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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
 Posted - 13 May 2006 : 01:46:06
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, fellow scribes. Ed makes reply this time to Jamallo Kreen’s query: “Aside from bards and courtiers, are there courtesans in the Realms who are not prostitutes, but who simply serve as professional entertainers, companions, and/or escorts? If so, who have been the famous ones in Realms history, the ones about whom poems have been written and songs sung? From our European history, although they undoubtedly prostituted themselves, Aspasia and Phryne spring to mind from Greece, and also Veronica Franco, The Honest Courtesan of Venice. Who would be their Realms counterparts?”
Ed speaks:
(and does so in a thrilling manner)
That is sooooo cool, Ed! Thanks! And thanks to you, too, of course, beauteous Hooded One!
I add my voice to those who request Ed to record some Realms music. I really want to hear this ballad of the Veiled Dancer!
!
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 01:48:46
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quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
Hello again,
Has the Shade tampering with weather created any kind of tornado area/alley? Does there exist such a class of fronts that affect the lands of Faerun and exactly where are such stats for tornadoes to be found if anyone recalls?
Happy Mother's Day to those applicable.
Perusing my recently acquired heap o' old Dragon mags, I read across the article on the decanter of endless water and now wonder why people haven't planted them in Anauroch, Raurin, etc.? The Shades seem to have gone to an awful lot of trouble to fetch water to the desert....
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 02:26:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
quote:
Originally posted by createvmind
Hello again,
Has the Shade tampering with weather created any kind of tornado area/alley? Does there exist such a class of fronts that affect the lands of Faerun and exactly where are such stats for tornadoes to be found if anyone recalls?
Happy Mother's Day to those applicable.
Perusing my recently acquired heap o' old Dragon mags, I read across the article on the decanter of endless water and now wonder why people haven't planted them in Anauroch, Raurin, etc.? The Shades seem to have gone to an awful lot of trouble to fetch water to the desert....
The Zhents have already done that they created a bunch of man made Oasis using Decanters of Endless water that spann the length of Black Road |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
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Drakul
Senior Scribe
USA
367 Posts |
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 19:22:23
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all. Back in September of last year, Jamallo Kreen posted: “I have a RULES question which may well belong elsewhere, but Ed may be able to provide insight which settles the matter for the more formal amongst us: is the creature known as the "ur-priest," who can "steal" divine power to do clerical magic even possible within Realmspace?
(snip)
Rather, a deity IS deliberately granting the ur-priest spells to let the ur-priest function as a “wild card loose cannon” and benefit from the results.
(snip)
Oooooooh, Master of the Green Wood, you give me such ... ideas!
 
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 19:26:53
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quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
(snippy snippy snip snip)
The Zhents have already done that they created a bunch of man made Oasis using Decanters of Endless water that spann the length of Black Road
Thanks, Dargoth. Would you please tell us where that's written up? I want to follow up on this for my own campaign.
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 19:57:51
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(Lotta consecutive posts by me here, folks. Am I wallowing in my own ignorance or luckily asking the same questions others have? I apologize if my frequesnt posts seem intimidating to some readers, but I have thousands of factoids to acquire before I can consider myself even an apprentice loremaster of the Realms.)
In this post, I answer (or rather, Skip Williams answers) one of the string of questions I asked a couple of weeks ago vis-a-vis greenstone amulets. In a "Sage Advice" column some years ago, Skip Williams answered someone else's questions about them and stated that they begin to automatically recharge when they reach zero charges. Thus, even though they look "burned out" at that point, they recover, unlike a burned out Ioun stone. Skip did not, however, answer the other questions which I recently asked Ed, such as whether some amulets are created with less than 44 charges, and whether an amulet will recharge itself to 44 despite its (possibly lower charged) state when created. I eagerly await Ed's responses to those and my other questions.
I have a few other questions, too! (Big honking surprise, eh what?). What are some typical values for various types of books which are needed to comprise a wizardly research library? I know, as a historian, that on our Earth books were enormously expensive in Europe between the decline of Rome (and its book-copying industry) and the introduction of the printing press. 3rd edition D&D makes blank books ridiculously cheap, though, and I know that Waterdeep and some other cities have a burgeoning printing industry, so just what are the current price tags on bestiaries, herbals, and books on matters of arcana and of natural philosophy? Candlekeep (the real one, not this cybernetic one!) has a requirement that a new visitor deposit a book of "new" knowledge with them, -- Mel Odom gives a price tag of 10,000 (!!!!) "gold pieces" for such a thing -- but what is (under 3E) a more typical cash value for books new to Candlekeep? Also, does Candlekeep permit visitors to enspell themselves so that they may remember what they read and then transcribe their day's reading on blank leaves or books of their own within their own guest cells at Candlekeep? Are spells which permit magical transcriptions of books permitted in the reading rooms, since some of these do not require dangerous bottles of ink which might be spilled over precious volumes? Does Candlekeep have (or plan on having) a print shop to mass produce its more important (or more popular) books?
Are there any cities or larger realms which have copyright laws? If so, do they require that copies of newly copyrighted books be deposited at a central library?
On a much more tangential note, who have been the famous scientists of the Realms (other than that Netherese aeronautical fellow from Yeoman's Loft)?
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 13 May 2006 : 23:03:02
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quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
(snippy snippy snip snip)
The Zhents have already done that they created a bunch of man made Oasis using Decanters of Endless water that spann the length of Black Road
Thanks, Dargoth. Would you please tell us where that's written up? I want to follow up on this for my own campaign.
Book 1 of the Harper series of novels (Parched Sea?) |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
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Drakul
Senior Scribe
USA
367 Posts |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 14 May 2006 : 01:16:34
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Hello again, fellow Candle-bearing scribes. This time Ed tackles this, from Kuje: “I was pondering the Unseen as I'm coding the cleric file for Alaundo and I'm wondering this: Does Selune know that Acolyte Respen Moongleam is "dead" and that his form has been taken over by a doppleganger? Why does she continue to grant spells to him then, if she does know? It seems a bit odd to me that she'd grant spells to a doppleganger that killed her worshipper and taken his form and life.”
Dearest Wooly then reminded Kuje that when a greater doppleganger killed someone like a cleric or paladin, they lost all divinely-granted abilities and the ability to cast spells above second level, and reminded us all of the old “regaining 1st and 2nd level spells ‘by default, anywhere’” concept, which Ed has confirmed elsewhere. Thauramarth pointed out its age and broad application, which Ed also hereby confirms.
He also has these words for Kuje:
Of course Sêlune knows. :}
It’s a little hard to hide something like that from a deity. And in this case, the first and second level spells WOULDN’T automatically be regained, because the doppelganger is merely copying Moongleam’s shape, not occupying it, and therefore no one who’s ever been a devout worshipper is involved.
However, Sêlune IS granting the doppelganger spells, up to 4th level thus far, hoping the creature will begin to worship her [remember, in the Realms, everyone “believes” because everyone KNOWS the gods are real; it’s worship the deities are after]. It remains to be seen if the creature will.
So saith Ed. VERY interesting.
love to all,
THO
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 14 May 2006 : 02:19:38
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Hello Sage,
This is a very crucial question to my story and hope the NDA god allows it to be answered. The great seal the Deep Imaskari have created with the Uber Suggestion spell that affects even different planes, does it affect deities as well? Basically they work serious magic, does Mystra benefit from this magic use even if she's unaware and can she be unaware of magic worked in Faerun? Being capable of blocking out foreign deities in the past, could this seal block out the attention of resident home deities? Did this seal allow them to scry out into Faerun at all? Are they aware that there is a new Mystra, knowledge of Times of Trouble, etc.....? I'm assuming they can scry out of seal because they said certain individuals could be called back with powerful magic, obviously they have to be located first, determine wether even still alive and more importantly to security determine if they are "tainted" in any way probably.
If no then is she able to through her power pass on this info to her Chosen, Magister, faithful or would the Suggestion kick in the minute they tried to purposely think of the Imaskari?
The Imaskari that have left home have memory purged but what is that replaced with? When they try to remember youth, childhood, friends do they remember them but think they lived somewhere that was destroyed or gone or do they have a blank space in memory?
Whats your take on this? |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 14 May 2006 : 03:25:51
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| Ah most interesting. :) Thanks Ed. |
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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Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
729 Posts |
Posted - 14 May 2006 : 09:06:11
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quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
quote:
Originally posted by Dargoth
(snippy snippy snip snip)
The Zhents have already done that they created a bunch of man made Oasis using Decanters of Endless water that spann the length of Black Road
Thanks, Dargoth. Would you please tell us where that's written up? I want to follow up on this for my own campaign.
Book 1 of the Harper series of novels (Parched Sea?)
It's also in FR13 - Anauroch, p. 29. |
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darkflame millithor
Seeker
USA
52 Posts |
Posted - 15 May 2006 : 00:36:00
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| ED Greenwood,how old are you ? you seem as anceint as Elminster.I was aware of your works before I started reading "thick books". I like most of your F/R novels "most" . I lopved the whole elminster series except his daughter It wasn't your best.WEll no on second thought I just didn't like her(the daughter),what happened to Toril shattering magic,the titanic fast paced,lecherous, world hopping master of Art we all know and love? Or is this book a Prelude to Retirement for elminster(he's too old for The Simbul ,he can't keep up with her!).I've noticed that you haven't jumped on the Drow Ban-wagon, that's amazing,But I think Gromph Beanre could use a little of your tweeking if his creators don't mind .Lets face it No One does Archwizard like you do!(beware of tight casting!) P.S I think El in Hell is one of your best! don't lose the edge. |
purge all weakness in the cleanzing flame of
rightousness.tear down the false idols of love,compassion,and self-sacrifice.down with the tyranny of the seldarine |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 15 May 2006 : 00:55:17
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Hi again, fellow scribes. Ed looks at Elfinblade’s Tethyr queries this time: “I am in dire need of some linguistic and some gastronomical lore. I dont know whether you know these particular words from before, or if you would be so kind as to "invent" them for me now. I am looking for some translations from English to Tethyrian(?).
1: Shimmering black lights. (i realize single word translations may differ from entire sentences, but here it is the sentence i need translated)
2: Spiral (like in a spiral of stairs)
3: Murky Depths (Same as #1)
And now for some food/drink lore if you have time for it :P
In Tethyr, do you have any local dinner meals? I am looking in particular at specific meals from the northern reaches of Tethyr, near the coast.
Same goes with beverages. Not necessarily spirits or ale (although tis welcome if you would give a few ale specialities) but maybe if they drink milk? from goats, or cows perhaps? What about fruit juices? This is a land rather far south in Faerûn, i would guess they had certain juices and such. Wine from grapes perhaps?
Anyhow, thanks for the effort you put into answering us lorefreaks who believe lore is one of the aspects of role-playing in the realms that is the most important. It is really appreciated :)”
Ed replies:
Hi, Stig. You’re very welcome, and I, too, treasure little details and rich, deep Realmslore. Which is, of course, why I’m here. It warms my heart that so many gamers care about the Realms enough to worry over small details and seek answers.
Which brings me to yours. :}
Kajehase rightly pointed out that Common is spoken in Tethyr, and indeed all the words you’re seeking are simply spoken in Common.
However, there are two relevant local dialect words: “glestaer” (“GLESS-tay-rr”) for ‘shimmering,’ and “dusspel” (“duh-ss-PELL”) for opaque, muddy, or dark depths (of water, not ‘down a hole’). The sentence construction in Tethyr is pure Common, aside from a local tendency to say “am I” (as in: “Thirsty am I,” “Drunk am I,” “Weary am I,” and so on (rather than “I’m weary”) and a preference for “methinks” and “mayhap” for “I think” and “perhaps,” respectively. So everyday English should suffice for most converse.
Now for the gourmands’ lore, which (looks down at own belly, smiles in fond memories of enjoyable feasts galore that built it) I ALWAYS have time for.
Tethyr is a verdant, long-settled country, with many farms, coastal and river fishing, and cultivated vineyards mainly inland, in the south and particularly southeast of the realm. Local meals vary of course with the wealth of the diners and the resources available to them (fresh fish in ports and along the coastal roads, smoked or salted fish elsewhere), but in general:
Meals in rural Tethyr tend to consist of large morningfeasts (of what we moderns might call “bubble-and-squeak” or, along the coast, “kedgeree:” leftovers of vegetables and meat scraps, or fish, fried in onions and oil); light ‘past highsun’ daytime snacks (field meals for farm workers, but called “runsun” everywhere in the realm) of a drink and a pie (cold meat pies of spiced roast fowl or leftover meats such as ham, diced beef, smoked meats or, along the coast, fish, chopped and mixed with diced parsnips or potatoes in a spinach- and mint- or hot-peppers-dominated “simmer sauce”); and then evenfeast.
Evenfeast is the longest meal of the day, typically being served after dark (when ‘day work’ is done). At expensive inns and in grand houses, it will be a large meal of multiple courses, including spiced vegetables in various sauces, fowl stuffed with herbed meats and “frothed” vegetables (all washed down with various wines, and ending with a sweet fruit tart of some sort).
In simpler households, evenfeast tends to be a large, hearty “manymeats” stew (again, in coastal settlements, the stew is often replaced with skewers of roast with diced vegetables fish [we real-world moderns might call them “fish-kebabs,” though the term is unknown in the Realms]), accompanied by garlic bread or cheese-flavored bread, and with a dessert of diced cheese and apples, or even a sweet (berry) pie.
Children, nursing mothers, and sick folk drink either mint water or warmed mead with every meal, but the normal beverages are small beer made in every household, or flagons of a clear, faintly yellow, bitter white wine from southern Tethyr called “llurdren” or just “llur” (or less polite things, like “horsepiss,” by outlanders encountering it for the first time). Farmers who keep livestock (and their immediate neighbours) drink the milk of both goats and cows, but most milk goes into making the “sharp” flavored (more like old real-world Cheddar than anything else) orange, crumbly local cheeses (called such things as Aerdruth and Hammaree, after the long-dead Tethyrians credited with concocting the recipes for the various cheeses).
Berry mash (boiled, from the crushed and overripe fruit, when in season) is drunk, but tends to act (and be used) more as a laxative than a beverage. No other juices are known, though no one cutting or biting into fruit would dream of wasting the juice that gushes forth (cutting is done in bowls, that are then drunk from, though no one tends to gather juice and sell it to anyone else).
Sausages aren’t unknown, but tend to be purchased from northern Calimshan; in Tethyr, a “taste” for the highly-spiced Calishite meats is slowly spreading north. It’s rare for smoked meats or livestock to be imported into Tethyr, which has enough of its own (and indeed exports same). In winter, root soups are popular, as are stews made from the tough bits of slaughtered animals and the worst-condition stored vegetables. Tethyrian cuisine tends to be simple and traditionally lightly seasoned, as befits a land that has an abundance of good, fresh food.
So saith Ed. Who’s made my tummy rumble again. Oh, well, off to the refrigerator . . .
There are more perilous expeditions, I suppose.
P.S. Dargoth: Ed didn’t write the Ecology of the Dracolich in DRAGON.
P.P.S. To darkflame millithor: Ed was born in 1959, and has been a published writer since 1967 (his first DRAGON articles appeared in 1979, and his first Realms standalone books, game and fiction, were published in 1987). I’ll pass your comments on to him (he’s furiously busy right now, with, ahem, Secret Projects).
love,
THO
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 00:40:21
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| Heh-heh. Surely you can tell us how MANY Secret Projects, O Lovely Lady Hooded... |
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Hawkfeather
Seeker
Brazil
64 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 02:00:55
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Greetings, Ed! I'm from Brazil and I've been playing (dming I should say) in the Realms for more than 11 years. First of all I'd like to thank you very much for sharing your dreams with us. And I have a few questions for you if you don't mind:
I was reading "Power of Faerûn" (GREAT book) and wondered: Did Fzoul had to ask permission to the Heralds to change the Zhentarim's symbol? And, if by chance, the new symbol looked like a existing one, how did he would react? It would be like: "I don't care! This will be the new symbol anyway!!" or like: "Sorry guys... I didn't know... Do you have any suggestions for a new blazon?". Finally, I'd like to know if the old symbol (the stylish "Z") is still used by some Zhentarins (the Cyric's followers, for example). |
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createvmind
Senior Scribe
490 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 02:56:09
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Hello again Ed,
Would you say Telkoun the Half-fiend from the FRCS went to ground when the Sarya mobilized practically down hill from his tower? Would she not have reconned it and determined wether it was necessary to eliminate any prying eyes, even somewhat "related" eyes. And if he went to ground where do you think he would go with his baubles and goodies? Also just curious do you think in your world he would ever manage to determine what fiend creatures resided within the Stasis Sphere?
I see him as having difficulties with divination magic of the levels necessary to accomplish this. Though I did have a theory that he would try to send in one of his known creatures, gargoyles, monster and then attempt to scry the surrounding of the creature within hoping to glimpse the other occupants.
Thanks again even if I don't get a response to my onslaught of queries.
Loremaster in training. |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 03:19:36
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Hello, all. Ed must be feeling guilty about keeping Kuje waiting on the special matter, because he’s swiftly sent replies to this post: “Hi Ed, I'm thought we'd start this off easy and base these questions on the races from the PHB. :) Anyhow, I've been pondering some questions about demihuman and human babies and children.
1) What, on average, are the types of foods, besides breast milk, do humans and demihumans feed their babies and youngsters. Btw, since I asked about it, does the breast milk from the different demihumans taste different then the breast milk of humans?
2) What is some of the different furniture, and what does it look like, that the demihumans and humans use for babies and children when they are sleeping, being carried around the home or settlements, etc.
3) I'm curious about wet nurses and nannies based on the PHB races.
4) What are some of the toys each race gives their babies to children to play with. I know there are some games in Aurora's, but can you expand on those.
That's all of the questions I thought of for now. :)”
Ed replies:
1. Most babes and youngsters are milk-fed for a lot longer than in our real world, but are given mashed fruit (sparingly, to avoid laxative results!) as soon as they’ll take it, if available, and “something to suck on” (teethe), often the small, pointed end of any vegetable with a fairly sturdy skin that doesn’t readily “squirt” contents or dye things it touches (so, no tomatoes or beets). “Frothed” (mashed and whipped) starchy vegetables, such as potatoes or tubers (radishes, parsnips) are usually added to their diet next, but of course locally available foods and cuisine govern what younglings are fed.
And since you asked, :} yes, half-elves and elves have sweeter, SLIGHTLY more “minty” (menthol) breast milk than most humans (remember, in all races, breast milk varies in taste genetically, subracially, and by specific diet). Dwarves and gnomes have breast milk that tastes more buttery or nutty, and halflings have breast milk with a curious taste (black unsweetened real licorice?) threaded through it. I can’t comment on the rarer demihuman races, because I haven’t gotten around to, er, sampling. Yet. (And BTW, as we’re on the topic, some adult males and even females, when visiting festhalls, do occasionally request and pay to suckle momentarily at ladies of the establishment who are nursing. I provide this lore because I just KNOW some Realms scribes will find an in-game use for it. :} )
2. All of the demihuman races use “papoose” or similar carry-bags for babies and infants (slung around the bodies of adults, usually their mothers, and more often on the back than on the front or flank, though many of these garments can readily be “slid around” from side to side of the body to get them out of the way or just to ease muscles or balance posture. Humans in the Realms use such contrivances more rarely, though in some regions they use wicker baskets of a shape most real-world modern North Americans would recognize as a “cat basket” or the like. In cold, snow-in-winter regions, these often drop into shaped carry-sockets in sleds for overland transport.
The sort of things we call strollers or prams or buggies are unknown in the Realms, and it should be emphasized that in the Realms most societies are closer to medieval, Renaissance, and Napoleonic real-world than to modern: once infants can walk, they are quickly taught to talk and to work, and are thought of as “little adults” (in other words, although everyone knows they’re physically and emotionally immature, their position in society doesn’t have the special “not responsible” status and treatment that our modern real world tends to accord children in “First World” countries). In many homes, children sleep and lounge in what we might call “round bean-bag chairs” (they are actually oval bed-couches made of scraps of old, worn clothing sewn together (what we might call “crazy-quilt” style, though that term is of course unknown in the Realms), and stuffed with fresh hay), or in “highrails” or “high beds” (cribs, sometimes consisting of a suspended-to-swing-or-rock sleeping pouch mounted between uprights).
The Realms is vast and many-cultured, and over time and from place to place and race to race, a huge variety of such furniture has been tried or seen regular use.
3. So am I. :}
Oh, a serious answer? Both wet nurses and nannies exist in all races, but among communities with strong family ties (or extended clans), doing either of these roles as a paid profession is rare. Among humans, doing it for pay is the norm, and of course hiring such servants is most common among royalty and nobility (and wealthy, socially-climbing, aspiring-to-become-nobility merchant families). Among poor rural humans, nannies tend to be aunts or grandmothers dwelling in the household anyway - - the same relations as customarily serve as nannies among dwarves, gnomes, halflings, and many elves. (Wet nursing is of course limited by who’s lactating, why, for how long, and what their status and situation is.)
4. Balls of carved wood (among gnomes and dwarves, these are often intricate “trick lock” carved wooden puzzles that only older, defter childrens’ fingers can get open, to reveal a hollow cavity usually holding peas or metal chimes, to make it a rattle) are popular with all races, as are carved wooden horses and “small squat people” figures of various races (so dwarves can play “fighting off bad orcs” from a very young age).
Wooden “hammer-peg” (through holes in a wooden “thing”) games (with little hammers) are popular among dwarves and gnomes, as are “building blocks” (made of real stone, of course). Among all the races, for slightly older children, sets of carved and painted wooden model warriors (and steeds, sometimes including dragons) see use, and dress-up dolls (played with by both genders) are popular with all races.
In short, there’s not a lot different from real-world childrens’ toys and games (pre-plastics and catalogues and “safety first” design and big-time marketing, that is). Spinning tops and gliders and toy bows and arrows can all be found, local resources determine what things are made of, and local traditions determine what toys and “wide games” (tag, capture the flag, and so on) are played. And yes, “dress up” in discarded old adults’ clothing is ever-popular.
I don’t have the time right now to detail more of the specific invented games of the Realms, I’m afraid. Sorry. My life is hairily busy right now!
So saith Ed. Trying hard to bring us all more Realmslore, as usual. Oh, Blueblade: he says three big ones (and one of those three is HUGE), and the usual six or so “routine” Secret Projects. All on top of the dozen-some Not-Secret Projects. Hmmm; Ed must be taking it easy . . .
love to all,
THO
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 03:35:09
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hello, all. Ed must be feeling guilty about keeping Kuje waiting on the special matter,
Thanks Ed,
And I might use those ideas for some articles later and for now, I'll get off that topic and let you answer some of my other 20+ questions, and the hundreds on your plate, before I return to it :)
And about that secret matter, if you really can't find the time right now, maybe, but probably not, because I know how busy ya'll be during the Con, we can set up something at Gencon and go over it there?
If you agree or disagree, you know how to contact me privately. |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
Edited by - Kuje on 16 May 2006 04:17:03 |
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tauster
Senior Scribe
Germany
399 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 09:02:15
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Originally, spellsingers were people (usually human, and usually female) who had an innate ability to call on the Weave to work magic in a specific way: when dancing and singing or chanting around a focus (usually a fire, but it could be any source of light or energy,...
[snip]
...“Put” the memory on top of the focus, and when staring at the focus try to see not the focus but only the memory, and keep staring at it - - largely oblivious to surroundings, and hence vulnerable to attack or theft - - while dancing around it.
...[snip]
Just discovered that one of my favourite songs by Blockmores's Night might as well be the "inofficial spellsinger-hymn". For me, there are a lot of personal memories in this song, but I never saw how well it goes with Ed's spellsingers! 
Shadow of the Moon
In the shadow of the moon,
She danced in the starlight
Whispering a haunting tune
To the night...
Velvet skirts spun 'round and 'round
Fire in her stare
In the woods without a sound
No one cared...
Through the darkened fields entranced,
Music made her poor heart dance,
Thinking of a lost romance...
Long ago...
Feeling lonely, feeling sad,
She cried in the moonlight.
Driven by a world gone mad
She took flight...
"Feel no sorrow, feel no pain,
Feel no hurt, there's nothing gained...
Only love will then remain,"
She would say.
Shadow of the Moon...
Shadow of the Moon...
Somewhere just beyond the mist
Spirits were seen flying
As the lightning led her way
Through the dark...
Shadow of the Moon..
(Link)
Mod edit: Coded the link, since it seemed to be stretching out the page.  |
Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 16 May 2006 17:38:51 |
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Elfinblade
Senior Scribe
Norway
377 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 10:21:19
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quote:
So saith Ed. Who’s made my tummy rumble again.
Ah yes, same here :) He does have a nack for conjuring up delicious images to mind. Please let Ed know my sincere gratitude on answering these matters.
I will be back later this week with more lore-questions similar to my last one, but this time: The Moonshaes! |
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Dargoth
Great Reader
Australia
4607 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 10:39:26
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I have a question about history of the Dracolich
Ed how did the Dracolich appear in the D&D?
As I understand it Chronologicly it went like this
Dracolich created by you for your home FR campaign
Dracolich article written by you published in an Early issue of Dragon magazine
Gary Gygax creates a Greyhawk Dracolich: Dragotha for one of the S modules (White Plume Mountain? Did Gary give you credit?)
Dracolichs appear in Spellfire and official 1ed stats first appear in Waterdeep and the North
3.0 Dracolich appears in the FRC
Andy Colins sticks Dracolich in generic 3.5 Draconomicon
The reason why I ask is that someone on another message board is claiming that Dracolichs are a Greyhawk invention and hes declaring Dragotha's existence as proof (probably helped by her recent appearance in Dungeons Age of Worms series of modules) |
“I am the King of Rome, and above grammar”
Emperor Sigismund
"Its good to be the King!"
Mel Brooks |
Edited by - Dargoth on 16 May 2006 10:42:29 |
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Trace_Coburn
Learned Scribe
New Zealand
137 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 15:47:59
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Greetings, Master Sage o' the Greenwood. Once again, I importune you for enlightenment, though in this case 'twould come in the form of a few 'small' expansions on your recent (excellent!) Realmslore columns regarding the construction materials and techniques employed by the typical Faerunian.
(Please pardon me for a moment, as I quietly start hoping that the Dreaded Acronym doesn't pop up once more....  )
I'm wondering if anyone on Faerun has invented adobe bricks, and if so, how widely they are used. I have a hard time imagining Calimshan or similarly Arab-flavoured areas not using adobe construction, but has this form/mentality of construction been exported with any success? While it seems to be a 'desert' style of construction material/technique, it would also seem to offer certain advantages over logs, including superior fire-resistance, ease of fabrication, and simpler handling (it's markedly easier to turn and build corners with two-foot bricks than with ten-foot logs). Indeed, in some localities where the woodland denizens (such as elves or treants) raise 'vigourous objections' to logging, adobe bricks might be greatly preferable....
Similarly, what of the 'black house' form of construction, favoured IRL in Scotland and Ireland for a time? Admittedly log construction works well in 'get it built now' situations on well-wooded frontiers, but when they have more leisure, do such settlers 'trade up' to the black-house's superior weather-proofing and fire-resistance?
I shall await your answers with great interest. |
D&D collection: Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual I, Complete Arcane, Arms & Equipment Guide.
FR sourcebook collection: Dragons of Faerûn, Faiths & Pantheons, FRCS, Lords of Darkness, Monsters of Faerûn, Player's Guide to Faerûn, Power of Faerûn, Races of Faerûn, Silver Marches.
I just got back into this, okay? Give me time (or better yet money) - I'll catch up soon enough.  |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 16 May 2006 : 18:59:17
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tauster, Ed's a Blackmore's fan (though of course spellsingers were created when Deep Purple was still going strong), and Dargoth, I can answer your Dracolich query without even sending it to Ed.
Ed created Dracoliches, definitely. I remember the article going off to DRAGOn well after we'd encountered them in the 'home' campaign. I ALSO remember the Dragotha text (much later) being mailed by TSR to Ed, for an unofficial editing "look-see" before publication - - because he showed it to us for a "last chance at fixing glitches we'd noticed during play."
love,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 17 May 2006 : 00:04:45
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Hi, all. Bookkeeping time again, one of those irregular occasions upon which Ed and I briefly provide answers (and half-answers) to divers questioners (so read carefully, assembled scribes!), to whit:
Quinton, Ed says:
Thanks for the kind words, and yes, Wizards really SHOULD pay me for it, because it is, as you say, great advertising - - and because I haven’t bathed in coins for . . . oh, gosh, it’s been a decade now. In fact, I just paid my taxes and I’m broke (starving writer, will write swift and swiftly-gratifying sex scenes for food . . .). Ahem. Seriously, I’m happy that the “real Realms” has shown through the all-too-common misconceptions of the setting for you, and though Kuje was right about my not wanting to harm Rich Baker’s great trilogy by talking overmuch about Hillsfar, let me say this much: the racism is official ruling policy, enforced by the Red Plumes but little loved by the populace. There are still a few half-elves who can pass for human with the right cosmetics and/or spells and keeping indoors by day, and do so - - and a handful of halflings and gnomes who keep hidden in cellars and underground rooms, making a good living as armorers, locksmiths, and repairers of metal items (working for humans who run smithies and shops as “fronts” with such non-humans as the unseen ‘backroom’ crafters). In the streets, though, Hillsfar is a human-only city.
To be safe and fair to all, consider these words of mine to be uttered BEFORE The Last Mythal trilogy begins and any events of MYSTERIES OF THE MOONSEA befall, okay?
RodOdom, Ed says:
Well, the short answer is that I DIDN’T create the Realms for my gaming group, initially. I created it by linking together fantasy short stories I’d written, into a larger setting. I really started detailing it as a world after D&D gameplay began in it, yes, as a result of the inquisitiveness, roleplaying skills and hunger, and expectations (and attention to detail) of my superb group of players. As The Sage and Kuje mentioned, I’ve talked about this many times before, but what keeps me going is: love. Not just love of my creation, but the feeling of being wanted and appreciated that scribes here at Candlekeep, other Realms fans all over the world, and my players all give me. It’s warming and satisfying to make friends - - and then make those friends happy.
(Here, have a hug. :} )
As for the gods’ beliefs about fate and destiny: nope. They may try to fool mortals by speaking of such things, but to be a god, one MUST believe in free will - - or take the view that one’s own godhood is false, because somewhere unperceived there must be REAL gods who control we gods, and thus provide Fate and Destiny. This is a philosophical pit that scribes here at Candlekeep and game designers and fiction editors at TSR and my own players have wallowed around in before, but for the gods to gain and lose power by gaining and losing worshippers, and for PCs to truly be heroes, fate and destiny CAN’T exist. And there goes all the motivation for sitting down and playing the game, right? Otherwise, it’s like sitting down to listen to the DM run and determine everything: he’s the TV set and you’re just watching the show . . .
Purple Dragon Knight, Ed says:
Your suspicions of Vangerdahast’s aims (“to sire a real "dahast" wizard and to train him to be at the head of Cormyr, err, to serve as an advisor to Azoun V.”) are shrewd indeed. The truth, though? Ah, not yet, I’m afraid. I have to finish with this Knights trilogy, back in the past, first. Read it carefully, though, and you may learn all sorts of interesting and insightful things about all sorts of folks’ future intentions regarding Cormyr.
So saith Ed. Who will return with more housekeeping swift-replies next time.
love to all,
THO
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Quinton
Acolyte
2 Posts |
Posted - 17 May 2006 : 00:34:55
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Thanks Ed! I understand the whole NDA problem, I thought I had chosen a safe subject, but that's what I get for being cocky
Maalthiir will just have to suffer under my own deluded conceptions of what kind of a man he is. Poor guy.  |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31774 Posts |
Posted - 17 May 2006 : 01:22:57
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
tauster, Ed's a Blackmore's fan (though of course spellsingers were created when Deep Purple was still going strong)...
Hmmm... That does explain a little about Ed's always intriguing thought processes with regard to fantasy creations.
Hehe... |
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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KnightErrantJR
Great Reader
USA
5402 Posts |
Posted - 17 May 2006 : 01:41:20
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| I wanted to thank THO for shedding some light on the Dracolich issue . . . While I understand and can appreciate the Dragon Magazine crew's affection for Greyhawk, the "Ecology of the Dracolich" article in the anniversary issue seemed to plant a Oerthly flag in the dracolich's back with the declaration, "I claim this intelletual property in the name of Greyhawk and Lord Gygax." |
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 17 May 2006 : 03:36:03
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quote:
quote:
Originally posted by Thauramarth
(snippy snippy snip snip)
The Zhents have already done that they created a bunch of man made Oasis using Decanters of Endless water that spann the length of Black Road
Thanks, Dargoth. Would you please tell us where that's written up? I want to follow up on this for my own campaign.
(even more snipping)
It's also in FR13 - Anauroch, p. 29.
Mercy buckets. I didn't recall this trick from The Parched Sea. I haven't read most of FR13 - Anauroch yet, so that's probably what I'm looking for.
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2006)
Topic Locked
