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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
 Posted - 02 Jan 2020 : 03:53:57
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Arvandor -30,001 DR. During the battle of The Anti-Seldarine-
Erevan Ilesere laughed while he ducked under the swing of the mighty axe of Grankhul. The Bugbear god of hunting, senses, surprise and stealth, who has a reputation for never being surprised. Erevan rushed forward with his twin short swords and side-stepped as he lopped off the right arm of the mighty Bugbear god with both blades. Grankhul stumbled back and howled in pain. His thirteen foot frame hopped up and down as blood spurted in count to his heartbeat. The tall and lean god of the Bugbears took up his mighty axe in his left hand, as Erevan smiled and blew him a kiss as he vanished in a blue-black light and reappeared across the battlefield behind Bahgtru, the Orc god of combat with both short swords drawn and ready.
Bahgtru was battling an Archfey of the Seelie Court and winning due to his sheer size and power, but was oblivious to the rogue elven god behind him. Just as Bahgtru raised his cold iron sword for the killing blow, Erevan silently ran forward and thrust both his short swords into the orc gods spine, severing his spine in half and bursting forth from his chest. Bahgtru crumpled in a heap as Erevan walked around his hulking bleeding body and extended a hand to the archfey.
Erevan offered the archfey a gulp of feywine from his "Ever-full" goblet, went to retrieve his twin blades and nodded to the archfey as he and his goblet disappeared. This particular Archfey, Hyrsam, the Prince of Fools picked up his sword and dagger and finished off Bahgtru, the son of Gruumsh with a well placed blade in his skull. The orc god exploded in a miasma of toxic red gas and was sent back to his home-plane, never to enter Arvandor again for the next thousand years.
Erevan appeared in the middle of a bloody and chaotic battlefield and immediately noticed two gorgeous females doing battle. He knew at once it was The Queen of Air and Darkness and Eilistraee. Spells were being cast furiously at one another while they did combat. The Drow goddess was losing the spell battle as Erevan just smiled and teleported beside Dathrathila, the Queen, with his twin short swords still in their scabbards, and grabbed the Unseelie goddess with lightning speed and kissed her on her lips before quickly laughing and vanishing in a blue-black mist that smelt of potent feywine.
Eilistraee immediately rushed forward and resumed the combat having the upper hand at last. The Queen of Air and Darkness suddenly disappeared and began slinging spells from places unseen, Eilistraee struggling to keep up as the very air around her twists and warps to crush her, the Queen's haunting laughter echoing as the dark goddess bends reality itself with death spells and dark sorceries fitting for a divine embodiment of fey black magic. Rays of doom and bolts of sickly enervation assaulted Eilistraee from every direction of the compass. All the allies around her perished in this storm of death, until she stood alone, weak and outmatched in spell battle.
The Queen of Air and Darkness suddenly showed herself in all her dark glory once again. Standing 10 feet tall with black gossamer wings that stretched another 10 feet from wing tip to wing tip. Her unearthly gorgeous face was marred by a sneer of joy as she raised her hands to the sky and brought them down towards Eilistraee in a killing barrage of spells that would rip the flesh from the drow elf's bones and slay her permanently.
At that very moment, a dire storm of killing arrows rained down on The Queen and decimated her followers with divine fire until she stood alone. Solonor Thelandira, the elven god of hunting found his mark and strode towards the Queen in a zig-zag path. The Queen screamed in a baleful wail that blasted both Solonor and Eilistraee back a dozen yards. She was in agonizing pain as she stepped back and snickered at the gathered elven deities. Knowing she was outnumbered in power, the Queen pointed a finger at Eilistraee in hate and vanished in a silver pop that left an army of 200 enchanted RedCaps in her wake.
Just then the Beastial god Malar caught the scent of Solonor Thelandiira, and stalked towards the Hunter of the elven deities with malice and rage. Three thousand yards at a pace, the Beast god ran along the line of his prey. Slashing and rending wounds on all enemies within his range of rushing fury. His sole agenda was to destroy the elven Hunter.
Solonor sensed something amiss and turned around after frantically speaking to Eilistraee. Just then Malar pounced on Solonor Thelandiira with a fury so legendary that Eilistraee yelled out for help. Malar was a killing machine as he began to tear the elven god to shreds. Armor and Bow were torn asunder as Solonor went down under the mighty pounce of The Beast Lord.
Just then, a troop of fifty Brownie Lords, led by Hyrsam the horned trickster appeared. The Archfey of Satyrs kicked and punched and head butted Malar with reckless abandon until Eilistraee was able to form a offensive position against the Beast Lord and help her fellow seldarine deity. Out of the peripheral vision of her left eye, Eilistraee saw her
Arch-Fey friend clearing a path towards her with magic and melee and music and death.
Eilistraee rushed forward with her shining longsword blazing, in a dull, Half moon-shade of brilliance, blinding the killing machine that was Malar. She stepped forward with a kicking blow to Malar's mid-section and chopped down with her powerful longsword and felt the blade connect. Malar was thrown off Solonor by the sheer relentlessness of Eilistraee in melee combat. The Drow elf Sword goddess Pressed Malar hard in a flurry of blade art, combined with spells meant to hinder and hamper her enemies.
Erevan Ilesere sat beside one of the thousands of campfires in Arvandor, taking a quick break from the chaos and fighting and spell casting among so many gods and goddesses and demi-gods and archfey and creatures from all over the multiverse. He drank deeply from his "Ever-full" goblet as he watched Corellon Larethian battle and slay dozens of minor deities and legendary monsters with both blade and spell. Erevan could hear Corellon singing as he chopped down mighty beasts and slew divine patrons with the power of his spells. It appeared to Erevan as if Corellon was dancing and singing while casting spells and embracing melee combat. Corellon was a shining beacon of power as he mastered every melee opponent and surpassed every arcane or divine enemy before him.
Erevan tore his gaze away from Corellon and looked out across the fire at Tarsellis Meunniduin, the elven god of winter, and Solonor Thelandira, the elven god of The Hunt, who were both healing themselves from battle, and said "Now that my friends is a Bladesinger", pointing at Corellon. Both powerful elven gods looked at Erevan with disdain. It didn't help their moods or dispositions at all when they noticed that Erevan didn't have a single scratch on his body and was relaxing, drinking feywine from his enchanted goblet.
The Fey Jester ignored them both and continued to point towards Corellon. There in the distance danced the father of the elven deities. Surrounded by horrors of the lower planes, archfey of the unseelie court and the god Semuanya, the patron of the Lizardfolk. Corellon sang and danced and slew until he finally destroyed all his current enemies. Erevan, Solonor and Tarsellis watched the battle between Corellon and Semuanya with pure wonder in their eyes. Corellon standing at about 10 feet tall looked small fighting the 15 foot lizard god, The size didn't seem to matter as Corellon vanquished the deity back to his home Plane with a flurry of blade and spell. When the spectacle was over and Corellon moved on to another furious, bloody fight, both Solonor and Tarsellis looked at Erevan Ilesere and frowned. Solonor asked Erevan "Are you even going to help us in this battle, god of mischief, or are you just going to get drunk?"
Erevan Ilesere took a very, very long gulp of his "Ever-full" goblet of feywine and replied... "I've been doing both since the war started you dolt." At that moment, Erevan spun his finger in the air two times and disappeared from the campfire in a mist of blue-black energy.
He reappeared in the heart of a brutal battle between Shargaas and Rillifane Rallathill. The elven god of nature was hard pressed in a titanic spell battle of blood and thorns and death. Shargaas was invisible, slashing and hacking and destroying everyone in his path to get to Rillifane. The elven god of nature was conjuring storms with a thought, taps of his staff on the earth causing earthquakes. Meanwhile, Shargaas was walking through shadows, Rillifane's servants helpless to find him as he strides past them unseen, taps of his blade against their skin opening grievously fatal wounds. Rillifane did his very best to thwart the orc gods progress. When Rillifane and Shargaas met in melee combat, their weapons collided with a thundering clap of power and force. The deadly daggers of Shargaas and the staff of Rillifane came together in a powerful explosion that rocked the entire battlefield around Erevan and blinded all within eyesight.
When the Tricksters eyesight returned to normal, he witnessed Shargaas standing triumphant before Rillifane with his daggers raised for a killing strike against the elven nature deity who lay prone on the ground. With a shout of disbelief and concern, Erevan teleported in front of his fallen companion and drew both his twin short swords ready for combat. Erevan stood 10 feet tall but the orc god towered over him at 15 feet tall, powerfully built and full of rage and hate. Shargaas snickered and spat a glob of ichor on the battlefield before Erevan as he charged the last few feet for his kill. "Puny elflings all die the same" roared the thief of the Orcs.
Shargaas thrusted a brutal, killing stab at Erevan.... or what he thought was Erevan. His enchanted daggers passed through a blue-black mist that hit nothing. At that very moment, the real Erevan Ilesere came out of nowhere to the left of Shargaas and drove his short sword completely through the orc gods neck and almost took off his head. As the Trickster stepped back from his sneak attack, he summoned divine fire from his second short sword and drove it deeply into the belly of Shargaas with a wry grin on his handsome face. As the thief of the orc race bellowed in pain and rage, Erevan laughed and mocked his pain calling him the lord of the Clumsy. As Erevan stalked in for the killing blow, Shargaas simply vanished. He looked behind himself and saw the goddess Kiaransalee with an entourage of undead fey, drow elves and orcs and goblins behind her. Rillifane was now standing on his feet again and leaning heavily on his broken staff. "We cannot win against the Revenancer as long as I'm wounded Erevan", said the Leaflord. "Yes we can." said the Trickster with a coy smile before he touched his shoulder, and they both teleported back to a similar campfire, like the previous one Erevan drank at.
This campfire was full of dead and dying pixies, Dryads and sprites. A lone Quickling was standing at the front of the fire with twin, multi-colored daggers in his hands. "Hark... What is your name fast one?" asked Erevan. "Serendipity for all you care elf" replied the sullen Quickling. Erevan smiled and stood before the fey warrior and offered him a gulp of feywine from his enchanted goblet. The Quickling took a long pull and handed back the goblet while wiping his lips and said "Go piss yourself knife-ears." The Trickster laughed aloud and knelt before the Fey deity and said "Follow me if you want redemption little one. And by the way... your ears are longer than mine."
The Trickster teleported to a distant campfire behind the frenzy of the battlefield and waited for the other deities that would listen to him many years before this war ever started to arrive at this particular glade in the forest.
Beside him was the Quickling god he invited from the campfire of the injured. Fraxenpux The Coy was his name. The two stood before the fire watching the battle rage off in the distance of the summer fields. Neither of them spoke. Soon after, a swirling mist of darkness took form before them and suddenly stood Baravar Cloakshadow, the Trickster god of the Gnomes. Followed by the cherubic thoughtful face of Brandobaris, the Halfling god of Tricksters.
Vergadain himself appeared in a shower of coins and gems followed by Emmantiensien the treant deity of deep magic, Nathair Sgiathach the mischief god of pixies, faerie dragons and pranks. The three all nodded when they walked into the firelight.
Squelaiche suddenly appeared in a blinding light of confusion and said "Well, that was close indeed." The god of leprechauns, trickery and illusions giggled.
"Now that the whole crew is here, I guess we can all die together." said Squelaiche with a chuckle of levity.
"I gathered you all here to win this battle." spoke Erevan as he passed his goblet around the campfire to his friends. "The Seldarine have been betrayed by our own allies.
The gathered trickster gods all looked at one another and then suddenly appeared Verenestra, the fey goddess of dryads, nymphs, sylphs, female fey, charm and beauty. "Malkizid and Araushnee are behind this whole debacle and I've lost many friends to their betrayal." said the gorgeous, tall Fey Goddess.
"Well there you have it." quipped Erevan as he finished his ever-full goblet. "We will never get to Araushnee, as she is surrounded by those deities loyal to her, so I suggest we attack Malkizid, and once we bring him down, her plot against us will be exposed."
"But what of Vhaeraun? asked Baravar Cloakshadow with a hint of menace in his voice.
"He is a puppet of his mother right now and will see his folly once her betrayal is revealed. We must attack the Solar Malkizid and his celestial followers." spoke Erevan in a grim, yet excited voice.
"There are thousands of celestials Erevan." laughed Vergadain.
Just then a silent pop resounded in all their minds as Garl Glittergold appeared in a multi-coloured flash of power that popped all the ears of the gathered deities.
Garl stepped forth in front of Erevan and stood before him with his hands on his hips. "Why do you only call on me when you need something Trickster?"
"You are key to my plan Garl." said Erevan as he finished the contents of his ever-full goblet. "You are the most powerful deity here, and us Seldarine can use your help."
"Bah, you'll live even if your pantheon dies Erevan." said the powerful god of the Gnomes. "Why do you even care?".
"I, we... all us gathered can end this war now, and expose the traitors to all in one fell move." said Erevan with a dire tone in his flippant voice.
"I am done with your trickery Erevan." quipped Garl.
"Without my mischief you'd be bored beyond the ends of the cosmos." Erevan quipped back. "As I said, you are integral to winning this war, which means subduing Malkizid is key to our victory." Erevan Ilesere offered his Ever-Full goblet to Garl, who took the flask and drained it in a lightning-quick gulp, followed by a belch and a spell that opened a giant map of Arvandor against the campfire.
Erevan began to deploy his strategy to the other Demi-Human deities listening to him. One by one he suggested actions and maneuvers for each of them in turn. And as he suspected, each of the deities filtered in their own ideas and actions depending on their wants and needs. This concerted action was devised to be a defeat and subdue effort against Malkizid, a powerful Solar of mighty reputation, whom commanded thousands of celestials in service to Araushnee.
All the gods and goddesses gathered agreed that they could defeat Malkizid alone by themselves, but they also unanimously decided that his army was too strong to challenge and win by themselves.
"One of you here must play the part of Araushnee."
............................................
**More to come... in progress. Every weekend I'll add more story.**
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Edited by - Copper Elven Vampire on 20 Jul 2020 17:10:25
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LordofBones
Master of Realmslore
1536 Posts |
Posted - 03 Jan 2020 : 13:06:04
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The massive disservice you're doing to Erevan here is that you've made him too perfect. Maglubiyet and Gruumsh are greater gods and pantheon heads, Erevan should be having the fights of his life against them, using every trick in his disposal to stay alive against gods who eat, breathe and crap war and battle.
Also, the idea that two intermediate powers, even an exhausted one like Rillifane, feel threatened by an enslaved demipower like Kiaransalee is hilarious.
Also, what's Semuanya, of all gods, doing there? Semuanya's entire shtick is not giving a toss about anything, to the extent that Sess'innek is eating away at his worship base with no fear of reprisal. |
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Seethyr
Master of Realmslore
USA
1151 Posts |
Posted - 03 Jan 2020 : 16:10:55
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| It’s not my vision of what occurred during that war but fun nevertheless. Nice work! |
Follow the Maztica (Aztec/Maya) and Anchorome (Indigenous North America) Campaigns on DMsGuild!
The Maztica Campaign
The Anchorome Campaign |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2020 : 03:43:05
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
The massive disservice you're doing to Erevan here is that you've made him too perfect. Maglubiyet and Gruumsh are greater gods and pantheon heads, Erevan should be having the fights of his life against them, using every trick in his disposal to stay alive against gods who eat, breathe and crap war and battle.
Also, the idea that two intermediate powers, even an exhausted one like Rillifane, feel threatened by an enslaved demipower like Kiaransalee is hilarious.
Also, what's Semuanya, of all gods, doing there? Semuanya's entire shtick is not giving a toss about anything, to the extent that Sess'innek is eating away at his worship base with no fear of reprisal.
Disservice? Erevan never once took any single deity on toe to toe. He shows up and strikes, throws a trick and plane shifts out across the multiverse or teleports across his own realm. Not once did I ever elude that Erevan took on the greater deities in combat and won.
I portrayed that Erevan Pounced and jumped, pounced and jumped. Then after a few drinks, he would Pounce and jump again.
Are you misunderstanding the whole history of the war in general?? The fact that you think of Kiaransalee as a no-bother goddess makes me smirk. What god or goddess wouldn't get tired eventually on their own home plane? I mean, simple math says that some gods can be hurt and die on their home plane. So that should answer that.
So Semuanya... Really? Fits in so very well. But thanks for all the support and shared lore. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2020 : 04:02:46
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quote:
Originally posted by Seethyr
It’s not my vision of what occurred during that war but fun nevertheless. Nice work!
Thank you very much. I never try to make Erevan seem unbeatable, but more realistic in his combat style. He is the trickster of the elven gods, and would play the support game over the aggressive move. Never really winning, but never really losing. He helps his own Pantheon for the simple fact that he tricks everybody and anybody, friend or foe in the multiverse and not too many deities take him serious. Just the way he wants it.
I will have more history tomorrow night. I hope you continue to comment. Maybe someday I'll get accepted into cannon lore. If not, I couldn't care. I do this for pure fun my whole life.
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2020 : 04:18:28
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
The massive disservice you're doing to Erevan here is that you've made him too perfect
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Yeah, he's too perfect. It amazes me that you personally have the rulebook for what's perfect. Your extensive knowledge of Erevan supersedes mine by a landfall. lol. Thanks. I guess you know better. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 05 Jan 2020 : 05:08:38
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
The massive disservice you're doing to Erevan here is that you've made him too perfect. Maglubiyet and Gruumsh are greater gods and pantheon heads.
Which is why he never fought them 1 on 1. Duh. Have you ever been in a war? I have. It'chaos. mayhem. Madness. The perfect battleground for a Trickster. If you cannot get this, then you're well past reasoning. This could be cannon. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
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Mirtek
Senior Scribe
595 Posts |
Posted - 06 Jan 2020 : 23:55:31
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I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
If it was about Cyric rather than Erevan, it could be straight from the Cyrinishad  |
Edited by - Mirtek on 07 Jan 2020 05:51:10 |
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LordofBones
Master of Realmslore
1536 Posts |
Posted - 07 Jan 2020 : 08:42:49
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| There's something deeply ironic here about the Queen of Air and Darkness, goddess of magic, illusions, darkness and murder, fighting Eilistraee in melee combat. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jan 2020 : 21:54:57
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
There's something deeply ironic here about the Queen of Air and Darkness, goddess of magic, illusions, darkness and murder, fighting Eilistraee in melee combat.
I agree. ;) |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 09 Jan 2020 : 21:59:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Mirtek
I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
Well, why wouldn't it? The 7 sisters are all mortal. Or some once were mortal. Most are dead. Some never stay dead. But Erevan is a deity. An intermediate deity by 2ED, and lesser deity by 3.5. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 10 Jan 2020 : 01:15:00
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I changed the deities in the war for this story to appease the trolls on this site. The deities are now more dumbed-down with lesser and intermediate gods and goddesses. My bad for thinking a rogue god could strike and hurt a greater god or goddess. Where I come from, in D&D, especially in FR lore, is a world where deities can do strange things and die, or not die. Or reincarnate or live in another place and form and gather followers on many worlds.
Just as the new Regis could easily defeat the new Wulfgar, so does Erevan strike and retreat, strike and retreat. Hampering and deceiving, using powerful Skill-Tricks to get in and out with brutal precision and subtlety. In 3.5 mechanics the Skill-Tricks were what made a PC extra-better, or uber-extra.
The accessory, Complete Scoundrel totally opened up a cage of Trickery and ingenuity not used before in 3 or 3.5ed. It was one of the last good things they put out for core d&d in that edition. With Skill Tricks and Skill Feats, one could do exemplary deeds with an ease that would make a professional blush. Limited to Rogues, Thieves, Assassins, Vigilanties, and rabble-rousers of all kinds. The Complete Scoundrel was an "epic" move forward in trickery and deception. For the arcane, divine, melee or stealth, the accessory was for all classes and builds.
Truly for PC's that don't want to just hack and slash through a campaign.
If a PC can do it... I would imagine a elven trickster god that could own it and make it happen ten times fold. That was the brilliance of Complete Scoundrel.
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Edited by - Copper Elven Vampire on 10 Jan 2020 19:52:23 |
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LordofBones
Master of Realmslore
1536 Posts |
Posted - 13 Jan 2020 : 08:50:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
quote:
Originally posted by Mirtek
I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
Well, why wouldn't it? The 7 sisters are all mortal. Or some once were mortal. Most are dead. Some never stay dead. But Erevan is a deity. An intermediate deity by 2ED, and lesser deity by 3.5.
Erevan is still an intermediate power in 3.5. He was demoted in 4e, and in 5e he apparently lost his rogues portfolio. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 16 Jan 2020 : 22:46:08
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
quote:
Originally posted by Mirtek
I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
Well, why wouldn't it? The 7 sisters are all mortal. Or some once were mortal. Most are dead. Some never stay dead. But Erevan is a deity. An intermediate deity by 2ED, and lesser deity by 3.5.
It truly amazes me that game designers can just pluck portfolios from deities in new editions and have absolutely zero lore behind it. Erevan losing his Rogues portfolio, unannounced and undescribed in world lore is lazy and unappealing. That's why I continue to write stats and lore from 3.5 edition and after.
Erevan Ilesere losing the Rogues portfolio is like Shar losing the Darkness portfolio. lol. Maybe he would lose the Luck portfolio. Certainly not the Elf, Chaos or Rogues portfolio, nor the portfolios of Change, Trickery and excess. I would imagine it would have to be another Trickster god or goddess.
Again... I highly doubt Erevan would lose his Rogues portfolio in any case. It is the base of his core followers and clerics. This is why I continue 3.5 lore while including 4 and 5 ed lore into the mix with 3.5 stats.
Erevan is still an intermediate power in 3.5. He was demoted in 4e, and in 5e he apparently lost his rogues portfolio.
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2020 : 18:59:07
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
quote:
Originally posted by Mirtek
I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
Well, why wouldn't it? The 7 sisters are all mortal. Or some once were mortal. Most are dead. Some never stay dead. But Erevan is a deity. An intermediate deity by 2ED, and lesser deity by 3.5.
Erevan is still an intermediate power in 3.5. He was demoted in 4e, and in 5e he apparently lost his rogues portfolio.
It truly amazes me that game designers can just pluck portfolios from deities in new editions and have absolutely zero lore behind it. Erevan losing his Rogues portfolio, unannounced and undescribed in world lore is lazy and unappealing. That's why I continue to write stats and lore from 3.5 edition and after.
Erevan Ilesere losing the Rogues portfolio is like Shar losing the Darkness portfolio. lol. Maybe he would lose the Luck portfolio. Certainly not the Elf, Chaos or Rogues portfolio, nor the portfolios of Change, Trickery and excess. I would imagine it would have to be another Trickster god or goddess.
Again... I highly doubt Erevan would lose his Rogues portfolio in any case. It is the base of his core followers and clerics. This is why I continue 3.5 lore while including 4 and 5 ed lore into the mix with 3.5 stats.
Erevan is still an intermediate power in 3.5. He was demoted in 4e, and in 5e he apparently lost his rogues portfolio. I can see the 4E stuff in some part, byt the 5E lore is ludicrous. |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2020 : 19:06:04
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But still... to compare the 7 sisters, (all chosen) to Erevan Ilesere is very far fetched in any edition.
Who's that demi-god from the Erevis Cale trilogy? Volumvax? He could take on several of the sisters and win. So an avatar of Erevan would likely be the same'ish. |
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Firestorm
Senior Scribe
Canada
826 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2020 : 20:13:52
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quote:
Originally posted by Mirtek
I have to agree with LordofBones here. That even beats some of the most mary sueish stories about the seven sisters (and that's some high standard to beat)
If it was about Cyric rather than Erevan, it could be straight from the Cyrinishad
worse than drizzt beating demolition? |
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LordofBones
Master of Realmslore
1536 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2020 : 23:37:52
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
But still... to compare the 7 sisters, (all chosen) to Erevan Ilesere is very far fetched in any edition.
Who's that demi-god from the Erevis Cale trilogy? Volumvax? He could take on several of the sisters and win. So an avatar of Erevan would likely be the same'ish.
Statswise, the sisters rip kessen to pieces. Dude is a 20th level cleric.
Otherwise, I don't think you're quite getting Mirtek's point, CEV. He's basically saying you've turned Erevan into, well, a perfect parody. There's no sense of tension in this; it's basically Erevan going around and making pithy remarks and witty one liners.
It really doesn't help that it's not a war between gods, it's basically a brawl. You may not have intended to write it as such, but it's basically a bunch of people beating each other up. Go look at the Shargaas and Rillifane battle; the orc deity of darkness, thieves, stealth and murder is engaging a nature god...in melee combat. Rillifane should be conjuring storms with a thought, taps of his staff on the earth causing earthquakes. Meanwhile, Shargaas should be walking through shadows, Rillifane's servants helpless to find him as he strides past them unseen, taps of his blade against their skin opening grievously fatal wounds.
Elilistraee and the Queen of Air and Darkness have it even worse; the queen should be slinging spells from places unseen, Eilistraee struggling to keep up as the very air around her twists and warps to crush her, the queen's haunting laughter echoing as the dark goddess bends reality itself with death spells and dark sorceries fitting for a divine embodiment of black magic.
It's what I said about this being Erevanite propoganda; it downplays all the other gods so that Erevan can take center stage. Shargaas is an intermediate deity, one equal to Erevan, with Erevan's talent for deceit and change put to the test against one whose talents lie in secret death and subterfuge. If anything, Erevan should be running interference against the other side's trickster gods, pulling out every trick he knows and making the other side do the same.
Hell, have him lose. He's drawn the other gods away, but they've outnumbered him and all his tricks are exhausted. Shargaas looms over him, sword in hand, and the Queen's magic restrains him. He resolves to die defiant till the last, laughing at his enemies, and just as the blade drops, Sahandrian parries it, forcing Shargaas back while the Queen's spell unravels. Corellon stands before them, shielding his kin - Erevan's gambit worked, he's a hero among the Seldarine, and now Boss Man's here to crack skulls. |
Edited by - LordofBones on 19 Jan 2020 02:41:06 |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2020 : 19:55:09
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quote:
Originally posted by LordofBones
quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
But still... to compare the 7 sisters, (all chosen) to Erevan Ilesere is very far fetched in any edition.
Who's that demi-god from the Erevis Cale trilogy? Volumvax? He could take on several of the sisters and win. So an avatar of Erevan would likely be the same'ish.
Statswise, the sisters rip kessen to pieces. Dude is a 20th level cleric.
Otherwise, I don't think you're quite getting Mirtek's point, CEV. He's basically saying you've turned Erevan into, well, a perfect parody. There's no sense of tension in this; it's basically Erevan going around and making pithy remarks and witty one liners.
It really doesn't help that it's not a war between gods, it's basically a brawl. You may not have intended to write it as such, but it's basically a bunch of people beating each other up. Go look at the Shargaas and Rillifane battle; the orc deity of darkness, thieves, stealth and murder is engaging a nature god...in melee combat. Rillifane should be conjuring storms with a thought, taps of his staff on the earth causing earthquakes. Meanwhile, Shargaas should be walking through shadows, Rillifane's servants helpless to find him as he strides past them unseen, taps of his blade against their skin opening grievously fatal wounds.
Elilistraee and the Queen of Air and Darkness have it even worse; the queen should be slinging spells from places unseen, Eilistraee struggling to keep up as the very air around her twists and warps to crush her, the queen's haunting laughter echoing as the dark goddess bends reality itself with death spells and dark sorceries fitting for a divine embodiment of black magic.
It's what I said about this being Erevanite propoganda; it downplays all the other gods so that Erevan can take center stage. Shargaas is an intermediate deity, one equal to Erevan, with Erevan's talent for deceit and change put to the test against one whose talents lie in secret death and subterfuge. If anything, Erevan should be running interference against the other side's trickster gods, pulling out every trick he knows and making the other side do the same.
Hell, have him lose. He's drawn the other gods away, but they've outnumbered him and all his tricks are exhausted. Shargaas looms over him, sword in hand, and the Queen's magic restrains him. He resolves to die defiant till the last, laughing at his enemies, and just as the blade drops, Sahandrian parries it, forcing Shargaas back while the Queen's spell unravels. Corellon stands before them, shielding his kin - Erevan's gambit worked, he's a hero among the Seldarine, and now Boss Man's here to crack skulls.
OMMFG!! That was actually impressive writing. Do I have your permission to place everything you just wrote into my story? I will give you full credit for writing in the Headline of this thread, as I did for Diffan on his help with The Bladesinger PrC we made.
I loved it actually. I would like to finish the storyline a bit before incorporating your very good end. And yes, it is intended to be a brawl, as all sense of military type command just turned to help the closest ally near you. If they are doing melee combat in place of earthquakes and storms, it's because once you're within a 5 foot personal space of anybody your long range spells and affects are useless. It may seem unlikely to have two different deities doing melee, but in the chaos of a brawl, you don't want to impede or injure your allies with spells that cause lage/epic range damage.
Elaine Cunningham even wrote that Eilistraee was shooting other powerful evil gods with her enchanted bow, until the battle went insane and she was swept away to fight with her sword, looking for her father, fighting for her life in melee combat.
Anyway, can I please have permission to include your storyline and give you cred??
Thank you,
CEV. |
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LordofBones
Master of Realmslore
1536 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jan 2020 : 01:47:15
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Gods can casually teleport around; mobility isn't an issue. Shargaas and the Queen are murder-gods, melee combat is the last thing they want to deal with when their specialties are 'kill from behind' and 'kill with my mind'.
And sure, go ahead.
And yes, Eilistraee is a combat-focused goddess, so going into melee combat is perfectly fine for her, not so for the queen. |
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Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3806 Posts |
Posted - 01 Feb 2020 : 04:18:03
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| Eilistraee can fight, but she isn't combat focused. As Ed said, she owes far more to the bard and the artist than to the warrior, and her portfolio of swordwork is meant to be about the making of swords and teaching her people how to protect themselves, not about swordplay. That said, she's prone to lash out if her people are harmed, so throwing herself into a melee in this situation is something she'd totally do. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 02 Feb 2020 15:34:52 |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2020 : 19:48:11
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quote:
Originally posted by Irennan
Eilistraee can fight, but she isn't combat focused. As Ed said, she owes far more to the bard and the artist than to the warrior, and her portfolio of swordwork is meant to be about the making of swords and teaching her people how to protect themselves, not about swordplay. That said, she's prone to lash out if her people are harmed, so throwing herself into a melee in this situation is something she'd totally do.
She is The Swordmaiden of the drow elves... I'm sure she didn't get that title in art school. lol. Anyway... to each their own view of the current lore. |
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Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3806 Posts |
Posted - 17 Feb 2020 : 03:21:34
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
quote:
Originally posted by Irennan
Eilistraee can fight, but she isn't combat focused. As Ed said, she owes far more to the bard and the artist than to the warrior, and her portfolio of swordwork is meant to be about the making of swords and teaching her people how to protect themselves, not about swordplay. That said, she's prone to lash out if her people are harmed, so throwing herself into a melee in this situation is something she'd totally do.
She is The Swordmaiden of the drow elves... I'm sure she didn't get that title in art school. lol. Anyway... to each their own view of the current lore.
Not really. She isn't known as swordmaiden; none of her canonical titles (Dark Maiden, Dark Dancer, Lady Silverhair, Lady of the Dance, Dancing Goddess) include swords, they are all related to dance or to beauty. The only sword-related thing in her portfolio is swordwork--which, as Ed himself clarified on these boards, is meant as creation of swords, to help the drow survive in a hostile environment. Her portfolio is beauty, dance, music, moonlight, hunt, and swordwork; you have 5 things that focus on creating, soothing, or getting food, and then you have swordwork--which also focuses on teaching the drow how to survive (once again, according to Ed).
Now, Eilistraee *can* fight; she *can* be a protectress and is known to be prone to wild action if her people are harmed (so what she does in your tale is definitely IC; I was just replying to the statement that she is a warrior goddess, not to what you had her do), but she's an artist and a nurturer before she is a warrior. Her owing more to the artist/bard than to the warrior is Ed's own way of phrasing this.
But here's what Ed himself said in this regard: http://forum.candlekeep.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=5812&whichpage=27#129882
quote:
Eilistraee aids her faithful in hunting and swordcraft as a way of helping them to survive and flourish in a hostile surface world. She’s not HERSELF depicted as any sort of a huntress; she’s the force that brings a stag into the reach of hungry drow, not the slayer-by-arrows of drow foes.
She can personally be an avenger or protectress, yes (an aspect strengthened in 3rd Edition, not by me), fearsomely wielding the sword she dances with, but owes more to the bard than the huntress.
So you’ve turned to a classical goddess depicted as the huntress, a peerless archer whose shafts never miss (or almost never miss, depending on the tale). This puzzles me; I certainly wouldn’t equate a benevolent nurturing (and fertility, though thanks to the TSR Code of Ethics you have to read between the lines to see this in DROW OF THE UNDERDARK and SILVERFALL, where I certainly wasn’t very subtle about it) goddess with the Queen of the Hunt, the virgin Greek goddess of chastity.
Emphasis by me. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 17 Feb 2020 03:34:01 |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 23 Feb 2020 : 22:46:40
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Her most prominent worshippers besides her clergy are Sword Dancers; a Highly melee/ divine caster type PrC. They were Specialty Priests devoted to the sword and spell art of Eilistraee. Cannon material. Since most worshippers tend to follow their respected deity in most aspects, I can come to the conclusion that Eilistraee was a melee/ spell caster. Yes she was a great archer and markswoman, but her priests often took the sword and spell route opposed to her bardic/ artful path.
As seen here https://www.realmshelps.net/charbuild/classes/prestige/realms/sworddancer.shtml |
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4689 Posts |
Posted - 23 Feb 2020 : 23:44:00
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
Her most prominent worshippers besides her clergy are Sword Dancers; a Highly melee/ divine caster type PrC. They were Specialty Priests devoted to the sword and spell art of Eilistraee. Cannon material. Since most worshippers tend to follow their respected deity in most aspects, I can come to the conclusion that Eilistraee was a melee/ spell caster. Yes she was a great archer and markswoman, but her priests often took the sword and spell route opposed to her bardic/ artful path.
As seen here https://www.realmshelps.net/charbuild/classes/prestige/realms/sworddancer.shtml
I believe you forget the Sin Eaters ( Silverhair Knight )these quote:
Silverhair Knight
This is a Forgotten Realms Exclusive Class
The faithful of Eilistraee are known throughout the Realms for their devotion to the arts of dancing and song, to the moonlit hunt, and to various graceful styles of sword fighting. Yet one aspect of the Dark Maiden's faith that is often overlooked by outsiders is her stance against the unsaved drow of the Underdark. Whereas the worshipers of Lolth, Vhaeraun, and the other drow deities view the clergy of Eilistraee as bitter enemies and hated rivals, the faithful of the Dark Maiden are taught not to hate their deep-dwelling kin but to pity them and offer them mercy and sanctuary when they are encountered.
One sect of worshipers have taken this dogma a step further. These are the silverhair knights, selfless and merciful priests who seek out evil drow and use their sins against them in an attempt to show them the errors of their ways. Most silverhair knights fight these drow only with nonlethal attacks, offering them mercy even when none is sought. The most powerful silverhair knights are capable of pulling a drow's sins from his body and absorbing them with her own strength of faith. This is a dangerous ritual, but its effects cannot be dismissed. The silverhair knights might just be the redemption of the drow race, if they can only withstand the terrible despair of the sins they release from their tortured hosts.
As for your view "Since most worshippers tend to follow their respected deity in most aspects, I can come to the conclusion that Eilistraee was a melee/ spell caster." is based on Specialty Priests it would appear to be flawed. The Sword Dancers are better known followers of the Dark Maiden because they are more often to be encountered. The followers that reside near or at a temple do not tend to be noticed as much.
Also for your consideration quote:
sword dancers are expected to lead that migration and work to promote harmoney between drow and surface-dwelling races. They nurture beauty, music, the craft of making musical instruments, and song wherever they find it, assist hunters and hunting, and help others in acts of kindness whenever they see ways to do so.
This is not a "sword and spell route" though both tend to be there if needed. |
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Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3806 Posts |
Posted - 24 Feb 2020 : 15:24:42
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Elven Vampire
Her most prominent worshippers besides her clergy are Sword Dancers; a Highly melee/ divine caster type PrC. They were Specialty Priests devoted to the sword and spell art of Eilistraee. Cannon material. Since most worshippers tend to follow their respected deity in most aspects, I can come to the conclusion that Eilistraee was a melee/ spell caster. Yes she was a great archer and markswoman, but her priests often took the sword and spell route opposed to her bardic/ artful path.
As seen here https://www.realmshelps.net/charbuild/classes/prestige/realms/sworddancer.shtml
I'm well aware of the Sword Dancers, but their existence doesn't contrast with what Ed--the creator of Eilistraee--says.
I quote again:
quote:
Eilistraee aids her faithful in hunting and swordcraft as a way of helping them to survive and flourish in a hostile surface world. She’s not HERSELF depicted as any sort of a huntress; she’s the force that brings a stag into the reach of hungry drow, not the slayer-by-arrows of drow foes.
She can personally be an avenger or protectress, yes (an aspect strengthened in 3rd Edition, not by me), fearsomely wielding the sword she dances with, but owes more to the bard than the huntress.
Besides, the Sword Dancers are very bard-ish in their nature, and they are meant to be teachers, artists, AND protectresses (or protectors too, nowadays). Also diplomats (in fact, looks at the prerequisites of the class. Or, well, at the description. The standard way to reach the PrC prerequisites also is MC as Bard). From the description in the very link that you provided:
quote:
[...]Sword Dancers are expected to lead that migration and work to promote harmony between. drow and surface-dwelling races. They nurture beauty, music, the craft of making musical instruments, and song wherever they find it, assist hunters and hunting, and help others in acts of kindness whenever they see ways to do so.[...]
Bards can fight too; the fact that the Sword Dancers can use a sword doesn't mean that they owe more to the warrior than to the bard.
On top of that, they focus on Sword-CRAFT as well, more than fencing itself. In fact, both the 3.5e class and the original 2e class mostly use the dancing sowrd as a weapon, and can enchant, bless, refine, repire (etc...) blades. Yes, they can fence, but they're objectively neither better nor worse than other clerics at melee; they just dodge and dance around better (well, duh).
This lines up with what Ed said.
You're also forgetting their defining spell, the Spellsong, a musical spell that allows them to heal, protect, and nurture. This is their defining spell that no other cleric has access to, and so it's the marker of what the nature of Eilistraee's magic looks like. And it's very bard-ish, artsy, and nurturing kind of spell.
Eilistraee *still is* a great markswoman (she's returned and has been revealed to have survived the events of the Lady Penitent--novels that have been entirely retconned--btw), she just dropped the bow in favor of the sword, but (once again) what Ed says still stands, so I don't see how this particular point i even relevant to the discussion.
In short, the point is, Eilistraee is a bard and a nurturer before she is a fighter (which she ALSO is; you don't have to primarily be a warrior in order to fight), and you can see this in the PrC you linked as well. Your statement that she is a swordfighter and a spellcaster is also correct, ofc, but here we're talking about what she stands for, and what her character/beliefs are like, not how she can fight (EVERY god in D&D can fight, even Chauntea)--which, for a nurturing deity big on compassion and acceptance, certainly are not those of war goddess. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 24 Feb 2020 15:34:50 |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2020 : 17:46:04
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| That's the beauty of D&D. we play different games with different ideas and see deities differently. |
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Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3806 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2020 : 18:01:49
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| Sure. However, it doesn't mean that the "official", so to speak, version of a character, faction, or deity doesn't have a well-establihed identity and characterization. In the case of Eilistraee, it certainly isn't that of a war or war-related goddess (which is not to say that she can't fight, but I've already posted about this). You can have her as a war goddess in your setting, but that doesn't mean she is one in the general FR. The very link that you posted points towards a different direction. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 08 Mar 2020 18:08:13 |
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CorellonsDevout
Great Reader
USA
2708 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2020 : 18:07:53
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| Canon is a thing (or at least it was). Of course you can do whatever you want in your game, but as Irennan said, there is official lore for deities and such, and I think that's the point here. |
Sweet water and light laughter |
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Copper Elven Vampire
Master of Realmslore
1078 Posts |
Posted - 08 Mar 2020 : 21:08:44
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| No I agree. You both misunderstand me. I never said she was a war goddess ever. Just that she was portrayed as a warrior in melee combat. Even a wizard can use a blade. lol. |
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Circa -30,000 DR. (with help from LoB}
