons of the Realms - names, plant origins etc., effects... I know its been a bit of a taboo subject in the past but it if it is no longer a problem with talking about poisons (and of course, if you have the time), it would be greatly appreciated and help with my campaign 
I also recall from a Realms seminar with Ed at GENCON UK a few years back (London Olympia) that he spoke about the early days of the Realms when someone from TSR (cant recall who) called Ed to ask him to write up an article on poisons for the Realms... does this exist anywhere?
Thank you very much for your time. ::bows:: |
Lord Rad
"What? No, I wasn't reading your module. I was just looking at the pictures"
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Faraer
Great Reader
3308 Posts |
Posted - 07 Nov 2004 : 20:43:31
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'Tis as I thought about the adventure, though it irks to see so much trivial material put up on wizards.com instead.
For what it's worth, the Realms poisons I've noted are belpren, drow sleep poison, dwarfbane, huld, jeteye, lhurdas, night sleep, orvas, prespra, saisha, ulcrun, and varrakas. |
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TheHermit
Seeker
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 11:06:29
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quote:
Originally posted by George Krashos
Oh, and I loved your sig. Made me grab my "Inside Raven's Bluff" accessory and look you up! Thanks Joe.
I'm not sure why you're thanking me - I look back on some of that stuff and cringe when I read it now. (Of course, I also look back on that stuff and say "How come I'm not still writing that stuff?", so there you have it.)
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- "Glitz & Klax's Potions & Elixirs"/"The Sandmen", Inside Ravens Bluff, The Living City; 1990; TSR, Inc.
- "The Far Guardians' Traveler's Mission", Port of Ravens Bluff; 1991, TSR, Inc.
- "Signs Painted", Polyhedron #70; April, 1992; TSR, Inc.
- Communications Director, Coliseum of Comics, Orlando, FL - http://coliseumofcomics.com/ |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 14:30:46
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To Taelohn and Wooly Rupert:
Well, of COURSE I’d like more special powers. Seriously, I’d love to live the rest of my life, from this moment on, able to wield these powers or effects, at will:
Ask Advice Of Dead Ancestors and Former Teachers
Counter The Bosom-Droop of Age
Feather Fall
Fly
Mend
Message
Move Silently
Peer into Ed’s Mind
Procure Munchies from Afar
Recover from Peering into Ed’s Mind
Spider Climb
Teleport From/To Lap of My Choice
Teleport Self and Lover from Bed to Surface and Location of My Choice (and then back again)
Two-hour Spontaneous Orgasm
Unseen Servant
Write A Brilliant Fantasy Novel (Without Selling Soul To Anyone)
Write Another One
That’s just those that’ve occurred to me off the top of my head, just now. I’m disconsolate at the thought I can never have any of these in real life, and find myself in need of being cheered up.
Personally. Right now. Leash and all.
Helpful scribes?
THO
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 16:02:22
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Oh, there's at least a couple of things on that list I'd be happy to help you accomplish! Two hours may be tricky, but I consider it a worthy challenge!  |
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 Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 18:00:18
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Hello, all. Thanks, Wooly; I knew I could count on you. I bring Ed’s latest reply, this to Kajehase from fair Sweden (a country Ed enjoyed visiting very much):
Sorry, Kajehase, it IS just a coincidence. The “Obarskyrs” have no relationship at all to “Boareskyr Bridge” (please note the ‘e’ in there). Jeff Grubb and his wife Kate Novak named the ruling family of Cormyr, and I named the place (after the long-ago adventurer Boareskyr [also my creation] who built the first bridge there). Ah, but you’re a daring scribe, if you’re going to try for the Lady Hooded’s leash. Me, I’d just walk up to her and ask for a kiss -- that usually gets you a kiss and then some.
So saith Ed, who’s busily blowing my cover again (reputation? Hah! Gone long ago, in one sense, and better than ever, in another).
love to all,
THO
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Verghityax
Learned Scribe
131 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 18:15:09
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Dear Ed,
I know that You're extremely busy and while I'm still waiting for Your reply concerning some features of the Baldur's Gate I have another plead which is not that urgent this time. I'm very, very fond of dwarves, gnomes and halflings, therefore I would be extremely happy if You could give more details (apart from what has been written in official FR sourcebooks) about following places:
1) Friendly Arm Inn
2) Durlag's Tower
3) Gullykin
4) Corm Orp
5) Hardbuckler
6) Blingdenstone
7) The Great Rift and its cities
8) Iltkazar
9) Gracklstugh
Thanks in advance! :) |
Edited by - Verghityax on 08 Nov 2004 18:51:34 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 20:34:59
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Ah, but you’re a daring scribe, if you’re going to try for the Lady Hooded’s leash. Me, I’d just walk up to her and ask for a kiss -- that usually gets you a kiss and then some.
So saith Ed, who’s busily blowing my cover again (reputation? Hah! Gone long ago, in one sense, and better than ever, in another).
love to all,
THO
Hmm, it's that simple? Ah, well, doing the bit with the leash has been, ah, interesting... |
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 Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 21:30:26
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Hello, all. Ed replies to Jerryd this time:
Hi, Jerry! Yes, I’m afraid the dreaded NDA wall hath come down, and I can say little on your chapters (and many other topics besides [sigh]).
You’re quite correct on the higher mortality rate in the Realms than in the real-world, with one seldom-mentioned difference: these days, in Faerun, there are fewer ‘killer plagues’ than in our real world (medieval, Dark Ages, Renaissance, and even the post First World War so-called “Spanish Flu”). There USED to be just as many ‘plagues’ among humans in the Realms, but the mingling of so many species (predatory beasts and ‘intelligent races’) would tend to pass around all the ‘bad bugs’ centuries ago, so most folk in the Realms are now fairly resistant to diseases. So nowadays, individuals die of disease all the time, and many travellers are unwitting carriers, but pandemics are rare.
As has been said before, the Realms in general is more gender-equal than our real world (although I’m speaking in generalities here). Widows and widowers often remarry or just re-cohabit (remember, the pantheistic Realms is VERY different from our medieval real world, wherein the European recorded history we have is of a society dominated by one faith, albeit with many schisms: it’s simply wrong to think of “marriage” customs in the Realms in anything like Christian terms).
You are quite correct (in your reply to the Hooded One) when you point out that most priesthoods want folk to have abundant offspring, but she’s right in disagreeing with you that Faerunians consciously “place a high value on fertility and childbirth.” To them, it’s simply normal for women to be very fertile (hence the use of herbal contraceptives by many women who for one reason or another dare not have a child at a certain time [examples: a warrior woman in the midst of desperate guerilla-style warfare, for whom a pregnancy will hamper them when fighting, and a babe die of lack of care when born; or a noblewoman, priestess, or other socially prominent individual who’ll rose rank or perhaps even her life by bearing the child of the ‘wrong’ man, or a child at all]).
Your assumptions about most warfare being conducted by males is (as a generalization, of course) right, and so most battle casualties will in turn be male, yes, and so there will indeed tend to be significant numbers of widows who are still of childbearing age. You’re correct that (aside from VERY small-population hamlets and villages, where some women will be jealous of others who can seduce several men, and so sneer at their bastard children, and the aforementioned noble and royal cases) there’s little stigma to being a bastard child.
I’m not so certain that (aside from those dominated by priests of certain faiths) there’d be “significant social pressure” on widows to continue bearing children. It’s more that, again, it’s ‘the normal way of things,’ and isn’t thought about all that much in general social mores.
Which brings me to your “wild and wicked thought.” Now, tempting as this idea is to the fiction writer in me (sorry, Realms porn fanciers, I merely said I was tempted -- and, by the way, The Hermit is quite correct in pointing out that it seems to be largely a fiction [we can try to pin the blame on the French romantic writers who also cooked up Lancelot]), I’m going to have to say no to this as a general custom. I will, however, accept that certain priesthoods (Sharess ahem, leaps to mind) might hold with such ideas, and that unscrupulous local rulers, priests, and landowners might try to invent and claim such a right, after hearing bardic ballads and minstrels’ tales that feature the notion. The “lord chasing the lass his eye falls upon” element so crucial to Tess of the D’Urbervilles and so many other tales of yesteryear is a stock element of certain sorts of novels because it’s rooted in human nature. In the Realms, of course, I see no reason why (given that there are herbs that ‘unman’ a male for a time, and others that force him to be rampant) women with power and influence couldn’t go chasing men in this way. However, combining these claimings with wedding nights is only going to be acceptable to certain faiths, so it’s not going to be the norm.
Now we have been assuming ‘power overcoming the desire of the wedded couple’ here, and being as you brought up the Obarskyrs as an example, I should point out again that in their case (as probably with many nobility, such as the nobles of Tethyr centuries back), certain commoners saw it as an honour to ‘entertain’ royalty or nobility -- and bearing bastard children was could well mean social advancement, not (real-world Christian thinking again) shame or loss of status.
An interesting topic to explore, but one can readily see (given the Code of Ethics and now the Code of Conduct) why those who publish the Realms have been less than eager to allow delvings along these paths. On the other hand, one only has to glance at a Terry Goodkind novel to know that other fantasy publishers go much farther than we’ve ever cared to.
So saith Ed, who’s busily putting his garden to bed for another year. He hasn’t had to fell any trees for firewood, though, as obliging windstorms keep splitting the old forest giants and bringing them down for him.
love to all,
THO
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RevJest
Learned Scribe
USA
115 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 22:18:16
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Well, of COURSE I’d like more special powers. Seriously, I’d love to live the rest of my life, from this moment on, able to wield these powers or effects, at will:
<... snipped ...>
That’s just those that’ve occurred to me off the top of my head, just now. I’m disconsolate at the thought I can never have any of these in real life, and find myself in need of being cheered up.
Personally. Right now. Leash and all.
Helpful scribes?
THO
THO,
Personally, I've always wanted to be a god. I think I'd make a rather interesting one. Should a new pantheon ever pop up, and should I be invited to join, I promise to pop over to visit. Whereapon I shall grant you what powers you wish, in exchange for learning which Knight of Myth Drannor is yours. I feel this to be a fair exchange.
Regards,
Simon
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"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 22:49:52
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed, who’s busily putting his garden to bed for another year. He hasn’t had to fell any trees for firewood, though, as obliging windstorms keep splitting the old forest giants and bringing them down for him.
love to all,
THO
What, Ed, no naked wood cutting this year? But wait we must not forget the boots, so only mostly naked wood cutting. And only those who saw some of his replies to me on the Mailing List about Storm that he posted last October or the October before that will understand this. :) |
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 |
Edited by - Kuje on 08 Nov 2004 22:55:39 |
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Kajehase
Great Reader
Sweden
2104 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 23:16:37
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Sorry, Kajehase, it IS just a coincidence. The “Obarskyrs” have no relationship at all to “Boareskyr Bridge” (please note the ‘e’ in there). Jeff Grubb and his wife Kate Novak named the ruling family of Cormyr, and I named the place (after the long-ago adventurer Boareskyr [also my creation] who built the first bridge there).
Aww... And here I though I had discovered where some Obarskyr bastard were hidden away in a time when those weren't quite so numerous and therefore more of a potential threat to the crown of Cormyr. Guess I'll have to make your adventurer an Obarskyr bastard with a spelling-deficiency then
quote:
this to Kajehase from fair Sweden (a country Ed enjoyed visiting very much):
I take it the visit weren't during the fall then...
quote:
Ah, but you’re a daring scribe, if you’re going to try for the Lady Hooded’s leash. Me, I’d just walk up to her and ask for a kiss -- that usually gets you a kiss and then some.
And well... guess I'll have to try it then... *walks up to the Hooded One* Milady... might a poor lad who's been deprived of the touch of a member of the fairer sex for too long ask for a kiss? Even a modest peck on the cheek will do me good.
And in conclusion, thanks for your quick answer Ed, it's very annoying to have silly little things like that gnaw away at your brains I think. |
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 08 Nov 2004 23:22:33 |
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ijkay
Acolyte
Canada
17 Posts |
Posted - 08 Nov 2004 : 23:21:23
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Well met
A much belated thank you to Ed and THO for answers to my Curse of the Blood Royal questions. I'd follow Ed's advice but I see the line of Forum folks calmly walking up the Lady Hooded One for affections is nearly as long as the one that was waiting to hold her leash.
So all I have is more questions:
Given the information already imparted regarding the Curse of the Blood Royal I was wondering about a couple a details which may or may not be anwserable due to those pesky NDA demons.
Do you envision the source of the power of the curse coming from whatever connection the elves established with the land and the Obarskyr bloodline(given the events of Cormyr novel regarding the establishment of ther realm) or from a more primitive or rather primeval 'earth magic'? If the latter, would you picture this connected to some sort of simpler ancient aspect of Chauntea or not? Has such 'earth magic' based power manifested itself in any other rulings families of countries in the Realms?
On a totally unrelated topic
In the Secrets of the Magister book, you disclosed a few details of 'The Opener's Map' created by the former Magister Sarndaen Dalabar. I am curious about what one of these stone tiles might look like. Given the tiles were from the feasthall of a titan castle, how large would a tile be? How much area would a single tile depict? If the tile included an urban setting with multiple portals did the arcs simply appear to originate from the dot labelled 'Town' or did the map have a magical 'zoom' function? Did a tile have any mechanism to indicate the physical location of a tile that would lie adjacent to it?
Given Shaundakul's expanded interest in portals, would you see his priesthood as actively pursuing finding the pieces of the Map?
Given the age of the Map, how complete would it be in the 1370's? I realize it was uncomplete at the time of its dispersion (percentage wise how complete?), but I am curious how prevalent portal building has been in past few centuries versus the previous milleniums.
The reason for this series of questions is I am considering having the PCs discover a tile which would show an area that multiple power groups would be highly interested in. Just for fun of course.
Thanks for any help you can give
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Ian Franks
"So I thought to myself who gives a damn if all the jobs are gone, I'm going to be a Pirate on the River Saskatchewan!", The Arrogant Worms |
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Steven Schend
Forgotten Realms Designer & Author
USA
1715 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 00:30:44
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quote:
Originally posted by kuje31
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
So saith Ed, who’s busily putting his garden to bed for another year. He hasn’t had to fell any trees for firewood, though, as obliging windstorms keep splitting the old forest giants and bringing them down for him.
love to all,
THO
What, Ed, no naked wood cutting this year? But wait we must not forget the boots, so only mostly naked wood cutting. And only those who saw some of his replies to me on the Mailing List about Storm that he posted last October or the October before that will understand this. :)
Alas, that's an old joke amongst us dinosaurs, Kuje.
And I'd not rule it out from Ed, as just because the wind knocks them over doesn't make them small enough to cart inside into one's fireplace. Just knowing what November's like in Canada's enough to get most folk to rethink the strategy, though. Still, the Bearded One is made of sterner stuff than most mere mortals such as ourselves....
Steven
Who hopes everyone's backs are in good shape after putting the gardens to rest for the winter....
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For current projects and general natter, see www.steveneschend.com
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Sourcemaster2
Senior Scribe
USA
361 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 00:41:02
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| HO, I bow in humble gratitude for your aid (and to take a dirty-old-man-glance up yon skirt, of course). Know that my sarcasm is ready to bury you upon demand. My first question was not asked with any godslaying ambition; I was more curious to see if Faerunian mortals could adapt methods of spellcasting without the intercession of the gods, should such ever become necessary. Thanks especially for the info on divine casters; I've always felt that the cut-and-paste approach to god-granted magic was too shallow, and it's nice to find out the real Realms doesn't work that way. Continuing on the queries de la mojo, I was wondering 1) If a cleric of a particular faith blesses something-a weapon, for example-and the enchanted object falls into unsavory hands, will anything happen? For instance, if a priestess of Selune crafts a sword, is slain, and her blade taken by Sharran worshipers, will Selune react? Could the weapon lose its power or reveal a previously unsuspected curse, or are divinely enchanted objects like their arcane counterparts, just tools that can be used by anyone who knows how to use them? 2) Is there any FR reason outside of game balance for wizardly and sorcerous magic being unable to heal except through life-transfer or very high level spells? 3) I asked this a while back on the Keep general section, but are there any nice sources for the creation and/or effects of defensive magics? Wards are a common feature in FR books, but I haven't seen much hard info on them. Are there any varieties or specific qualities that are favored or frequently/easily/cheaply available? Particular feats or spells? I give preemptive thanks to the Wearer of the Stainless Hood and exeunt stage left. |
But what have all the passing years/Done, but breed new angers, fears?/Show me now an equal worth/To innocence I earned at birth. |
Edited by - Sourcemaster2 on 09 Nov 2004 00:51:15 |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 01:35:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Steven Schend
Alas, that's an old joke amongst us dinosaurs, Kuje.
And I'd not rule it out from Ed, as just because the wind knocks them over doesn't make them small enough to cart inside into one's fireplace. Just knowing what November's like in Canada's enough to get most folk to rethink the strategy, though. Still, the Bearded One is made of sterner stuff than most mere mortals such as ourselves....
Steven
Who hopes everyone's backs are in good shape after putting the gardens to rest for the winter....
Living not that far from Canada I can firmly understand it. :) Rochester and Buffalo and the other areas around Canada here in NY always seems to get that bitter cold blowing across the wonderful Great Lakes. Sigh snow tonight is the forcast. :) |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 04:26:35
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Hello, all. kuje, I just e-talked to Ed, and he said: no snow yet, but bitter cold. He was out clearing brush down by the road, stripped to the waist, and looked up and saw a teenaged lass staring at him -- from the depths of her snorkel-hooded parka! Ah, Canada when the season turns . . .
In the words of Ed that follow, the Great Sage tries to help Verghityax:
Sigh. Here we run straight into NDAs, I’m afraid. Let me try to take your questions in order:
1. [NDA]
2. [NDA]
3. There’s NDA trouble here as well, but I can say this much about just one temple: the Rose Portal, the Baldurian house of Lathander the Morninglord, is a beautiful structure made of rose-red sandstone, cut and polished into a upsweeping-from-the-ground giant pair of humans hands, clasped together. Long, narrow stained glass (pink in hue, of course) windows are located between the fingers, and the entire structure has been coated in melted glass (sandstone being a notoriously soft, easily-weathered stone). Spells cast within the vaulted central sanctuary of this place cause ‘doors’ of red radiance to appear and drift about in the air, at various heights (these are illusions, ‘shadows’ of magical portals rather than real portals -- but when the clerical choir that dwells in the temple, and in tallhouses immediately around it, sing particular harmonies during hymns, some of these doors drift together, and a real portal appears; its destination is said to be any other consecrated altar of Lathander in Faerun that its user is familiar with [has previously visited]).
4. Certainly, for “a few.”
First, the street that runs along the inside of the city walls from the Stormkeep (the fortress at the westernmost end of the walls) to Black Dragon Gate is known as ‘The Run.’
The street that runs along the edge of the docks from the Seatower of Balduran (feature 6 on the Volo’s map) to The Water-Queen’s House (8) is ‘the Western Wet,’ and the street that runs along the docks from the two ‘keel-slips’ (boatbuilding drydocks) east of The Counting House (29) around the ship-basin and along the wharves as far as Waendel’s Wharf (the centermost protruding dock protruding from the east side of the harbor, that has three [and only three] ‘legs’) is ‘the Eastern Wet.’
The wharf to the south of Waendel’s (that has four ‘legs’) is Stormwynd Dock.
The wide, legless wharf north of Waendel’s is Athcaulyr’s Stand.
The small wharf between Hethkantle’s Jetty and the Seatower of Balduran is Glaezel’s Dock (it’s had several owners and different names in the past; Manthuran Glaezel is the very wealthy head of a prosperous, long-prominent Baldurian family that owns many city businesses and properties), and the street that runs roughly northwest from its ‘dry’ (land) end, right out to the city wall (parallel to, and immediately south of, Caundorl Street), is Black Eel Street.
The street that begins at Black Eel Street one block in from the Western Wet, and curves northeast near Krammoch Arkhstaff’s house (21) to pass along the front of The Lady’s Hall (7) and then in front of Black Dragon Gate (10) right to the city wall, and thereafter curve south along the wall to The Rose Portal (27), is Wendserpent Street.
Belltoll Street (9 on the Volo’s map) runs from The Wide (2) west to join another street just north of the home and office of the sage Ragefast (a fascinating fellow who tries to trace the whereabouts of magic items and dragon treasures, among other things; this building is map feature 22). The street that Belltoll joins, that curves east from that moot to end at its moot with Wendserpent, and west from that moot to the Stormkeep, is Sornbanner Street.
Another street, Long Lane, can be found by tracing the way that passes the walls of the Blushing Mermaid (map feature 19) and Manycoins House (20) to curve to the eastern city gate. The northern end of Long Lane is a small triangular open plaza (often crowded with wagons loading and unloading crates, coffers, and barrels destined for, or fresh come from, city shops). This open space is called ‘the Thulgrave,’ because the tall, narrow fountain at its heart (a pillar of stone carved into the likeness of a waterspout, with the hands of Talos and of Umberlee rising out of fierce waves around its base to direct the waterspout higher; its water falls back down into the waves and drains away through holes bored at their lowest points) is Thulgrave’s Fountain. Ilgrar Thulgrave was a wealthy merchant fleet shipowner (and yes, he’s buried in the base of the fountain, so it’s literally ‘the Thulgrave’). It should be noted that “plaza” is a word unknown in the Realms. In Baldur’s Gate, such an open space is called a ‘strake.’
Immediately east of Long Lane, paralleling it on its path from the city gate to the Thulgrave (and running right past the doors of map feature 5, the Elfsong Tavern), is Lorammor Street. Many small shops line Lorammor (sometimes three establishments to a building, in cellar, on street level, and in the upper level).
The street that passes Manycoins House (20) on its west side, and curves around to the southernmost city gate, is Nuthkhal’s Way.
The street that encircles The Wide (2), running from The Counting House (29) north past the doors of Flamesinger House (23), and then south again to pass the doors of The Rose Portal (27), is Manyspears Lane. Its run is dominated by three- and four-story tallhouses that have been divided into many small apartments; many Baldurian shopkeepers, crafters, and shop assistants dwell along Manyspears.
Lastly, three moots (street intersections) have names that visitors to Baldur’s Gate would do well to know, because locals use them as everyday landmarks (e.g. “He dwells seaward of Three Spires”). They are: Three Spires, Fox Bottom, and Lionsmoot.
Three Spires, named for the spired towers of three ornate private mansions that tower above the moot, is the six-way intersection just west of map feature 21 (Krammoch Arkhstaff’s house). On the Volo’s map, it’s directly above the numeral “2” of the “21.” The north-south street that passes between the “2” and the “1” is Hauth Lane, and the other two streets involved in the moot are Wendserpent Street and Blackraven Lane (Arkhstaff’s house actually fronts on Blackraven, and it runs west through the moot to end in a moot with Chalsendace Street, a curving street lined with the mansions of the wealthy, that runs from the city wall to end in a moot with Stormcanter Street.
Years ago, Fox Bottom was a wooded hollow where a vixen denned under rocks and bore brood after brood of hungry foxes. Now it’s the closest thing Baldur’s Gate has to a slum: a moot surrounded by crowded, run-down rooming-houses where rats scurry, washing hangs on high everywhere, and beggars and maimed old sailors are watched warily by well-armed patrols. Fox Bottom can be found a mere two blocks south of Manycoins House (20), where Long Lane crosses Hulkael Street. Hulkael begins in the Lathdell (the small open strake where the Shrine of the Suffering, Volo’s map feature 26, stands), and winds south through Murl’s Rest (the strake where Sorcerous Sundries, map feature 14, stands) to pass along the east side of The Blade and Stars inn (map feature 18), before hooking around west and northwest to the docks.
Lionsmoot is just southeast of Stormkeep. From the fortress, one takes Stormshore Street (feature 11 on the Volo’s map, and yes, it runs clear across the city, not far north of the docks, through where the numeral “11” appears on that map, and beyond) to the end of Stormcanter Street. That threeway moot, where Stormcanter begins its run across the city, is named for The House of the Lion, a luxurious festhall that stands in its eastern angle. For some years, it’s been the habit of young ‘blades’ (men of youth, style, and coin) and ‘lacethroats’ (daring young women of style and coin enough to dress fashionably) of the city to gather on pleasant evenings to duel, gamble, flirt to choose bedpartners for the night, and parade their fashions and attitudes. When things grow too rowdy, the ‘waycudgels’ (bouncers) of the brothel go out and drive many of the couples indoors to the Lion to continue their revelry, scattering the rest to continue their fun elsewhere.
Pronunciations: “WAYNe-del” and “Ath-call-EER’s” and “THULL-gray-ve” and “Lore-AM-more” and “NUTH-call’s” and “Chall-SEN-dace” and “Hull-KALE”
5. [NDA]
So saith Ed. Well, at least you’ve got about a third of the Baldurian streets named, now! Sorry about the unanswered questions, Verghityax, but at least Ed’s NDA notations tell you he’s involved in some way with something to do with Baldur’s Gate that’s not yet appeared. I’m guessing a licensed product (Atari computer game?), but that’s just a guess -- Ed has told me absolutely NOTHING about this.
love to all,
THO |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 05:05:31
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hello, all. kuje, I just e-talked to Ed, and he said: no snow yet, but bitter cold. He was out clearing brush down by the road, stripped to the waist, and looked up and saw a teenaged lass staring at him -- from the depths of her snorkel-hooded parka! Ah, Canada when the season turns . . .
He can have some our snow if he truly wants it. :) Grumble sometimes the Great Lakes can be real pains in places better left unmentioned. |
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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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 06:55:53
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hello, all. kuje, I just e-talked to Ed, and he said: no snow yet, but bitter cold. He was out clearing brush down by the road, stripped to the waist, and looked up and saw a teenaged lass staring at him -- from the depths of her snorkel-hooded parka! Ah, Canada when the season turns . . .
*snickers* We get the same thing down here in Florida, whenever the temperature drops below 60°! The natives start bundling up, shivering and complaining about the cold, while transplants such as myself are still in short sleeves and loving it! I laugh at this every winter.(1) 
Footnote: (1) Winter on the Space Coast consists of 3 non-contiguous weeks of chilly (sometimes even cold) weather. |
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Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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Ty
Learned Scribe
USA
168 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 13:39:13
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quote:
Originally posted by kuje31
quote:
Originally posted by Steven Schend
Alas, that's an old joke amongst us dinosaurs, Kuje.
And I'd not rule it out from Ed, as just because the wind knocks them over doesn't make them small enough to cart inside into one's fireplace. Just knowing what November's like in Canada's enough to get most folk to rethink the strategy, though. Still, the Bearded One is made of sterner stuff than most mere mortals such as ourselves....
Steven
Who hopes everyone's backs are in good shape after putting the gardens to rest for the winter....
Living not that far from Canada I can firmly understand it. :) Rochester and Buffalo and the other areas around Canada here in NY always seems to get that bitter cold blowing across the wonderful Great Lakes. Sigh snow tonight is the forcast. :)
Try living amidst the entirety of the Great Lakes. Lake Superior and Lake Michigan are not forgiving come November. Speaking of which, I'd best be chopping down some trees soon for my own firewood this winter lest I be the one freezing like poor Kuje31. |
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Lashan
Learned Scribe
USA
235 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 13:39:16
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Reading about the streets of Baulder's Gate has gotten me thinking about the old Waterdeep ghost stories. Add this to the chilling weather, the recent Halloween, and the raking of many leaves, and I am suddenly wondering about ghost stories of Tantras! I might have asked this before, though. Are there just too many priests in Tantras to really have ghosts? If so, then what about ghosts of Caluant, or even the Vast in general?
My humble thanks. |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 18:19:22
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Hi Ed,
I am not sure if you can answer this but. A few people were discussing Larloch over on the WOTC boards and it's now turned into a shouting match of "Well the PC's are special and they should be able to kill him!" Vs. "Larloch is just one of the many things in FR that you just don't go against."
So my question, based on the info you sent many years ago that can be found here on Candlekeep and also on the Pages of the Sages web site, is what would you say to those who think that because Larloch is just an evil lich that he needs to be killed since he also has undead servents/slaves? Is his home really a dungeon crawl as some of them seem to think? Or is he truly just something you don't mess with because he WILL hand a PC group of adventurers thier nether regions if they try to attack and invade his home.
This goes back to the "if it has stat's it needs to die" syndrome. And since TSR and WOTC stat'd him they meant for PC's to invade his home to try to kill him. Same deal with anyhing else that was stat'd and evil or if you are playing a good party then anything that is good aligned and stat'd.
If you could supply any words on his defenses, magic items, spells, etc, they would be nice to know. Also we know he is stat'd in Lords of Darkness and Volo's Guide but some of the posters were looking for more info on him.
Also for the board members: I'm trying to recall a passage of text that stated if the PC's got higher levels then you would up the NPC's levels to match.... I believe it talked about the Chosen of Mystra as an example... |
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 |
Edited by - Kuje on 09 Nov 2004 18:39:31 |
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Faraer
Great Reader
3308 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 19:51:34
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| FR0D p. 17? The Realms has always worked on the principle that NPCs can do whatever the DM needs them to do, not what the books say, this being a storytelling game rather than a referencing game. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 20:35:40
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quote:
Originally posted by kuje31
Hi Ed,
I am not sure if you can answer this but. A few people were discussing Larloch over on the WOTC boards and it's now turned into a shouting match of "Well the PC's are special and they should be able to kill him!" Vs. "Larloch is just one of the many things in FR that you just don't go against."
A shouting match over there? Get out! That kinda thing never happened when I was allowed on those boards...
quote:
Originally posted by kuje31
Also for the board members: I'm trying to recall a passage of text that stated if the PC's got higher levels then you would up the NPC's levels to match.... I believe it talked about the Chosen of Mystra as an example...
I seem to recall reading something along those lines in FR1, myself, but I'd have to check when I wasn't getting ready to run out the door to go to work. It said something like "keep the NPCs 10 levels ahead of the PCs", or something like that.
Larloch is nearly a force of nature... I can't think of any grouping of forces that would provide for an even fight against him and his allies... Someone that scares Szass Tam is not someone I'd care to tango with. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 09 Nov 2004 : 21:18:35
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quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
FR0D p. 17? The Realms has always worked on the principle that NPCs can do whatever the DM needs them to do, not what the books say, this being a storytelling game rather than a referencing game.
Thanks Faraer and Wooly. :) Found the two passages I was thinking of now.
And yeah Wooly it's not like that EVER happens over there. |
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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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2004)
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