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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
 Posted - 27 Feb 2026 : 08:52:54
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On dragon form of the Netherese Orogoth family
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2025809231442596126
Feb 23, 2026
@DevonSaggers
The original Netherese Orogoth family sought draconic power and wanted the ability to assume dragon form, and legend holds they succeeded and “transformed themselves into dragons.” If so, what type of dragons do you think they became? House Orogoth | Forgotten Realms Wiki | Fandom
@TheEdVerse
They became black dragons. Some of the first family arcanists to succeed in crafting rituals that would give them dragon form—and let them return to their human forms, so they could switch back and forth at will—were three Orogoth sisters. Eldest to youngest, they were Meireira (“Meer-REAR-ah”), Lashanna, and Olopé. As their brothers struggled to duplicate their magical successes (for the Orogoths of that time were very independent-minded, and although they might aid each other with material components, hints, and advice, they all wanted to master the necessary magics on their own, so they’d not be beholden to each other), the sisters all—working independently, but agreeing on a common goal and sharing information on living dragons they might approach, to play willing or unwilling parts in their researches—sought to duplicate the breath weapons and other abilities of other sorts of dragons, but enjoyed very few successes. Their mother, Rubaerra, did eventually learn how to become black, blue, and red wyrms, but not combine powers of one with another—and shared nothing at all of her magic, so when she eventually perished (torn apart in midair by Klauth) her secrets died with her. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 27 Feb 2026 : 08:56:52
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On Ed's darker version of the Realms
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2026460675313181082 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2026461539755065853 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2026469119931924820 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2026469720212291613
Feb 25, 2026
@DungeonNoir
Would love to know what @TheEdVerse meant by "his own version of the Forgotten Realms, as run in his personal campaign, is much darker than published versions."
https://t.co/Ar8nSNrt6K
@TheEdVerse
I meant that TSR's Code of Conduct when they began publishing the Realms, prohibited evil winning and all mention of fratricide, torture, rape, incest or any darker moment of human behavior; everything had to be "brightened up."
I did NOT mean that FR life was grim.
@TheEdVerse
For instance, the King Lear plot Chris Perkins echoed in STORM KING'S THUNDER would have been impossible back then.
Or even mentioning that Lancelot and Guinevere had a fling while she was married to King Arthur; I had a DRAGON article killed for that very thing.
@DungeonNoir
Oh this is fascinating. Thank you. I did not realize it was so "protected" back then
@TheEdVerse
Oh, yes. Evil could never be seen to triumph (though it could have triumphed offstage, before the events of the presented fiction or game adventure). Not delving into chicanery meant no adult clashing philosophies, politics beyond "the shout and the sword," and so on.
@TheEdVerse
I once suggested a fiction subplot about propaganda: a ruler spreading falsehoods against a powerful noble family to make the public turn against them. The editors were HORRIFIED. Absolutely not! But carving someone up while feasting with them? That was just fine. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 27 Feb 2026 : 09:11:10
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On speaking Common in Sespech
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2025960494893285777 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2026470599166464503
Feb 23, 2026
@TheEdVerse
And of course, it's Little Lore time! Another free lore snippet to enjoy...
https://t.co/7MoAcAbJbe
@XynRaven
This may sound like a foolish question, but I feel the need to ask: Is the common tongue used in Sespech?
@TheEdVerse
Yes. It is the prevalent tongue of the land. Most folk in the Vilhon speak the Common Tongue almost exclusively, larded with borrowed words and phrases from Elvish, Dwarvish, and various other languages, thanks to all the traveling merchants passing through all the time and bringing their words and pet phrases with them. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 27 Feb 2026 : 09:25:02
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On captain Myrkrism and Myrkul
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2027165654751601006 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2027167301313679758
Feb 27, 2026
@Doomprophet115
Does Vraevra's captain Myrkrism have any connections with Myrkul?
@TheEdVerse
Not particularly. They have similar names, but that’s it.
@XynRaven
Speaking of Myrkul, what's he up to since his revival?
You'd think he'd have plots for revenge on a certain devourer of souls, if what the stories are true.
@TheEdVerse
Heh. A video is coming (not soon), but the short answer is: Myrkul has decided to try stealthy intrigue (on his part and that of his senior clergy) because his earlier spread-fear-among-all tactics failed so deeply. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 05 Mar 2026 : 06:34:28
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On boiled turds in Neverwinter
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2028915232001712339
Mar 4, 2026
@memeslich
in Neverwinter they serve boiled turds
https://x.com/JUSTcatmeme/status/2028675294601650556
@Zane732
@TheEdVerse Okay, I'm pretty sure this is a joke, but could you confirm that please? I can't think of anyone more an expert to ask.
@TheEdVerse
I have heard some wayfarers say some very harsh things about the cuisine in Neverwinter, but this is a jest. If you boil turds, they become powder: soup. (Don't ask me how I know this. ;}) |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 07:39:42
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On deity venerated by circus performers
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2031093076303765600
Mar 10, 2026
@RebelTransbian
@TheEdVerse which deity in Faerun would circus performers venerate?
@TheEdVerse
Depends on the circus. If it includes a lot of beasts, add Malar to this list.
Primary worship: Milil, and Lliira and Oghma, also Lathander (creativity, athletics).
Lesser nods to Asmodeus (indulgence), Deneir (art, cartography, images, knowledge), Gond (inventiveness), Leira (deception, illusions), Sune (beauty), and Sharess.
Circuses that include exotic performers might also have staff who venerate Loviatar, Savras, and so on (mending services = Gond or a smith deity of the racial pantheon of the smith). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 07:44:35
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On surviving Vyshaan
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2031095490469572978
Mar 10, 2026
@soulfire2570878
Are any Vyshaan still around, do they know their heritage and what are they up to? Thanks Mr. Greenwood!!! Been a fan since I did a book report on The Making of a Mage in 1995.
@TheEdVerse
You’re very welcome, and well met!
There are no Vyshaanti resident on Toril. There are a handful of sun elves descended from that house who lurk in Abeir and on other planes, using other names and with far less power-hungry aims and interests. Most of them are at work on various schemes to win themselves personal powers of great longevity, shapeshifting into forms that have their own abilities, and mastery of arcane magic, with a focus on mythals, planar travel, and the ability to call on the Weave for healing and protection (mantles) while on Toril. A few of them are making brief forays into Toril, posing as adventurers and traders as they explore, work with Harpers and other adventurers, and search for spell scrolls, spellbooks, and magic items they can use. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 07:55:03
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On temple of Torog in Faerun
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2031871877879058574
Mar 12, 2026
@BrzenskaI
Hi ! Mr Greenwood... I wanted to ask. Are there any temples to Torog in Faerun, where an acolyte of the King that Crawls would be able to learn their craft ? Thank you for reading.
@TheEdVerse
Long-ago Realmslore requests answer time:
Rico Brzenska Supremacy @BrzenskaI
Hi ! Mr Greenwood... I wanted to ask. Are there any temples to Torog in Faerûn, where an acolyte of the King that Crawls would be able to learn their craft?
Answer:
Yes. However, the Lowerdark is where Torog lurks, and the closest temple to the surface world is in the Middledark directly under Nethjet in Thay (about six miles straight down). This temple, known as Orog Nai, isn’t located near any city or town.
A much larger and better-known temple to Torog is Orog Goorth, in the Lowerdark. It’s in the Deeps, or Great Bhaerynden, some 20 miles beneath the Shaar. I you could stand on the surface and look down as if everything was translucent, and you drew a line due east from Oozing Ruin and due north from Lightdrinker, where the two lines met is the cavern that Orog Goorth fills.
If you’re looking for something near the surface, a cult of Torog (almost entirely composed of humans with an interest in mining, or spelunking, or the Underdark) has a shrine to the King That Crawls in a cellar of a dockside warehouse in Innarlith, and there’s another (a cult of the wealthy and self-styled nobles of the Vilhon Reach) that meets in member’s mansions in Mimph.
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 08:00:58
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On Sossal and the Sossrim
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2032339836368011585
Mar 13, 2026
@Estilon01
I might be the only person on the planet that cares about this, do you have anything interesting to share about Sossal and the Sossrim? I'm interested in knowing about any notable places in the area and their culture.
@TheEdVerse
Yes, and I've put a lot of it into an upcoming video (on my Patreon and on my Facebook channel). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 08:23:13
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On role of breast milk in alchemical practices
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2032341317699731555
Mar 13, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Belated Realmslore Reply:#128286;InterruptingOctopus @OctoInterrupter
You certainly don't shy away from answering questions pertaining to breasts and their functions within TFR, so lemme ask a question: What role, if any, does breast milk play in alchemical practices? Do magically innate species impart some of their energies into their secretions?
[answer begins:]
Being as many alchemists are making things up as they go along, experimenting from notes (written by predecessors) that are often very fragmentary, the role breast milk plays varies widely. In general, it can be used to spur an egg of SOME other species into hatching, as it’s protein-rich (for fuel) and filled with ingredients that actively spur growth and development. It’s also used as a component in some successful healing potion recipes.
Species that have innate magic do indeed impart their Gift into their secretions, as well as something of their innate powers (darkvision or flying or shapeshifting, for example), so these could be used, respectively, as part of ointments or potions that conferred darkvision or flying or shapeshifting.
The successes and failures of such alchemy should be a matter of roleplaying. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 12:10:16
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On resurrecting The Simbul
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2033336548498784404 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2033365127500583271
Mar 16, 2026
@AshendaFiremyst
@TheEdVerse Is there any chance of The Symbul could be resurrected? Asking for a friend (me). She was, after all, my favorite of the seven. Red Wizards would be terrified! Teeheehee
@TheEdVerse
Belated Realmslore Replies Department: Back on a December 1st, Ashenda Firemyst I VTuber, Epilepsy Advocate @AshendaFiremyst
Asked me:
Is there any chance of The Symbul could be resurrected? Asking for a friend (me). She was, after all, my favorite of the seven. Red Wizards would be terrified! Teeheehee
Herewith, appending apologies for taking so long, is my reply:
While Mystra has thus far shown no signs of resurrecting any of her “fallen” Chosen, The Simbul exists as a Voice in the Weave, a sentience that can “ride the Weave” everywhere it extends (throughout Realmspace) and watch, listen, and speak. She has already, obviously with the full approval of Mystra, several times animated unconscious, feebleminded, disminded, comatose, and other living bodies that don’t have an active mind in charge, and used them for a time. Elminster has done this, too, sometimes with bodies whose resident minds he had to conquer. Leaving the ethics of doing so aside for the moment (it’s something I was deliberately exploring in Realms fiction), it is possible: so The Simbul could “come back” if she saw the need.
Will she? That’s up to your DM—and if you’re the DM, up to you.
@XynRaven
Is this standard for othere deities and their Chosen?
@TheEdVerse
No. Other deities might appoint new Chosen or Champions, but they lack any means of preserving the sentience of lost ones (the Weave is Mystra, and is Mystra's means). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 12:16:47
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On tools for writing underwater
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2033772126923034751
Mar 16, 2026
@IanWanderer
@TheEdVerse Question. What methods did aquatic races, such as the tritons or sea elves, use to write underwater?
@TheEdVerse
Belated Realmslore Replies Department: IanTheWanderer @IanWanderer asked me: "What methods did aquatic races, such as the tritons or sea elves, use to write underwater?"
Herewith, a Realmslore reply:
The slime of the little brown tetcher snail, which is very abundant in saltwater shallows, can be harvested without harming the little critter (they’re about the size of the end-joint of a delicate adult human hand) by gently detaching them from whatever they’re resting upon and immediately pushing upwards on their “foot.” It will exude a purple-black slime that doesn’t dissolve in water, and can be scrape-collected, or “caught” in the same way one can scoop a cylinder of real-world toothpaste that’s squeezed out of a tube underwater, and put in any sort of slime-tight container (such as a cork-stoppered or screwtop-secured potion vial). Use a stone or fire-hardened wood stylus to dip into this and write with it; when applied to a shell or rock or mica surface (or even wood, though the wood itself can be eaten away by marine worms over time, or rot), the snail slime forms an ink that hardens and lasts, in both dry sunny or shady damp out of water conditions, and underwater (fresh, brackish, or salt).
@CoffellAle61257
What am I going to do with this silver stylus?
@TheEdVerse
Oho, it has SO many alchemical uses and material component uses that you should get yourself scores of the things, perhaps hundreds. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 13:05:52
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On who claims the soul of a sacrifice
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2033770085060403257
Mar 17, 2026
@FrozenFinder2
@TheEdVerse A recent Reddit post brought up the question of, where does a creature's soul go if it is sacrificed in the name of a deity?
If Sharrans sacrifice a Selunite in Shar's name, does the soul get stolen by Shar or does Selune retain her claim over it?
Thank you!
@TheEdVerse
Belated Realmslore Reply Department: back on Sept 10 of last year, Frozen @FrozenFinder2 asked me: A recent Reddit post brought up the question of, where does a creature's soul go if it is sacrificed in the name of a deity?
If Sharrans sacrifice a Selunite in Shar's name, does the soul get stolen by Shar or does Selune retain her claim over it?
Herewith, a lore reply:
Many deities, and their clergies because they have told their clergies so, believe that if a living mortal is sacrificed in the name of the deity, that deity gains their soul. This isn’t true: souls go to the control of the deity the living being cleaved to more than any other deity (served more, believed in more, etc.). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 13:15:27
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On shadowstuff in the Material plane
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2033771458934067635
Mar 17, 2026
@franknsimmons
I have a very small lore question that for some reason has come up in my group's home game.
Are normal shadows, like from the sun, on the material plane made of shadowstuff, or have any connection to the Shadowfell, or are they just a dark spot like in real life?
@TheEdVerse
They are just a dark spot like in real life, UNLESS they happen to be located in a spot shadow magic was cast on that still strongly radiates that enchantment, or that a "shadow trap" spell has been cast on, to deliberately make a natural shadow into shadowstuff. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2026 : 13:24:06
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
On words for whip or lash:
@gkrashos
Hi Ed, having a play for Eric. As usual. What would be the elven word for whip/lash (noun), please? What about for the drow? If you are feeling generous, the Alzhedo (Calishite) term would be nice too. You know, slavers and all that...
@TheEdVerse
Whip or lash (the item): elven: nyrhlas; drow: neirt; Alzhedo: dazar
Whipping or lashing (the deed): elven: nyrtlassa; drow: neirtarr; Alzhedo: tuldazrim
#Realmslore
https://twitter.com/TheEdVerse/status/1252369327749120004 https://twitter.com/TheEdVerse/status/1252373497248010240 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2031863291484545465
Mar 12, 2026
@Lokali9
Drow for whip = elgluth
@TheEdVerse
That's the long "drover's whip" that can deal with/reach pack lizards or groups of slaves in harness, etc.
@M_M_Storyteller
oh, I always assumed that Elgluth was the name of the snake whips since it comprised the words Elgg (death, destroy/kill/slay) + Luth (cast/throw/hurl) which implies that the 'whip' not one that simply a tool to force compliance through pain is a 'caster of death'.
@TheEdVerse
The drow catch-all term for whips is neirt (singular and plural the same(, and whipping or lashing is neirtarr. Snake whips are kaptarr (from “kap” = fang + “tarr” = lash). Drover’s whips, which range from 30-60 feet long and are carried coiled on a drover's shoulder, so they come down at full or partial stretch at the direction of a skilled drover, are known as elgluth because they can readily kill a drow by breaking their neck or crushing their skull—or smash them to the ground senseless or with broken arms or shoulders, if the drover desires that, instead. Being as such whippings happen far more often in public than someone getting taken down deliberately with a snake whip (as snake whips are usually used for intimidation), drow in everyday usage dubbed drover’s whips with the “death through whipping” name, and it stuck. |
Edited by - questing gm on 21 Mar 2026 13:27:19 |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 11:42:55
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On making a traditional Mulani dish
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2036599369814647149 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2037686442894279081
Mar 28, 2026
@Artie_Pavlov
This week for the #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms I’m going to Thay. Making a traditional Mulani dish - Frikadeller, rolled balls of chopped meats on a bed of creamed vegetables. #Dnd #Ravenloft found in Thay and the realm of Hazlan.
@Artie_Pavlov
Cooking, wilting the spinach with salt butter and garlic is the easy step. I drained it too, but I feel like in hindsight I would need the liquid when creaming it later. #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms #Dnd #Ravenloft
@Artie_Pavlov
I’m using spicy pork sausage and 90% lean beef, light sourdough soaked in cream and milk and mixing by hand. The balls are going to be fluffy and fragile but that’s ok. #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms #Dnd #Ravenloft
@Artie_Pavlov
Just going to fry them up now. Tastes fantastic. #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms #dnd #Ravenloft
@Artie_Pavlov
Now to finish creaming the spinach with Mexican crema, spices, cheese, and a dash of water. #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms #Dnd #Ravenloft
@Artie_Pavlov
And here we go. Delicious result. Mulani Frikadeller as it appeared in #Ravenloft Gazetteer Vol 1. #Cooking in the #ForgottenRealms #Dnd this recipe needs no adjustments. It’s fantastic.
@Artie_Pavlov
@TheEdVerse these turned out phenomenal. I’m still eating leftovers and moaning #128518;
@TheEdVerse
Love it when someone loves my recipes!!!!
Thank you!
Happy leftover nomnomnoming!
@Artie_Pavlov
Would a dip-spread derived form it be relamslore friendly? Creamed spinach made with two cheeses and red pepper , chikli, and paprika spiced?
@TheEdVerse
Certainly! In the Vilhon and south of it (Innarlith, etc.) that's a preferred way of eating: on biscuits and on "cut slabs" (palm-sized; the term makes them sound huge) of certain vegetables. So, very much yes! |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 11:47:00
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On how does Auril's presence in the Prime affect her
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2018514013433610293
Feb 3, 2026
@TheEdVerse
And whenever a Lost Lore rides into view, a Little Lore is trotting close behind!
https://t.co/MHsdAdkBpc
@XynRaven
On the subject of Auril, how does her presence in the Prime affect her?
I hear that she spends much of her time in Icewind Dale rather than her Divine Realm, unlike most deities
But the same can be said for some such as Gwaeron Windstrom
How does this affect their immortality?
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: back on February 2, Xyn Raven @XynRaven asked:
On the subject of Auril, how does her presence in the Prime affect her?
I hear that she spends much of her time in Icewind Dale rather than her Divine Realm, unlike most deities
But the same can be said for some such as Gwaeron Windstrom
How does this affect their immortality?
Ed saith:
It has no effect at all on their immortality.
Gods who bide on Prime Material Planes do so because they enjoy the locale, or because they desire to learn more about life there in detail, or because they want to accomplish something thereby—or a combination of all three.
Divine realms tend to be crafted by a deity to create an environment they are most comfortable in when they can’t find such conditions already existing—but all deities want to “taste” varieties of conditions on many planes so as to know what’s possible, in the same way that a chef tastes many different foods and seasonings to increase their personal horizons and roster of taste-tools.
The only vulnerability that applies to a deity is that if they reside entirely in a Prime Material plane location and don’t maintain avatars elsewhere, they can be “slain forever” if killed on the Prime Material (as all deities know this, it very rarely happens; Auril has at least three avatars elsewhere that Elminster knows of, while she’s dwelling in Icewind Dale. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 11:51:20
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On Ed Greenwood's Guide to the Dalelands
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041177881498341653 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041172661221368157 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041177350583238900 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041178532752081302 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041179062077460606
Apr 6, 2026
@Nerdcognito
Ed Greenwood's Guide to the Dalelands just got its cover reveal and a delay to June.
Is authentic Forgotten Realms content finally arriving or is this just more of WotC using nostalgia bait to cover up their ongoing shift away from Classic Gaming roots?
@TheEdVerse
Realmsbound is helmed by Eric Menge, and is a collective of designers, writers, and artists who are all fans of the Realms (including former TSR staffers and longtime Realms novelists). Wizards has no direct involvement, and hasn't seen any draft material. I'm contributing lore.
@TheJ011yR0ger
I haven't read the original, but my first DM recommended the Dalelands as a great place to start a campaign for a new DM.
@TheEdVerse
I designed them that way. The Dales were one of three places in the Realms I began campaigns in (Cormyr and Waterdeep were the other two).
@JoshKellemen
Does your ability to publish this go all the way back to your original contract with tsr where you can create new canon lore as long as it doesn't conflict with published material or ndas?
@TheEdVerse
That's right. However, Realmsbound, like anyone else, can publish Realms lore on DM's Guild following their rules, whether I'm involved or not.
So: four books, one per fiscal quarter, starting with an overview of all the dales: color isometric maps, art, and dale writeups, each dale done by a different contributor. All drawing on my lore. I've been VERY impressed by what I've seen thus far. Set in 1501 DR, like the two new official Realms WotC books. Comprehensive; they will be canon at my gaming table.
@JoshKellemen
This might be angels dancing on the head of a pin stuff, what I'm asking is whether, because of your "ed presents" aspect does this contractually become canon unless contradicted in a future wotc publication?
Also. Fascinated re canon at your table, I had heard no ToT?
@TheEdVerse
Everything I publish about the Realms is canon unless/until contradicted in official publications (that's part of the original Realms purchase agreement of 1986). My players in the original, still-running Realms campaign vote on what meta stuff, and they voted no ToT.
@JoshKellemen
Meaning your table diverged greatly from published realms as far back as switch to 2e?
@TheEdVerse
Not greatly, because play in the original campaign is very character-focused/intrigue "close up," not worldspanning/overview-from-on-high, but yes, diverged indeed.
@TheManIn_Black_
Is this based during a particular timeframe?
@TheEdVerse
The first four books cover the Dalelands, and are set in 1501 DR. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 11:58:25
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On the original vision of Phlan
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041237118970642727
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041583105555739011 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041588050401132634 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041659925986762845
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041873668259582385
Apr 7, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies: Centi Metre @MarquisdeCodex
Hi Ed, sorry to bother you, but I wanted to follow up a question someone asked a few years back - do you recall how you originally envisioned the city of Phlan on the northern Moonshore, before Jeff Grubb and the TSR/SSI Pool of Radiance team used it in 1987?
Ed saith: Oh, yes, and I’ve written about that a time or two. Its river was originally the Phlansarr, not the Stojenow (and it had far fewer real-world European names). It always had nobles, and a walled section, and a ruined “Old Phlan” quarter, and was always wealthy due to the metals trade (a major smelting center for raw ores, and home to crafters who cast many useful goods, from bowls to hinges and hasps, and smiths who made chain and nails in bulk). It was a keep-to-itself-politically city of hard workers, never an imperial power nor having the slightest desire to be.
@XynRaven
What is the purpose of calling the ruler of Phlan the Lord Protector if monarchy is the governing system?
@TheEdVerse
Phlan is not a monarchy.
@XynRaven
... I'd like some clarification so I may accurately correct the Wiki article.
@TheEdVerse
Like real-life Cromwell calling himself "Lord Protector" (which is where the designers got the title from), the point was to reassure the populace that the city nobles wouldn't get any stronger by having royalty and an entrenched ruling system. Meaning that anyone could rise from nothing on merit, "making it" in this frontier metals-trade settlement. So because the Lord Protector trained his son to be successor, and the title and power was passed down his lineage, it may seem to us to be a monarchy, but the deliberate point is being made that it is not. The council of nobles who formerly ruled still advise the Lord Protector, but he elevated some commoners and guild representatives to seats on it, and loudly proclaimed it "no longer a council of nobles."
The nobles, of course, manipulate commoners and the Lord Protector by their support with conditions, sponsorship (bribery), and "whisper campaigns" shifts of public opinion...and they still believe they rule, and that the Lord Protector is their puppet (+target).
@XynRaven
So technically, the title of Lord Protector isn't a hereditary one, just that it so happens to be.
But what's the official law for deciding who becomes Lord Protector?
@TheEdVerse
There isn't one. Thus far, it's all been strongarm tactics, and "my son is my successor." Until the council forces a formal law on a current Lord Protector, that's how things will stand.
@XynRaven
That doesn't sound very efficient, especially with how much time they've had to do so, but still haven't.
@TheEdVerse
Most places in the world aren't run in an efficient manner. Often, the folks involved would disagree sharply on what "efficient" or "most efficient" is. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:10:46
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On more followers of a god empowering a Chosen
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041239499749962131 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041286780398289079 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041583418023051318 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041585086718464256 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041875493826199980 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041877752140169248 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041986989658952150 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041658940937609287 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2043734252613767571 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2043735988699041939 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044962520494956903 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044967390262317480 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044964299769102443 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044965302098694559 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044966002320966061 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042011116222464337 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2043735134805938576 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042032106453221736 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042024051019751716 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042333648154689982 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042029559999037805
Apr 7, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Behold the latest FREE snippet of Realmslore!
https://t.co/0l1uLvhHC6
@XynRaven
I just realized, if a god grows more powerful by gaining more followers, does that also empower their Chosen?
@TheEdVerse
No. Gods share some of their divine power with their Chosen ("vest" it in them) to give them powers and abilities. How much is up to the deity, and doesn't scale when the deity grows more or less powerful.
@Tactical_Mount
@TheEdVerse it's easy enough to find what powers Qilué received from Mystra, but I've always been curious as to what being a Chosen of Eilistraee entails. Any chance you can speak to what that looks like without violating some NDA?
@TheEdVerse
Sure. Think of James Bond doing “dirty tricks” missions on behalf of Eilistraee, almost always against Lolth’s mortal worshippers (priestesses in particular, but also roving poisoners and surface raiders), but sometimes deceiving Vhaeraunites so as to manipulate them into behaving in ways that won’t harm worshippers and interests of the Dark Dancer. Eilistraee’s delight is that she managed to get Mystra to share a Chosen, which will make some foes hesitate to harm or entrap Qilué because they’re not just acting against Eilistraee’s agent, they’re crossing Mystra, the most powerful deity of all, who (by denying or restricting their reliable access to arcane magic) can retaliate in the worst way possible. And Qilué’s dual status gives Eilistraee plausible deniability (“Well in this case, she wasn’t working for me, she was working for Mystra! So woe betide you!”) when others try to assign blame for Qilué’s actions.
Both goddesses prefer Qilué to keep a low public profile, so she’s a roving, mysterious “many secret missions” type, like Aragorn as we first see him in THE LORD OF THE RINGS, not a striding larger-than-life public envoy. She’s not above using disguises, and manipulating mortals very subtly—and she has all of her fellow Chosen of Mystra to watch and learn from, in this regard.
@XynRaven
Could a deity, then, choose to grant them more power in the future?
@TheEdVerse
Yes. The power and status of a Chosen (except Mystra's Chosen) is entirely up to their deity.
@XynRaven
Why are Mystra's an exception?
@TheEdVerse
Long-established Realmslore: Ao saw that Mystra's power was peerless. To stop her becoming a tyrant deity, and to protect the Weave (arcane magic) from utter destruction if she perished, she was ordered to vest her power in a number of Chosen.
She can't take her power back from them, and they serve as (mobile) Weave anchors (as well as the static Weave anchors like the Athora). In this, they differ from the "Chosen" of other deities, who bear the same title but are essentially superpowered mortal agents.
@KeltarDevir
What would happen if a weave anchor traveled to another plane? Would that destabilize the weave in the area?
We know they are not dimensionally anchored given how El travels around as he pleases
@TheEdVerse
No destablization.
The living/mobile Weave anchors are a backup to the stationary ones (which tend to be natural features, so immobile and eventually widely known), so someone attempting to locally damage or "take down" the Weave can't locate and harm all the anchors.
@knightsandweek1
How do the chosen interact with magic dead areas that appeared after the time of troubles? is this a matter/anti-matter situation?
@TheEdVerse
There are still thousands of small, localized magic-dead areas across Toril (the Second Sundering spawned many more), but Mystra, Azuth, and their Chosen have been actively destroying them since their appearance, stretching the Weave to minimize and then cross them with many strands and eliminate them, like fishermen mending holes in a fishing net. However, it’s one of many, many tasks they have, so the work goes slowly, often interrupted by crises of the moment.
Only Weavemasters can manipulate the Weave in this manner; your average archmage can at best temporarily “push” the Weave a few feet into a magic-dead area if they know how or can figure out how; it almost always takes two archmages, properly located (akin to when we “triangulate” in the real world), to make such an extension permanent.
However, contact between magic-dead and a spell, active magic item, or the Weave isn’t explosive or damaging—it’s simply that the magic “fades” at the border and stops working when it’s crossed.
(Being a Weavemaster, by the way, requires the Gift, sufficient class achievement and practise with evocation spells, and then practise in working with the Weave, especially under the guidance of someone who is already a Weavemaster. Usually that guide is Azuth, who likes to be involved with such work so he knows who can do what in Weave-work. Elminster has the most Weave-mending experience among the Chosen because he’s done the most traveling among them.)
@XynRaven
Could other spellcasters of different origins, such as divine or primal, attempt something similar, or is skill in the arcane necessary for healing dead magic zones?
@TheEdVerse
Skill in the arcane is required for shrinking or nullifying dead magic zones.
@JoshKellemen
What approximant portion of her power has been placed within her chosen? Or is that the wrong question?
@TheEdVerse
Only Mystra and Ao know (left to DMs, to suit their campaigns).
Mystra is POWERFUL; only Chauntea, Selune, and Shar are close in power. Many of the "noisy" deities, such as Bane, Cyric, and Tempus, are a lot less.
Not that any deity will tell mortals truth about this.
@Aralia_Merrith
Considering forgotten realms wiki. I think both Talos and Mystra are equals reading into their creation both are stated to be sourced from the Twins first conflict and the way I read into it are the twin faces of magic itself Order and Chaos.
@TheEdVerse
Ah, but Mystra IS magic. (In Realmspace, that is.) She is the Weave, so she is the conduit by which all deities achieve things that aren't don through sheer brawn or persuasion. Talos uses her (the Weave) to work his storms and destruction.
@XynRaven
ALL deities, or only Faerûnian ones?
@TheEdVerse
All deities operating in Realmspace who use arcane magic, or divine magic they don't source internally (from their bodies or carried items).
@XynRaven
... That ought to make Mystra the most powerful deity in all Realmspace, not just Faerûn.
Who then is second?
@TheEdVerse
Mystra IS the most powerful deity in Realmspace, by far. (Ao is stronger, but not a deity.)
Who's second? Well, how would mortals ever know?
#realmslore
P.S. Remember, the gods, their clergies, and lay followers all lie about this, some unwittingly.
@JWei_Art
What about Mistress Shar? She ought to be on par with Mystra perhaps? #129394;
@TheEdVerse
No, because she harms her faithful, her most powerful clergy and agents in particular, constantly (the "loss and despair" part of her portfolio). And mistaken notions like the Shadow Weave drain her power.
@butula13
If the shadow weave is still a thing wouldn't that make Shar second by default since she can still do magic without Mystra?
@TheEdVerse
Ah, but she can't. The Shadow Weave leans on the Weave. Remove it from an area and the Shadow Weave fades. (Again, long-established official TSR lore.)
@hippiekiya
Now I am going to throw this one out there. Chauntea, because she is arguably Toril manifested.
@TheEdVerse
Well said. As civilization has grown, and with it populations and the need for food, her power has grown steadily (as that of Silvanus, Eldath, et al has declined).
@Spock0
If the Overgod is not a god, then what is Ao?
@TheEdVerse
A being "over the gods"...hence, the Overgod. NOT a god (long-established Realmslore, voiced many times by TSR staffers).
@RandomQueriant
So, you have it straight from Elminster, one of her Chosen, that she's the most powerful...
Okay...
(Thank you for the information, but that was just too ripe not to poke.)
@TheEdVerse
And in the words of Elminster: "Would I lie to thee more than twice in one sentence? I mean, why? Ye'd only be confused; I want ye swallowing ALL of them, not just a few ye manage to grasp on the way by..."
@JoshKellemen
Selune and shar being close in power makes sense, 3e faiths and pantheons placing selune as intermediate goddess seemed not right.
How close is silvanus to chauntea? I can see a narrative that rise of human civilization has moved each up and down in respect.
@TheEdVerse
Correct: Selûne was downgraded too far; if she had really been an intermediate power, Shar would have succeeded in sewing widespread chaos, many realms would have fallen into outlaw barbarity, and many rulers and Shar’s own servants would have committed suicide out of despair. That didn’t happen, so obviously Selûne wasn’t that less powerful than Shar.
Silvanus was formerly greater in power than Chauntea, but the rise of human civilization (and cultivation, as population figures grew and food demands made agriculture increasingly crucial) has reversed their power relationship; the Earthmother is now more powerful than Silvanus. (Locally, in a wild wood region, Silvanus would still be more influential.)
@Artie_Pavlov
Anodes that mean Jessar was powered up?
@TheEdVerse
Yes, it provided a convenient “villain” prime mover for Living City (RPGA) organized play adventures that was “aside” from the main Realms themes and tales, and so adventure designers could have maximum freedom in what they wrote/designed about her. I happen to like her, but there are too many Dark Maidens; at night, in a forest glade or a dark bedchamber, a mortal man could get very confused as to who he was facing. ;}
@JoshKellemen
So many questions. Is there a sourcebook(s) or set of novels that showcase Selune's active work against Shar in 1300s realms?
Do Paul S. Kemp's books capture the feeling of Shar worship as you conceive it? (some of my favorite genre fiction of all time personally)
@TheEdVerse
No, there aren't any such sourcebooks, and YES, Paul's writing captures one sort of Shar worship nigh-perfectly, in my view.
@XynRaven
You've probably been asked this many times by now, but could you describe why people flock to Shar's worship, why they stay (both in the lower and upper echelons of her followers), and what their activities and goals entail?
@TheEdVerse
A 'wide' question, but to generalize:
Individuals who desire power, especially to destroy surroundings and status quo they detest, are given it by Shar.
A Sharran gains community and importance; they "matter" and are achieving things. Very attractive to "nobodies."
@JoshKellemen
Any particular one of your novels involving Shar worshipers that you think bests captures one or more other sort(s) of Shar worships in a way not overly obscured by the TSR keystone kops issues?
@TheEdVerse
No, I almost never put Shar worshippers onstage in my books, because they were "grabbed" by others early on (Books Department at that point was making things easier for themselves by "keeping authors apart from each other in geography and characters"). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:14:10
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On the tails of Tieflings
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041392907618279929 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041996608670179403 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042334967024300073
Apr 7, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department Of Truly Belated Realmslore:
Back on May 17th of 2025, Celeste Millennium Edition @unnui asked me "Regarding the tails of Tieflings. Considering they can have different forms and shapes, are they made of bone or cartilage? if they are made of bone, can they be used as a slashing weapon?"
Well, I finally got to this query (sorry!), so herewith an answer:
The tails of tieflings are made of both bone and cartilage; they have vertebrae (disc-shaped bones) like a human spine does, and these vertebrae have hooked protrusions “curving down” from three points around the arc of each disc. These hooks hold a cylindrical sleeve of cartilage around the bones, that holds veins, arteries, and muscles within it. So, no, the disc-bones of a tail are the wrong shape to be used as slashing weapons, and will crumble rather than “holding an edge” if carved to try to sharpen them. Some tieflings have bone-spur points at the ends of their tails, and these can serve as stabbing daggers, and can be sharpened so as to have cutting edges.
@XynRaven
What of their horns?
@TheEdVerse
Tiefling horns have bone bases (stubs upswept from the plates of the skull), sheathed and extended by cartilage, so a tiefling horn is very tough but flexible; its end can be bitten or sliced off, but won’t “break” off by contact with a hard wall, rockface, or other obstacle; rather, it will bend flat against the skull if there’s “hard contact.” In everyday situations, a tiefling horn will seem unyielding and solid; it won’t droop or bend if wet or heated, and won’t snap off if frozen hard and then struck.
@ThatLeeZeedude
But do they make good jewelery or decor like ivory as an underground blackmarket
@TheEdVerse
Not really. They're largely cartilage, so they eventually wither and rot, unlike bones and teeth. However, with the proper "pickling baths" and spells cast on them, a lasting, durable curved horn can be derived, which has festhall uses. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:20:45
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On origin of warforged from Lantan
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041991851184357884
Apr 9, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: Ieragon79 Memeiro @ieragon79 asked:
Hi Mr. Ed, I have a question about Warforged in Forgotten Realms. Considering that we now have automatons in Calimshan, as shown in Heroes of Faerûn, what would stop Warforged from having an 2)origin linked to the Church of Gond, especially if they come from Lantan?
Ed saith:
Some warforged are definitely made by Gondite clerics, as bodies for ailing, elderly priests of that god, to house their minds and souls so they can continue to serve the 3) Wonderbringer.
They are distinct from the nimblewrights made by Gondite clergy. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:27:59
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On philosophers that argue for good
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041992793711620445 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041998900022636970 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042000080454942796 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042025944987132344 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042332851014640121 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042026686120595649 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042028904508957089
Apr 9, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: Josh Kellemen @JoshKellemen asked:
Has there ever been a prominent philosopher in the realms that has argued an platonic/Aristotelian/thomist position that given the existence of "good" as an externally real thing/idea/concept, it follows that there is a non-contingent being that created good?
Ed saith:
Many sages and even guilds and local councillors debate ethics, and always have, but in the Realms, such arguments and debates are almost always made most loudly and consistently by clergy promoting the notion that “their” deity created good, or embodies good, or is “the” promoter of goodness in the Realms. From priestesses of Chauntea claiming that the Earthmother is the font of goodness to battlepriests of Tempus asserting that “good” is but an empty word without armed and ready vigilance forging it and safeguarding it, “good” is claimed by this faith and that; even those who venerate Entropy claim “all good comes from the Dark Holy Sphere.”
@JoshKellemen
Ed, I really am appreciative of your availability to direct questions these days and your willing to answer questions from some grognards who is on spring break with his kids this week. If I ever push too much on something please ignore or tell me.
To refine the above question
@JoshKellemen
Is the realms currently great tree or great wheel? My question comes more from a great wheel cosmology ( you wrote many early dragon articles on outer planes). There, "good" appears (at least to me) to be a platonic ideal that exists prior to the gods.
I understand most gods
@TheEdVerse
See "Great Wheel cosmology" on the FR Wiki: 5th edition ("currently") Realms is once again under the Great Wheel.
@groudon466
Is the Great Wheel your preferred cosmology, by chance?
@TheEdVerse
Yes, as so much founding lore was based on, and expanded on, it. It was the sole model for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th editions. World Tree was another "4e outlier." However, you CAN combine them, with the World Tree "another way of planar travel, for those who know."
@JoshKellemen
And their clergy would have views that their particular philosophical commitments might be the highest or most important goods.
I am fishing if there is some famous plato/Aristotle like figure that argues, especially with planes of good, that there is a higher creator of good
@TheEdVerse
There are 3 such mortals. I'll have to check my notes before giving you a proper answer, but one of them is Augathra; her status as a sage is now overshadowed by "the Mad" sobriquet, her seer work, and the Roll of Years that resulted. She believed in "absolute good."
@TheEdVerse
Okay, here we go...
My answer is so long that Twitter won't allow sufficient thread length, so I'll split my answer into three, one for each figure...
There are three such prominent mortal voices in Realms history.
Augathra “the Mad,” the Netherese mage, seer and scholar best remembered for her Roll of Years (still used today). She believed in “absolute good” but saw all of the gods as imperfect, not embodying it, in most cases due to their mortal origins (and thus, baked-in flaws). She believed “Good” was a soulless principle, and “Evil” was entropy/annihilation, with Shar being the closest thing to an unwitting Servant of entropy (the ideal, not the being worshipped as “Entropy”), and she saw an Overgod existing as a Guardian of Order, but thatGood could be approached by Order but never reached, as Order banished chaos (entropy) but also “chained” Good, and so could not be achieved.
“Ao” to her was but a mortal name for a concept, not a being she could be certain existed and had an interest in the Realms. (Augathra still exists, as a sentience sharing the body of a sharn, and still receives visions of the future, or possible futures, but has few chances these days to share them with anyone.)
@XynRaven
What was her secret to such grand insight into the planes and beyond, despite her not being a diviner?
@TheEdVerse
As covered in published Realmlore and one of my videos, she received nigh-constant visions, both awake and asleep (unknown origins), and that's what eventually drove her mad. Game classes are a way of describing Realms life, they don't restrict it.
@TheEdVerse
Our second figure...
Talath the Thinker, a reclusive half-elf who dwelt on the lower southern slopes of the Star Mounts in the 1100s DR and gave sage advice freely to certain elven rangers and adventurers who paid him in exotic foods from afar for storing their riches in the winding tunnels (said by some to have been bored from bedrock by a purple worm or similar gigantic subterranean worm) he lived in.
Talath was gaunt-tall, soft-spoken, and had “wild talents” over magic that enabled him to deflect magics directed at him that he didn’t want to experience. Talath was known to be living in these caverns by 1112 DR, and to still be there by 1309 DR, though by 1357 DR word had spread among elvenkind that he was nowhere to be found, and a deep dragon now made “his” caverns its home.
Talath lived alone and never married, but is said among elves to have sired many children by almost a score of elven women who visited him (adventurers all). Among the senior clergy of Azuth, it’s considered “truth” that The Lord of Spells visited Talath often, befriending him and enjoying both his simple, subtly-seasoned cooking and long conversations with him about arcane magic, the Weave, life in the Realms, and ethics.
@TheEdVerse
And our final figure of the three...
Shaaan the Serpent Queen (pronounced “SHAY-ann”), a scaly-skinned but beautiful mage of the Tashalar who was once the absolute ruler of a fanatical snake cult in the Tashalar, and a frequent foe of Elminster. She was slain in 1487 DR by Malchor Harpell and Manshoon, but had a long and villainous career, prolonging her life by magical means and attempting to understand the true nature of arcane magic (the Weave) and “how all the worlds worked.” She scorned the many “self-absorbed, grubbing fools” that power in the Realms was “wasted upon,” for their base, shallow, selfish pursuits. She wanted power for power’s sake, but wasn’t certain she was worthy of it; she believed that only those of “superior understanding” should be allowed to wield power, because only they would do so with anything more than “see-only-end-of-own-nose selfishness.” She didn’t consider herself worthy for most of her life, but also saw herself as far, far more worthy than most kings, archmages, cabal leaders, archdevils, and anyone else she met. To Shaaan, there was a being of Transcendent Good, dwelling in Realmspace (or reaching into it with influence) who hid Herself from mortals, and contested ever with three or more “Crawling Evils,” devouring, tentacled, destructive beings who delighted in destruction. She saw “true evil” as ignorant of consequences and uncaring, so no one “of intellect” could be truly evil because they were always mindful of consequences, even if they disdained them or any but their own moral code. Shaaan largedly believed that “might makes right,” but saw the only valuable life pursuit of truly intelligent beings (such as herself) to be forging such a personal moral code—and that the very existence of a Transcendant Good being would be the anchor or reference point for such a code (even if the resulting code repudiated Her). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:34:26
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On being a paladin of Kossuth
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041995071239651768 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042010338749554757 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042012591128518935 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042013709829095709
Apr 9, 2026
@hippiekiya
One of the discussions at the table have been. Can you be a paladin of Kossuth? My argument is you can as he does have lawful good clerics and monks. Though I imagine it is not a large paladin order. Be interesting to see the purification angle with a paladin.
@TheEdVerse
You can indeed be a paladin of Kossuth. There’s even an order: the Order of the Cleansing Fire, for those who don’t attach themselves to the monastic order Brothers and Sisters of the Purifying Flame.
Paladins of Kossuth active on Toril preserve and safeguard the lands and wealth of the Church of Kossuth, and are sent to hunt (and slay or thwart) agents of the primordials, deities, and other powers of the Inner Planes who are active on Toril. Kossuth devotes most of his energy and attention to the ever-raging intrigues of the Inner Planes, and wants his foes restricted to the Inner Planes, not dominating any Material Plane (Toril, Oerth, Krynn, and so on).
Paladins of Kossuth wield flaming swords for choice (and failing those, other fiery weapons), if they can get them. Other magic items (notably armor) that evoke fire and provide fire resistance will be acquired if possible, and paladins of The Lord of Flames are expected to visit (and know the precise whereabouts and any guardians of) accessible forges and lava flows, which sometimes brings them into conflict with dwarves and gnomes, though a Knight of Flame (paladin of Kossuth) is never expected to control access to such “hot spots” or dispute the right of others to use them.
Auril’s paladins and clergy are to be rebuffed and thwarted thwarted on sight, and any casters of cold magic or snow and rain weather are to be resisted and dissuaded.
Heat is never itself a goal, but smelting flames to “melt out impurities” (which of course require sufficient heat to accomplish this aim) are 8) desirable, and smiths and others trying to accomplish such activities are to be guarded, assisted, and sponsored.
@hippiekiya
Thank you very much Ed! Does this apply back in 3.5e and Paladins being Lawful Good? Good information regardless however.
@TheEdVerse
It does. :}
@hippiekiya
Final thing on this. Was this in any of the source books for that era? We are scouring books now as well with what we have. Only finding Knights of the Fire Drake so far.
@TheEdVerse
No, this lore hasn't been printed before. Call off your search. ;}
@hippiekiya
Shoot, thanks again though Ed! Hopefully we see them in future in some books.
@TheEdVerse
I hope that, too. Makes yet another note...we have SO much to collect and collate! |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:44:08
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On lore reason for simulacrums being made from snow
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042685588965376057
Apr 11, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: back on August 27 of 2025, Adam Y @EquinoxZander asked me:
What's the lore reasoning for simulacrums being made from snow and not some other component(s)?
Ed saith: Snow is simply the medium chosen by the wizard Shantha Vuirmrehel, the long-ago Imaskari who devised the particular simulacrum spell currently used by most casters of Toril; she chose snow, so snow it is. She happened to choose it because at the locale and time she was crafting the spell (experimenting with many castings, and refining ere re-casting), snow was handy and abundant; she selected it because in the right consistency (dampness of snow, and prevailing temperature) it can easily be “clumped” and molded (as a child assembles a snowman). |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:49:22
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On modern Faerun spells invented by ancient Imaskar
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042686565067940142
Apr 11, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: back on August 27 of 2025, FamaTuba @FamaTuba asked me:
Are there any spells used in modern Faerun that were invented in ancient Imaskar?
Ed saith: Yes, many of them, although most have since been modified (to use different material components, for example, or to “twist” the precise spell effects or duration). One example is the simulacrum spell. Another is etherealness. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 12:55:40
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On relationship between Bane and the Raven Queen
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2042786322918547501 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2043732114315616658 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2043733003868741779
Apr 11, 2026
@TheEdVerse
Department of Belated Realmslore Replies Again: Doomprophet @Doomprophet115 asked me:
Bane has black hair and also a fiendish raven called Koravis. He tried to overthrow Jergal the god of death, murder and strife. I can’t help but notice the similarities between him and the Raven Queen. Are they related? Possibly by blood?
Ed saith:
There is no blood relationship between them, nor any friendship. Bane admires the Raven Queen and seeks to “ape” her style—hence his raven.
The Raven Queen loathes him, considering him a dolt, but won’t hesitate to manipulate him to further her aims. She avoids any direct contact between them, preferring him as an ignorant dupe, not a sycophant. She keeps her schemes secret from him—and indeed, from all deities and mortals, preferring to stay as mysterious as possible.
@Doomprophet115
Would she be willing to team up with Jergal and Kelemvor? Jergal in particular would probably notice her manipulating Bane, and might try to see what's behind the mask.
@TheEdVerse
Kelemvor would have nothing to do with the Raven Queen.
Jergal would be happy to. He'd think he can "play" (manipulate, without her fully realizing implications ahead) her, and he'd likely be right. (Jergal is special in his understanding of how the universe works).
@Mark_Moonfang
She has schemes? I didn't think she was even conscious.
@TheEdVerse
Ah, she fooled you, too, eh? ;} |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 13:11:13
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On the Srinshee's name and age
https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2044960487557750896
Apr 17, 2026
@Robert99843906
Hey Ed, I have two questions about the Srinshee! 1) How do you pronounce her name (Oluevaera Estelda) 2) How old +- does she appear to be in Herald? I know she was described as yound and small when she regained her youth but how young? In Elminster in Hell it was 9?
@TheEdVerse
"Awl-ooo-VAYER-ah Ess-TELL-dah" (but quickly). In THE HERALD she looks about 12 to most humans, thanks to her build, height, and features–but elves can tell she's much older with one look at her eyes. |
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questing gm
Master of Realmslore
Malaysia
1968 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2026 : 13:22:36
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https://twitter.com/TheEdVerse/status/1307825405899034624 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041582388715700233 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041657139643523532 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041988918631862670 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041585813541007542 https://x.com/TheEdVerse/status/2041659446607196578
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
On Crinti:
@NAzihari
I would like to know if after the shebali uprising in 1385, some crinti strongholds remained, because some sources say that "many crinti cities were destroyed", many, but not all. Sorry for my broken English i'm French. Thank you again
@TheEdVerse
Hi! Well met!
Many crinti are still around, and quite a few of the smaller, more remote strongholds survived. So, yes, one could encounter them across the post-Spellplague Realms.
#Realmslore
@Numan_Ba_Alawi
Thanks ! But i would like to create a campaign here and i would like to use Prastuil as the only city not destroyed as a neutral zone where all those who live here barely tolerate each other for the trade and because Eilistraeens took over the city. Is it a plausible scenario ?
@TheEdVerse
Certainly! If it works for you, it will work for your gaming table. Yes, an undestroyed city would be a neutral marketplace/meeting-place. Note that many outsiders would be trying to take down the Eilistraeeans and take power themselves.
@Numan_Ba_Alawi
It means that Prastuil could become the stage for a power struggle between the city’s original factions: gnolls, drows, crintis, halflings, dwarves, Arkaiuns, and Zakharans ?
@TheEdVerse
Yes, it could indeed. And if they're fairly evenly matched, it could on for a long time of simmering tensions.
@Numan_Ba_Alawi
Translated from French:
Or a case where the inhabitants try as best they can to maintain a peace or balance with threats coming from outside: T'lindhet, Arkaiuns rebelles, Grande Faille, Luiren, Zakhara, Gnoll..
So Prastuil not destroyed, does that hold up canonically speaking?
@TheEdVerse
Yes. The folk of Prastuil very much want to keep their home at peace, for prosperity through continued trade as well as for their own safety. Lacking an army, they can only try to do this through intrigue and hired adventuring bands, playing the agents of the the outlanders you list off against each other amid an atmosphere of simmering tension.
BTW: if you aren't familiar with it yet, I did a free post on my Patreon on THE NOBLE HOUSES OF T’LINDHET:
https://t.co/q0SjhXZ4Dz
@XynRaven
I presume most of which would be 'regular' drow.
And I can imagine that their official policy is to kill any Eilistraeeans on sight, but I'd love some details.
@TheEdVerse
If by "regular drow" you mean drow who worship Lolth or Vhaeraun, yes; they would be ordered to shatter the rule of the followers of the Dark Dancer, and take the city for "their" cause. The Vhaeraunites by assassination and blackmail, the Lolthites by open conquest.
@XynRaven
I meant generally Underdark-native drow. Do they all exclusively follow evil drow deities, or are there faithless houses?
@TheEdVerse
No, the drow of the Underdark are diverse in their faiths. The Lolthites are most numerous, loudest and most aggressive, and so (in the minds of most surface-dwelling humans) are "all drow." Lolth loves this assumption.
@Doomprophet115
Aren't the churches of Eilistraee and Vhaeraun allies now?
@TheEdVerse
Yes, uneasily. Vhaeraun often orders his senior clergy to send agents to work behind the scenes against the faithful of the Dark Dancer. He hates and envies Eilistraee, at the same time as he loves and is fascinated by her. |
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Ed Greenwood on Twitter
