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Nynshari
Acolyte
17 Posts |
 Posted - 21 Jun 2005 : 22:19:50
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And, yes, here I am again ....
I've recently learned that a lot of the gods were taken out of the realms as of 3E. I, for one, am of the opinion 'the more gods the better'. Anyway, I was simply wondering which gods you actually like having in the Realms, which ones you'd bring back or take out? If this is too much of a question to answer, I apologize .......
Thanks
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Nynshari
Chaos is Life
Chaos is Creativity
Chaos is the Essence of Our Souls |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 03:54:28
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Hi again, all. Ah, some juicy questions to send Ed’s way (remember that he’ll probably fall silent for a bit, jaunting down to Chicago for WotC). Here’s the third half of Ed’s Tunland reply:
Tun tribes have always been hostile towards each other (except in certain traditional annual parleys), from skirmishes to “bride-stealing” raids, though all-out wars have been few because the Tunlar believe the gods curse those who “spill too much blood between rains.”
All Tunlar now shun the Mir, considering them “wild-heads who attack all on sight - - we can no longer share this land with them.” These days, all Tunlar skirmish with each other constantly (success in such frays is one of the ways their young males prove themselves as competent warriors of the tribe), but do so very half-heartedly, because they can all see a common threat . . . and the Tunlar have always united against outland invaders (right now, the Zhents).
The Zhents are trying to push the Tunlar into a war, in which (they hope) the Drulla will be the only Tunlar left standing, but Thaalim Torchtower can see very well what they’re up to, and is trying to convince all Tunlar he meets what the Zhents are up to - - thus far successfully.
The Tunlar see Torchtower and his ragtag band of outlander outlaws and brigands as the other major group of outlander invaders, but they respect Torchtower as someone who rides like them, hunts like them, and lives like them, rather than using “disgusting magic” to lord it over them. (Torchtower knows this, and keeps the very minor magic items in his band well-hidden, and to be used only in dire emergencies; he fears not only the Tunlar reaction, but some War Wizard being able to convince Vangey [who as far as he knows, is still in true control of the Florest Kingdom] that with magic, Torchtower is such a threat that all the spells Cormyr can muster should be hurled down on their heads, as they’re hunted to extinction.)
The Tunlar don’t think they’re being “kept down” or prevented from rising to kingdom-hood by anyone: as far as they’re concerned, they’re living quite happily in their own land, except for these invaders (the Zhents) who “spread like a stain” and must be eradicated - - but handled carefully because of their “demon magic.”
The Tunlar (including the Mir) traditionally despise the Marsh Drovers but largely leave them alone - - because when winters are really harsh or drought strikes, the Tunlar need the food the Marsh Drovers can provide, and are smart enough to know that if they slaughter the Drovers or try to enslave them, they are cutting off that food source. The rest of the time, the Marsh Drovers don’t bother them or compete with them, and so can readily be left alone without cost.
Far from ruling a “bandit kingdom,” Thaalim Torchtower commands about eighty outlaws and brigands, about sixty of whom are good mounted fighters (the others largely keep to various cave-lairs where they can readily fight off attacking Tunlar with crossbows). Torchtower is known as “the Outlander” to most Tunlar - - and if the Zhents are ever eradicated, the surviving Tunlar will turn on Torchtower en masse, and fight to the death to be rid of him.
All of which should show you quite clearly why Cormyr keeps its boots (if not its prying nose) out of Tunland.
So saith Ed. Makes perfect sense to me. Ed didn’t mention it, but part of his delay in replying was to try to make sure he didn’t lay down lore here that hampered or contradicted any upcoming Realms novels or short stories involving Torchtower or Tunland. He hopes he’s done that.
love to all,
THO
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4689 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 04:05:03
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all. Ah, some juicy questions to send Ed’s way (remember that he’ll probably fall silent for a bit, jaunting down to Chicago for WotC). Here’s the third half of Ed’s Tunland reply:
Third half? How did you stand in math? *smiles* |
"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon |
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Verghityax
Learned Scribe
131 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 08:06:26
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quote:
Originally posted by Kentinal
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all. Ah, some juicy questions to send Ed’s way (remember that he’ll probably fall silent for a bit, jaunting down to Chicago for WotC). Here’s the third half of Ed’s Tunland reply:
Third half? How did you stand in math? *smiles*
Don't be mean, Kentinal. You just seemingly do not understand the basic rules of D&D maths - everyone knows there's an extraplanar, third half of everything 
Sorry, couldn't stop myself |
Edited by - Verghityax on 22 Jun 2005 19:37:58 |
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Nynshari
Acolyte
17 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 21:00:37
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Hello, I'm back again ... Sorry.
Anyway, I was wondering if you could give any details on the Leaves of the Night (the tome that tells of Shar's 'mistake') that was in the Mistress of the Night book?
Thanks 
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Nynshari
Chaos is Life
Chaos is Creativity
Chaos is the Essence of Our Souls |
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Faraer
Great Reader
3308 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 22:38:17
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Nynshari, most of the 'lost' gods -- which we know haven't been definitively removed, since they keep reappearing -- are the obscure monster gods from DMGR4 Monstrous Mythology, not ones with deep ties to Realmslore. About those, Ed answered a similar question last year posed by Sarelle:quote:
I’d prefer not to lose a single monster deity, because I think promoting the different ethics and beliefs they represent, so as to give intelligent critters reasons for what they do beyond hunger and greed, adds a lot of richness to the game.
Ed can answer about Leira and Cyric and so forth -- but if he gives any good reason for liking the loss of Leira and Myrkul and so on, it'll be the first I've seen anywhere. When I asked Jim Lowder about it, he couldn't recall why losing those gods was thought to be a good idea. |
Edited by - Faraer on 22 Jun 2005 22:39:05 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2005 : 23:18:32
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We Knights discussed this with Ed years back, Faraer, and I believe the thinking was: the Time of Troubles was supposed to be a Ragnarok-like Big Thing (RSE, though of course that erm hadn't yet been coined), and so deaths of gods would be a good thing from a "making it impressive" standpoint, but not from a "lose the play possibilities" viewpoint. Result: lose gods that were as unimportant and peripheral as possible (Ibrandlin, et al). Fix the "confusion" of Lliir and Leira, etc.
I'm not saying this was good thinking, I'm just trying to report what Ed concluded from his discussions with various players at the time.
love,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2005 : 03:40:11
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Hello, fellow FR scribes. Ed confirms what I posted above, and added that I’d better emphasize that “players” in my final line didn’t mean we players in Ed’s campaign, but rather all the TSR staffers “in play” (involved) in this matter at the time.
Well corrected, lord. 
Ahem.
Now, Ed of the Greenwood makes reply to RevJest (formerly known as simontrinity) about song dragons, and to the query “Why did Narnra’s mother leave her all alone?”
Hi, RevJest. SiriusBlack, Garen Thal, and kuje31 have ably answered your query about song dragons (weredragons) already; the current game specifics for them are in MONSTERS OF FAERUN. As for FULL details of these creatures, I think I’ll keep them under my hat for now, bearing some (hopefully, but plans are ever-shifting) very-soon-future fiction in mind.
Now, as for Narnra’s mother leaving Narnra all alone (attention, all scribes reading this: SPOILER WARNING for ELMINSTER’S DAUGHTER!
SPOILER WARNING for ELMINSTER’S DAUGHTER!
I REPEAT: SPOILER WARNING for ELMINSTER’S DAUGHTER!), I don’t want to Reveal All because I’m not done with Narnra or her mother yet. Please bear in mind that Narnra doesn’t know what I’m revealing here.
We know that in the human guise of Lady Maerjanthra of the Gems (a gemcutter and jewelry-seller), Narnra’s mother (a weredragon) dwelt in Waterdeep. We know that Narnra was fathered by Elminster, the weredragon’s sometime lover (who knew her true nature, but almost certainly didn’t know, before the “present-time” events of ELMINSTER’S DAUGHTER, that he was the father of Narnra; obviously, [NDA], Narnra’s mother, kept the truth from him—almost certainly to avoid Narnra’s life being ruined [and then swiftly ended] by divers ‘old foes’ of Elminster, seeking to use the child as a bargaining chip to get at him, or a magical mental means of contacting or influencing him).
We glimpse Narnra’s brief and fragmentary memories of the “death” of her mother. The weredragon was attacked by the spells of a human wizard, probably hired by House Artemel (but possibly by the Lathkules or even someone else Narnra never knew about), and “broken and burned” in the burnt-out ruins of her own front parlor (or so Narnra believed).
The truth is that the weredragon (not the one Krash remembers, by the way: almost no one of Waterdeep knew Narnra’s mother was a weredragon, though many suspected she was a sorceress; the city is a magnet for dragons who like to live among humans, and can assume human shape to do so) wasn’t slain, but was horribly wounded; the ashen skeleton found in the wreckage was that of one of her attackers. A contingency spell whisked her away, to a ‘safehold’ of ancient elven make that she’d discovered decades earlier (in [NDA]), where other contingencies kept her asleep for years, healing and recovering VERY slowly.
Some of the weredragon’s memories were mental (her head was smashed and seared in the fighting and collapse of the flaming roof onto her), and she forgot all about Narnra and her apprentices and Elminster and much of her life in Waterdeep.
When some fragmentary memories did return, they were frustratingly incomplete, unsettling, and tinged with shame (she’d left something undone, she’d left someone alone and unhelped), and the weredragon avoided exploring them for some time, as she wandered the wilderlands, rebuilding her strength and will to live by enjoying the beauties of nature, swimming in fast-flowing, icy streams coming down through foothills, drifting (by means of spells) idly through deep woods, and finally turning to watching humans and their strivings.
She so happened to pass through the Stonelands, and come upon Cormyr, where she watched human doings as a sort of personal entertainment for some time, her memories returning but now mattering much less: she had a new place to dwell in and new entertainments. Plundering some treasures (gem and coin caches) she’d discovered in her wilderness wanderings, she took herself by magic to Sembia, outfitted herself with a grand wardrobe and hired servants and coaches, and journeyed to Marsember as “Lady Joysil Ambrur.”
EL’S D finds her there some years later, remembering more and more and at the same time learning all she can of human intrigues and secrets, befriending and working with Harpers to do so. She has farscried Elminster and remembered him, she has remembered Narnra but lost all trace of her and has no idea what she now looks like (if she’s even still alive), though Harpers have brought her information that MIGHT pertain to her daughter, or just to someone else of about the same age active in about the right place in Waterdeep - - and the weredragon is now a very different person, with her former life seemingly something that happened to “someone else.” This detachment crumbles as the events of the novel unfold, but there you have it: why Narnra’s mother left her to grow up and live on her own.
So saith Ed. VERY interesting. I queried Ed about the NDA in his reply, and it specifically refers to the NAME (okay, identity) of Narnra’s mother, which is even MORE interesting.
Ah, may we all be blessed to live in interesting times . . .
love,
THO
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Nynshari
Acolyte
17 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2005 : 16:16:19
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Thanks for the reply, Faraer and Hooded One
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Nynshari
Chaos is Life
Chaos is Creativity
Chaos is the Essence of Our Souls |
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2005 : 22:27:06
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"Narnra’s mother (a weredragon)"
Should that be Song Dragon now as Were Dragons where written out of the FR when 3ed came out? |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2005 : 23:04:36
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quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
"Narnra’s mother (a weredragon)"
Should that be Song Dragon now as Were Dragons where written out of the FR when 3ed came out?
Well they weren't writen out exactly. They were just turned into Song Dragons. :) |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2005 : 04:07:32
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Hello, fellow scribes. Dargoth, game rule changes don't trump established Realmslore (some folks may tell you different, but the Realms agreement, by which you get to see the Realms at all, is firm on this), so "weredragons" it is ("song dragons" to we gamers looking in on the Realms). Ed speaks across the pond to the esteemed Faraer:
Faraer, thanks very much for your core story of the Realms thread (and the links to Mike Mearls’ livejournal).
Great stuff, that I wish more game company execs and designers thought about (instead of stat blocks - - in fact, if * I * were running a game company, I’d keep character stats to the “LN hm W9” 2e shorthand Jeff and I developed, with high ability scores and magic items listed: the names of prestige classes could be spelled out in full, with rulebook page citations . . . and put the full stat blocks on a website, for interested gamers, so they can readily be changed when game editions do).
Like “mission statements” for organizations, “core stories” should not be taken so far as to become restrictive prohibitions, but they serve as VERY valuable marketing (and product-line-focusing: not so much to restrict content, but to determine what content gets highlighted and stressed) tools.
Even more valuable than formulating a precise “core story” is the metagaming thinking involved; this way of mentally viewing a campaign setting can be very helpful to any DM.
Thanks!
So saith Ed. Who’s happily working away on [NDA], but will return with another Realmslore reply when he returns from ALA.
love to all,
THO
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SirUrza
Master of Realmslore
USA
1283 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 04:06:49
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| THO if you'd be so kind as to ask Ed if in Farthest Reach (specifically page 168, 3rd to last paragraph) gives us a little hint as to what the Knight trilogy will be about? |
"Evil prevails when good men fail to act."
The original and unapologetic Arilyn, Aribeth, Seoni Fanboy. |
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Si
Acolyte
United Kingdom
18 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 11:44:45
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Dear Lady THO and Ed
One of my gaming group (we'll call him...Abbathor) has raised an interesting question that I thought I'd seek expert advice on. On returning from Undermountain with a new, distinctive magical sword (nothing super-powerful, just flashy) the player in question was gracefully petitioned by some nobles for the return of the sword that had belonged to their long-deceased uncle. Abbathor refused, pointing out honestly that:
A) he hadn't stolen the sword from their uncle or killed him.
B) he'd risked life and limb to destroy the opponent who'd had the sword and it was his rightful battle trophy.
C) if they were so concerned about getting it back why hadn't they sent people after it-it had been down there for fifteen years?
Abbathor's character has a nautical background, and to the great amusement of the rest of the group and the crowd in the yawning portal he then started going on about the sword being 'rightful salvage plucked from the depths by those with the courage to do it.' All this accompanied by many withering stares at the nobles, who sensibly retired rather than get embroiled in a public brawl. Which leads me to ask, in the civilised north, leaving Waterdeep (hip deep and rising in NDA's) aside, who would have the right to it? Is there a law of Dungeon Salvage where they might have the right to the sword but only if they pay a salvage fee?
What do you think Krash, you're a legal maven, and Lady THO you've been around Torm so you must have a wide experience of <ahem> salvaged items? |
'Only the little people suffer at the hands of Justice; The creatures of power slide out from under with a wink and a grin.'
Quellcrist Falconer
Things I Should Have Learnt by Now |
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Bendal
Seeker
USA
54 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 13:08:52
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I'd be interested in hearing whether there's any 'salvage law' in the Realms or not either. In my campaign, the PC's found an axe created by a long dead dwarven smith, from the "Forge of Fury" adventure. Trying to get it ID'ed, they showed it to a dwarf who happened to be a distant relative of the dead smith, and she demanded the axe be returned to her.
They eventually agreed to have her purchase it, but it had the potential to become messy there for a while. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 15:08:57
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| I, personally, would say that if they'd made no attempt to collect it, then it was the rightful property of whoever found it. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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Karth
Seeker
USA
81 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 15:26:14
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quote:
Ed spoke at such length that I had to split this to avoid the post-length limits. Here he begins:
Hi, Karth. The best map of Marsember is...
...and thus the entire network of ‘inside the walls’ area.
Hope this helps, Karth!
Just perfect, Ed. Exactly what I needed. I'm putting that intel to excellent use as we speak. More on that later. Sorry for the delay on certain delivery assurances from earlier in the year. I ended up deep into production on something and am just now coming out the other side...
THO: Much thanks for your benevolent intercession with the Bearded One, as always. ;)
-Karth
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Bendal
Seeker
USA
54 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2005 : 21:56:42
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| Well, in my campaign no one knew where the lost dwarven hold was, but the forge marks on the axe identified it as one of her ancestors' weapons when showed to her. Had her clan known where the hold was, they would have attempted to take it back. The PC's still don't know where the hold is, but they have clues and are looking for more. |
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George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6666 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jun 2005 : 13:04:44
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Hmm, I'd say that the family do have a claim of ownership - if I lose my wallet in the street and it's found by someone else, it's still mine. If I'm dead, then it's part of my estate and goes to my heirs.
In terms of your game, I'd have the nobles contact Abbathor through intermediaries (they wouldn't sully their hands by dealing with a common adventurer directly) offering to buy the sword - and paying handsomely for it. If Abbathor refuses to sell, I'm sure that it wouldn't be a good thing to have a Waterdhavian noble family with a grudge against me. The hiring of thieves to retrieve the item (or maybe even assassins if things get that bad - and your PC's comments are certainly adding fuel to the fire) might lead to interesting campaign developments. Especially if the Red Sashes intervene and take the item from your PC and tell him that they are doing it for his own good and leaving him a bag of gold in return. You can have lots of fun here.
-- George Krashos
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"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
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Erik Scott de Bie
Forgotten Realms Author
USA
4598 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jun 2005 : 20:01:24
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Hail, Lady THO! Please pass my regards to the Lord of the Greenwood as well.
Question: Having just finished The Temptation of Elminster, several things strike me about the setting, but the one that I want to ask about involves the Church of Shar.
I haven't read that many depictions of the church thus far, but I had a certain image in mind from the source books and past gaming. Thus, I was a bit surprised (not in a bad way) to see the whips, blades, dark leather, acolytes licking up blood, rituals involving torment and humiliation, and such things in the temple of Shar -- things I would associate more closely with a Loviatan temple.
So my question(s): Are all of Shar's temples like this? Is it that the Sharran faith used to emphasize these things (Temptation takes place a while ago) but doesn't anymore? Does it depend on local culture / people?
Expanding that Realms-wide: Does the practice of worship evolve greatly as time goes on? Do temples vary from locale to locale? Does local worship style depend upon the high priest/ess's temperament (in this case, rather torturous)?
Whew -- That question made like a cherry tree and blossomed.
Cheers |
Erik Scott de Bie
'Tis easier to destroy than to create.
Author of a number of Realms novels (GHOSTWALKER, DEPTHS OF MADNESS, and the SHADOWBANE series), contributor to the NEVERWINTER CAMPAIGN GUIDE and SHADOWFELL: GLOOMWROUGHT AND BEYOND, Twitch DM of the Dungeon Scrawlers, currently playing "The Westgate Irregulars" |
Edited by - Erik Scott de Bie on 27 Jun 2005 20:07:04 |
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Lauzoril
Seeker
Finland
71 Posts |
Posted - 30 Jun 2005 : 09:42:54
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Greetings, Lady Hood. Another for Ed.
Congratulations, Ed. You've entertained another non-gamer. When my dad's summer holiday began, althought he hasn't read books in years, the first thing he did in his spare time was to read the Mage book.
He liked it thoroughly. Only reason he told me for reading it was that his 'inner wizard' prompted him. He readed it practically in a day. After that he asked is there more of them.
As an addendum, the Elminster in Myth Drannor will be released in Finnish language next October.
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"Death to the enemies of Bane."
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 30 Jun 2005 : 15:23:10
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Lauzoril, that’s great news! (About your dad enjoying the book, I mean. Of course it’s also great news about ELMINSTER IN MYTH DRANNOR, but, hey, we’ll celebrate that next October.  )
Ed’s back from Chicago, safe and sound (with a keyboard piled high with unfinished work that he’s busily plowing right back into!) and he tells me that anyone who enjoyed ELMINSTER: THE MAKING OF A MAGE should watch the WotC website in July for “some things of interest.” Sigh. Some men just LOVE being mysterious.
Ed promises he’ll be right back on the Realmslore answer desk tomorrow, but in the meantime has a quick reply for Erik, whose forthcoming fictions he’s eagerly awaiting:
No, all of Shar’s temples aren’t like this. One branch of the faith tried this “style of worship” at the time of TEMPTATION (centuries ago, now), and it enjoyed brief popularity with clergy but not with worshippers, and so (largely) faded away.
Various important (and self-important) priests of all faiths try innovations from time to time, usually as a resulting of interpreting (or misinterpreting) dreams, or waking visions sent to them during prayer, from the deity (or so they believe). Some catch on, some are labelled “heresies” and earn their adherents swift punishment, and some create long-lasting schisms that spawn real change in more than one faith, or even in divine portfolios.
So, yes, it does depend on “local culture / people.”
And yes, the practise of worship (precise details of rituals and even overall dogma) evolves greatly with passing time and even geographical location (this is the in-game “out” that allows DMs or Realms fiction writers to cover their own goofs or inventions in temple “dressing” or rituals, such as, just to invent one, including a chained-to-the-altar maiden in a temple of Chauntea).
And yes, we’ve seen repeatedly in Realms fiction and lore that the locally ranking priest can and does have a large amount of control over “local worship style” in most faiths.
In this particular case, the faith of Shar moved in two directions: more menace and manipulative control instead of pain, and more “personal pain” (priests inflicting pain on themselves and one other subordinate priest only, with the “head” priest of a religious community finding lay persons to inflict pain on him or her - - an obvious security weakness that led to the abandonment of the custom after a few high priests and priestesses were murdered by “ringers” who weren’t part of the faith at all, or who were paid by an ambitious subordinate priest to do away with the head cleric.
So saith Ed. Hope that helps, Erik. Ed will be right back on the podium, fellow scribes. Everybody bought and read “Best of Eddie” yet? 
love to all,
THO
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 01:41:50
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Hello, all. As promised, Ed's back in the Realmslore chair.
This time, Ed replies to Zandilar, in the matter of the apparent dislike of clerics in Realms fiction:
Zandilar, your impression about authors not liking clerics is well-founded but mistaken. By which I mean: it’s the most likely impression to gain from reading the published Realms fiction canon to date, but I don’t believe it’s authors disliking clerics so much as being uneasy about using clerics because of a paucity of published lore on (yes, my hobby-horse again) the daily lives of clergy within their priesthoods (creeds, taboos, rituals, dress and customs). Couple this to the fictional basic need for conflict, and one has a situation where clerics (outside of “member of the adventuring band” or “handy healer the party goes to” roles) almost always appear only in scenes of fights, confrontations, or arguments. For the same reasons of drama and accentuating heroism, fiction writers often avoid having healing on the scene when it could help matters.
Specifically about Cormyr: I wrote most of the DotD scenes you refer to, and Garen Thal has (as usual) hit the nail squarely on its head in his reply to you: the Purple Dragons and the War Wizards have long-standing resentments regarding the most powerful clergy of Cormyr “showing up grandly at the last minute to do the bare minimum, with a lot of public show” rather than toiling daily to help the faithful. Note that this anger and contempt is NOT held towards low-ranking priests who dwell as part of the community in villages and towns, and DO work long, hard, dedicated hours; it just seems that in recent times Cormyr, with its freedoms and (relatively) “easy” life (in urban areas, during peacetime) has developed or attracted a crop of lazy, vain, self-aggrandizing and too-often-useless or out of touch exalted-ranks clergy.
Troy plotted DotD (I was waiting for heart surgery at the time, and rushing to complete some outstanding Realms game product projects), and to make the plot as he wrote it (with all the royal family heroics) work, Cormyr’s powerful clerics had to NOT step in and meddle (or mobilize their clergy to do so) as the Obarskyrs rush to their various dooms - - and to have that inaction happen, I had to portray the highest priests of the realm as I did.
To put it another way: to give just one of the heads of the major local priesthoods a personality as heroic as Azoun would inevitably have led to at least that one church mobilizing for all-out war on the ghazneths, about as soon as it was realized that more than one existed. Considering the powers of the ghazneths, the clergy of Mystra and Azuth would almost have to consider them prime dangers to be obliberated at all costs, regardless of what happened to the Obarskyrs or to Cormyr. Yet there’s no sign of such a reaction in BEYOND THE HIGH ROAD, so my job, swinging into the saddle to ride with Troy in DEATH OF THE DRAGON, is to make sure there’s a plausible “in the Realms” reason for that.
Garen Thal’s reply is also spot-on concerning the worship of Malar and other “evil” gods in Cormyr. I’ll leave your questions about Darmos Lauthyr and Eilistraee for another time, but regarding souls: Yes, souls (for those races having them) ARE “made when the child is first conceived with no divine ‘intervention/interference’ at all.” It can’t be otherwise, in a situation where divine power is related to number of worshippers, or the deity with the assigning-souls portfolio would be the ONLY deity.
Kuje is right: TSR has never stated this, for the very reasons espoused by The Sage in his post: that most people prefer this be left mysterious (for personal religious reasons or otherwise; TSR of course wanted to avoid low sales/social backlash from established churches, invited for something that in most campaigns really has very little gameplay importance).
So saith Ed. Thus renewed, we can all face his next Realmslore reply.
love to all,
THO
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 02:25:33
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Everybody bought and read “Best of Eddie” yet?
love to all,
THO
I just found it, about an hour ago. I now have a copy, of course. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 02:29:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Everybody bought and read “Best of Eddie” yet?
love to all,
THO
I just found it, about an hour ago. I now have a copy, of course.
I finally managed to find my copy to, a day or so ago. I'm halfway through. :) |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31774 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 03:16:17
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quote:
Originally posted by Kuje
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Everybody bought and read “Best of Eddie” yet?
love to all,
THO
I just found it, about an hour ago. I now have a copy, of course.
I finally managed to find my copy to, a day or so ago. I'm halfway through. :)
Unfortunately, I have yet to receive my copy  .
But my shipping agent tells me the wait shouldn't be that much longer.
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Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Erik Scott de Bie
Forgotten Realms Author
USA
4598 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 04:23:08
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As always, you are the pinnacle of wisdom and learning, Lord Greenwood, and you, fair Lady THO, are the pinnacle of aid, beauty, and too many virtues to name.
quote:
. . . a quick reply for Erik, whose forthcoming fictions he’s eagerly awaiting
 High praise indeed. Perhaps one day I shall prove myself worthy. Until then -- with a bow -- your humble servant, I shall remain.
Cheers |
Erik Scott de Bie
'Tis easier to destroy than to create.
Author of a number of Realms novels (GHOSTWALKER, DEPTHS OF MADNESS, and the SHADOWBANE series), contributor to the NEVERWINTER CAMPAIGN GUIDE and SHADOWFELL: GLOOMWROUGHT AND BEYOND, Twitch DM of the Dungeon Scrawlers, currently playing "The Westgate Irregulars" |
Edited by - Erik Scott de Bie on 01 Jul 2005 20:02:01 |
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Karth
Seeker
USA
81 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 21:25:10
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Ed and THO,
Wondering if either/both of you might have anything to say about the Amorous Anchor: a festhall and smuggling den in Marsember. I have everything already published on it, I believe. I'm perfectly fine with manufacturing the rest out of whole cloth, but wanted to see if there was existing Realmslore from your campaign first. Mind you: no need to make up anything new for me. Just want to hear what, if anything, you've already done with it. ;)
Many thanks, as always,
-Karth
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4689 Posts |
Posted - 01 Jul 2005 : 21:46:58
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In 2004 Ed replied " No, there aren't lots of drow worshippers of Eilistraee OPENLY wandering the streets of Silverymoon, but there ARE probably sixty or more dwelling in the city in disguise, and many more in the lands around Silverymoon and around Everlund"
The question not , this time, about followers of the dark Maiden, rather it is about the disguises that any Drow would use as I suspect that at times using a magic disguise would be detected or peirced one way or another. What mundane (non magical) methords would be used by Drow or any other non liked race? How often and/or what scheme of defense detection are in place to detect magical and mundane disguusies?
Of one thing I am certain that the use of magic within the city would be a concern to those that defend it, tat there are certain laws or customs in place to deal with such matters. |
"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 02 Jul 2005 : 01:56:05
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Hello again, scribes of Realmslore! I present Ed’s answer to RevJest: “what did El say to Storm to get her to calm down?” in the matter of the Harper Schism (“Sources in Twilight Hall confirm that Storm, formerly screaming in outrage over Khelben’s actions, seems calmer after a brief chat with Elminster.”), which is as follows:
I’ll have to be vague on this, thanks to [NDA], but in general, Storm was furious that Khelben was AGAIN behaving so autocratically, after he’d previously and privately personally promised (whoa: entirely accidental alliteration, I assure you) his fellow Chosen not to (over a matter that’s DEFINITELY NDA-cloaked).
El calmed her down in three ways: he first took on Khelben’s shape and appeared to her in that guise, letting her blow off steam by verbally and physically assaulting him, taking the punishment she dished out until she “wound down;” then he revealed his ruse and calmed her anger at HIM for doing it by saying that both he and Khelben were in some part acting as Azuth and Mystra had counseled them to (long-term mysterious Grand Plan maneuverings); and then he mollified her by saying that this was going to backfire in Khelben’s face, this time, and he was going to “get his” in fairly short order, earning himself far more frustration than he’d have suffered if he’d continued to play ball with the Harpers rather than insisting on assuming the Lone Brilliant Tyrant Beset By Fools role once more time.
And of course the most irritating thing about Elminster is that he’s so often right.
So saith Ed. And there you have it. As revealed as it’s going to be, for now.
love to all,
THO
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2005)
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