The work contained on this page has been penned over time by the creator of the Forgotten Realms - Ed Greenwood, and kindly provided to us here at Candlekeep by The Hooded One on the Candlekeep Forum. The collection presented here is a digest version which has been collated by Scott Kujawa, presenting all Ed's responses and omitting other posters discussions which followed.

(Answers from Ed Greenwood)

Jul - Sep 2006

July 1, 2006: Hello again, all.

Great questions, Miri-Jala! I'll hurl them in Ed's direction right away...

Halaster Blackcloak recently posted: "I had two questions for Ed. First, where did the inspiration for Halaster Blackcloak and Undermountain come from? Ruins of Undermountain is my all time favorite game accessory/adventure and I was curious as to where it all originated. On a side note, I came across an old episode of Night Gallery (the Rod Serling tv show from the 70's) titled "Messiah on Mott Street", and it features an actor who would be perfect to play Halaster in a movie. Here is a not-so-great screen cap with Halaster's image from RoU mixed in:

http://users4.ev1.net/~dormammu/halaster-movie-color2.jpg

I thought he'd make a great Halaster.

Second question, where did the inspiration for Szass Tam come from? Again, I found a movie that features a character that's stunningly similar in appearance:

http://users4.ev1.net/~dormammu/szass-tam3.jpg

Thanks Ed, for all the help and for giving us the Realms!"

Ed replies:

Undermountain was inspired (circa 1967) by reading Tolkien, and thinking, "What a cool environment - - but what if it were RIGHT UNDERNEATH a crowded, bustling all-races crossroads trading city?" So I set about thinking about how the city-dwellers would "use" such spaces, if they knew about them (and of course, how the under-dwellers would "use" the city and its populace). When D&D came along, a little later (1974, but general release and my first taste of it: 1975), lots of Tolkien-inspired dungeons were part of it (see the original booklets for why), and the gamers of that day had magic shops, resupply areas, and the like down in their "endless dungeons." I thought most of those touches were jarringly unrealistic, more "modern-world-obstacle-course/game-show" than anything that could possibly be consistent with the fantasy settings, so I did some hard thinking about how various races (and prowling monsters) would dwell in a large subterranean labyrinth (where does food come from? where do they poop? if they travel about in such a dangerous environment, where and WHY?).

Now, if the city above had been around for centuries, and city-dwellers were going down exploring (via the Yawning Portal, etc.) from time to time, surely all the traps would already have been sprung, monsters slain, and dangerous challenges blasted away by the fireballs and suchlike of long-ago mages. No? Well, then, someone or something would have to be creeping around "resetting" and restocking and renewing them. A lot of those traps were magical, so that someone should be a powerful mage (also handy in capturing, compelling, and transporting dangerous monsters). Okay, so WHY would someone so powerful do this - - instead of forcing world peace upon the Realms, or making everything blue, or (ahem) conquering the city above long ago?

Well, he must be mad, of course. :}

Hence, Halaster: he's unpredictable - - there's no telling WHAT he may do. So he won't automatically regard adventurers who kill his monsters, take the treasures (and again, he must be mad if he hasn't glommed onto all that magic and riches for himself, right?), and smash all his best traps as his foes. Sometimes he will, for short periods, but not for long or consistently (otherwise, it would be Halaster versus adventurers, equals no more adventurers). I then turned to thinking about WHY Halaster is the way he is, why he's so tied to Undermountain, and so on (Halaster was around in my stories in 1967, but it wasn't until 1976 or so that I started delving into these matters). In the published Realms, Steven Schend picked up on Halaster's life, sanity, nature, and powers, and developed him a lot farther.

So that's the "short version" of how I came up with Undermountain and Halaster.

The RUINS OF UNDERMOUNTAIN accessory has my (edited for brevity and game rules content) original keys to the area around the shaft down from the Yawning Portal, mated to an old Empire of the Petal Throne home-campaign map that the late Dave Sutherland (then of TSR's mapping department) had lying around, so as to save time on redrawing my many, many levels of faded pencil maps and cramped, tiny, wandering-all-over-the-pages keys to Undermountain's many, many levels and sub-levels. So you've only seen a tiny, tiny bit of my original Undermountain - - but the Realms and D&D have both "grown away" from conditions back then, so if you see more of it, you'll almost certainly be looking at newly-generated material (perhaps loosely based on my fading-into-the-past original).

So saith Ed.

To avoid running into the post-length-limit, I've chopped his Szass Tam answer, and will post it on the morrow.

love to all,
THO

July 2, 2006: Hi again, scribes. As promised, here's Ed's reply to Halaster Blackcloak's question: "... where did the inspiration for Szass Tam come from? Again, I found a movie that features a character that's stunningly similar in appearance..."

Ed replies:

Szass Tam first "really" fell into my forebrain in a story I wrote in 1977, though his name and the idea he was a mighty powerful mage dwelling somewhere in the east, who had something to do with undead, were floating around in my Realms writings a decade earlier.

In that tale, I made him undead himself, and the most "interested in the lands of the west" of the zulkirs (or "zulkiirs") who ruled Thay. Thay was my Orient, or as close as the Realms was going to get to it: NOT Oriental human subraces, but rather a warm-climate, dusty-part-desert old and decadent slave empire ruled by people who had mastered powerful magic, shaved their heads (think: Moondragon of Marvel Comics fame), and were cruel by western standards. There was a power struggle of sorts between royalty and nobility on one hand, and these magic-strong zulkirs on the other, with tharchions (and tharchionesses) being regional governors that in the old days were "patronage appointments" given to nobles by reigning royalty, and that were increasingly being seized by zulkirs and filled by themselves or their (militarily capable, ruthless) appointees. Szass Tam was a bit of a restless maverick among the zulkirs, so to stay on top against BOTH his fellow zulkirs and the royalty, he'd have to be super-powerful, and a man who'd been anticipating attacks and treacheries for centuries and preparing for them: he always had a Plan B and C, and X, Y, and Z, all of which he could shift like puzzle pieces to respond to any threat and deflect or shatter it (usually deflect it so as to harm a rival).

Like Larloch, ideally he would never feature directly in play - - because he would watch adventurers and others, and respond through layers of intermediaries so his own involvement would usually never be proven or traced (it could be rumored or suspected, but no more than that).

I'm afraid my dial-up rural Net connections are far too crude to view the URLs you've provided (I haven't even tried; animations? video clips? Hahahaha; not on THIS computer!!), but I'll see if I can sneak a peak at them at a public library high-speed terminal. Thanks!

So saith Ed.

Who'd love to see a Realms movie if (and only if) it were done right, but doesn't ever expect to (long story).

love to all,
THO

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On July 2, 2006 THO said: And according to Ed, Ffolk is pronounced (I'm exaggerating here):

"FfffOAK."

(In other words, slightly lengthen a single "F" sound, and then come down emphatically on the "olk" - - which should end up sounding like "oak" or "oke").

Ed wrote up a mini-bio of Gondegal years back, as part of a "list of recently vanished Realms NPCs who could be whisked off to Ravenloft," but I believe it's still NDA. Gondegal is mentioned in many, many places in Realmslore, including CORMYR: A NOVEL by Ed and Jeff Grubb.

love,
THO

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On July 2, 2006 THO said: This is a question that has been put to Ed in many, many GenCon seminars as well as internal TSR design docs (from Jeff Grubb's time as Realms honcho, before the hiring of Steven Schend, Rich Baker, et al).

The accepted "official" answer back then was (in my paraphrasing):

Silver fire is the most puissant, because it's more intense than Spellfire: it snatches and channels energy directly. Spellfire drinks energy from the Weave, and hence is slightly limited in bandwidth (recall Shandril's pain in using it: the physical limitations of her body are also limitations on spellfire throughput). Dragonfire is intensely fierce, and may for large wyrms be much larger in volume, but it's far less precise and is an entire order of magnitude less "hot" than either of the other two.

El Magnifico Uno in his posting seems to exhibit a belief that "which fire wins" depends on the fictional needs of the moment, or the prejudices of the author. The former is quite true (Jeff Grubb once explained it as "we just don't know what will happen in most battlefield combinations and collisions of magic"), but the latter is only true if authors ignored the design dictates.

Then again, my reading of some of the later novels suggests that the writers didn't receive any design dictates. Sigh.

love,
THO

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July 3, 2006: Hello again, all. Ed now tackles some related queries from April and June from VonRaventheDaring (and yes, by all means sample away, dear, and feel free to use your teeth as well as your hands and tongue): "Do you have any views/opinions of the new psionic classes from the CP. Also what do you think about the Jhaamdath empire, and the addons that Ed Bonny the other ed (lol okay thats lame) has made for them. I know that you have stated before that tsr kept you from publishing psionic related stuff due to dark sun being their focus place for that, but since wizards has changed that do you plan on adding or resubmitting any psionic related things for the realms? *trying not to drool at the thought* Also just have to note that the hooded one rocks, and i would like to do some breast sampling but thats a different type of question."

and: "i read where the different types of gems all react to magic different, and i was curious if there was any gems that responded to psionic powers more so than others in the realms? and if it wouldn't be to much of a bother could you list them for me, thank you. Also i was wondering when you created the lore gems for the elves, were they inspired by psionics at all as they seem to have a psionic theme to me at least."

Ed replies:

To deal with your last questions first (hey, I'm a designer :}), VOLO'S GUIDE TO ALL THINGS MAGICAL will show you that witherite confers psionic immunity, and the gem-like magic item (the inspiration of Eric Boyd, and recently discussed in this thread here at Candlekeep) known as the weirdstone (also in VOLO'S GUIDE TO ALL THINGS MAGICAL and the later PLAYER'S GUIDE TO FAERUN) also deals with psionics. There are other, as-yet-undiscovered (though various alchemists, sages, and wizards are privately and independently experimenting) gemstone properties pertaining to psionics; stay tuned to all official Realmslore channels for future revelations.

As for adding or resubmitting psionic-related material for the Realms: I have LOTS of plans, but no time in which to deal with a three-hundredth of them, and I'm better suited (particularly while Wizards designers are continually revamping psionics :}) to fleshing out the world (e.g. the cities articles in DRAGON, the Realmslore and Border Kingdom web columns, my lore answers here, and [NDA], [NDA], and [NDA]) so the maximum number of Realms DMs, players, and readers can enjoy more depth and colour in "their own" Realms.

As I've posted before, I tend to personally use psionics at the "personal wild talent" level more than anything else. At first glance, the psionic racial classes from the CP are just fine, the prestige classes (ebon saint in particular) seem quite usable, and I haven't thought enough about the synad to venture a useful opinion. I'm speaking now as a game designer trying to evaluate the game balance, possible abuses, and implications of the classes as published - - whether or not, and to what extent, they appear in your Realms campaign is up to you, because (just like having lots of powerful spellcasters, or wagonloads of powerful magic items) psionics does have the potential to quickly dominate a campaign. There's nothing wrong with that, IF that's the campaign you and your players are happy with; everyone must make their own decisions on what balances and flavours they prefer in their play.

As for Jhaamdath: so far, so good - - but again, I've been too busy with many other Realms projects to fully consider the implications of the various fleshings-out of Jhaamdath on the "wider picture" of the Realms. I must take the time to sit down and do that, soon - - but looking at the multiple trainwreck that is my schedule for the next three years, I'm brainblasted (er, sorry) if I can tell you when.

So saith Ed.

Who is fighting his way through many, many projects at the moment, to keep on bringing you the vivid Realms we all know and love.

love to all!
THO

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July 4, 2006: Hello, all. Ed herewith answers scribe Lauzoril, who asked: "Did Lord Chess have any kind of power in Zhentil Keep, political or otherwise, or was he just a puppet figurehead for the Zhentarim? Could there be any chance that you and Jeff Grubb someday write a novel together again? Thank you kindly."

Ed speaks:

You're very welcome. Hmmm: let's do last first, as usual. :}

I'd love to write another novel with Jeff, a very good friend who I haven't seen enough of since Wizards relocated to Seattle. We've recently worked on several projects edited or engineered by Brian Thomsen, though not directly together (WE THREE DRAGONS, a fantasy book of dragon Christmas stories that was published in paperback by TOR last Christmas, wherein we both had short stories, as did Jim Ward, formerly TSR's Creative Manager; and the forthcoming FURTHER TALES OF BEOWULF/CHAMPION OF MIDDLE-EARTH, from Carroll & Graf, wherein we both have stories alongside Lynn Abbey [of Thieves' World fame; Lynn and I once collaborated on the Mornmist fantasy series], Wolfgang Baur [former TSR designer and editor of DRAGON, who is now writing d20 fantasy adventures "to order," as mentioned here at Candlekeep by Steven Schend in his Become A Patron! thread], and Brian Thomsen, alongside a modern translation of "the original" Beowulf writing that's come down through the centuries to us), but the chances of us doing a novel together right now, with the differing directions our professional lives are trending, aren't large. That said: I'd jump at the chance, if it were directly offered.

Lord Chess was a youthful noble, a "bored, idle younger son," who WOULD have attained real power in Zhentil Keep upon the death of his father or the pleasure of his family and fellow lords if the Zhentarim hadn't seized control (see my short story "So High A Price" in REALMS OF INFAMY or THE BEST OF THE REALMS II: THE STORIES OF ED GREENWOOD). However, as a vital conspirator in Manshoon's seizure of power, he rose swiftly to real power as an indolent, decadent figurehead instead. He worked as a figurehead because of his noble status and therefore "rightful" power in the eyes of the public, but he was a lazy, corrupt, and ultimately disloyal to the Zhentarim individual, who discovered his true loyalties were to his city first and the Zhents second... and so he paid the price.

So saith Ed.

Who has written an astonishing number of short stories, several of them critically acclaimed, that many Realms fans don't know about. Faraer, have you listed them, by chance?

love to all,
THO

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July 5, 2006: Hello again, all. Herewith, Ed tackles Athenon's query: "Is it an oversight that Wizards has not scheduled an "Elminster Speaks" seminar at GenCon the last couple years, or do they for some reason not like channeling of the Old Sage? Thanks for hours of entertainment reading this forum."

Ed replies:

Will, you're quite welcome; glad you've enjoyed my meanderings and mutterings. As for Elminster Speaks: Wizards submits its events for GenCon around March or so, but I've only just started to discover what I'm slated for, and internal WotC sources tell me "nothing's really been settled yet" re. GenCon, so I'm not sure if Elminster will ride again or not this year at GenCon Indy.

The thinking a few years back was that as the Realms moved into 3rd edition, the role of Elminster (as his long, long life entered its twilight years) would be de-emphasized (hence, no more stand-up comedian who was improvising as he went, and therefore could say ANYTHING, much to the chagrin and shortened lifespan of his Wizards staff "straight person," be it Jeff Grubb, or Steven Schend, or whomever). From my point of view, the costume is hot to wear and a hassle at customs (that staff's obviously a weapon of mass destruction, you dangerous foreign bearded terrorist!), so... we'll see. You can always ask me to channel Elminster at other seminars. [broad evil grin]

So saith Ed.

Oh, I can just FEEL that grin.

love to all,
THO

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On July 5, 2006 THO said: Hi, all.

The physical setting of Castlemourn is geographically isolated: a long coastal band of countries hemmed in on three sides by mountain ranges. On the fourth side, those ranges arc out into the sea to form a string of islands that shelter a bay. Treacherous shoals, currents, and mists imperil sailing "along the coast" off the map (and the only feature known to be "out there" in one direction is a fell city of wizards

So this could be placed on any temperate-clime seacoast, and MIGHT (if a DM wished to do so) be put "on the other side of the globe" that holds Faerûn, in one of the seven continents Ed placed there (WotC published far different ones in the FR Atlas without Ed's approval). It also works as a self-contained, standalone setting.

And Brian, Ed has worked out a detailed recent history for everything (as for ancient times... well, you'll just have to read the setting). As Faraer mentioned, this has been a long time seeing print; its root material is years old, now.

For legal reasons, Castlemourn and the Realms will always be presented as completely separate settings. As anyone who's talked with Ed knows, Ed has always linked multiple worlds with gates (D&D 3e "portals"), and there's no reason any DM can't do the same thing. Castlemourn is really about handing gamers fourteen or so fairly detailed new lands to have their characters explore.

I'm sure if you pose questions to Ed in his thread, he'll be happy to say more.

love,
THO

Gosh, no. Monte has written a city (BEAUTIFULLY done), and is selling it as an "all in one" box, for over $100 USD.

Margaret Weis Productions is releasing a Players Guide "taste of the world" launch for under $10 USD, I believe, followed by a "typical d20" hardcover for (I'm guessing here) 40 or 50 dollars or less, plus some (planned) smaller and cheaper future products.

Or so I've gathered...

love,
THO

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July 6, 2006: Hello again, all. Thanks for the Canada Day wishes Foxhelm (and Wooly, too! I personally think we Canadians observe Canada Day, the former Dominion Day, to celebrate our annual deliverance from the black flies to [just] the mosquitoes), and thanks for so swiftly and obligingly providing the Ed short story listing, Faraer. I can add "The Mad Monj of Onteth" from THE DRAGONS' RETURN (2005) and "Wrathclaw's Wyrmtide, Or The Secret of Treasure-Unlooked-For" from WE THREE DRAGONS (2005) to that list, off the top of my head, and of course there are at least two tales in not-yet-published anthologies Ed has previously mentioned in this thread...

But, on to Realmslore! This time, Ed makes reply to Valus Gwaren, in this matter: "I was hoping I might get some information on the size/layout of a typical Sea Ward noble's villa in Waterdeep. I have a character who is a Waterdhavian noble, and is just returning to the city for the first time since I created him. I would like to design his family's holding, but I don't really know where to start. What style architecture is typical of these sorts of places? What kind of staff would there be to run the place? and so on."

RodOdom helpfully posted: "If the electronic FR atlas is accurate, villas are on rougly rectangular lots of anywhere from 7,500 to 15,000 sq. ft., containing three or more individual structures."

Ed makes reply:

RodOdom is quite correct. The typical Waterdhavian "villa" (so-named because noble owners have other homes, in warmer climes south of Waterdeep, in which they spend winter months) is a walled compound, typically with a landscaped garden inside (though the nature of the gardens vary widely with owners' tastes, from sunny floral gardens with formal layouts and statuary to "wild"-looking forest glades with shaded bowers and meandering paths), in which are situated a main residence (sometimes called a "mansion" or "manor"), a stables, and a guest house. (Servants dwell in the uppermost floors of the mansion and above the stables.)

At least, that's the "minimum" number of structures for a villa. Larger villas will have separate servants' quarters, perhaps a gladehouse (equivalent of an orangery, greenhouse, or summerhouse: a heated, near-tropical building where exotic warm-clime or jungle plants are grown, usually because the noble owner loves tropical fruits), and one or more guest houses, some usually given over to dowager mothers or aunts, or even mistresses (or "houseboys," the Waterdhavian noblewoman's term for what we might call gigolos) rather than true "guests."

The main residence is almost always tall and impressive, with turrets and balconies. Inside, it will ALWAYS have a grand entry hall (usually with sweeping stairs rising to an upper floor), a large and splendid feasting hall, and one or more meeting rooms decorated to impress (these may be called "parlors" or "studies" or almost anything; if the noble is martial in nature, like the Roaringhorns, or a mercantile power and proud of it, one might be an "office"). Lower levels are given over to kitchens, pantries, storage cellars, and hobbies or eccentricities (pet cages or studios or private swimming pools or dress-up rooms and pleasure dens), and upper levels to dwelling-suites for family members, each generally consisting of a reception room opening into a bedchamber, robing room, garderobe (jakes), and lounge (private office or dining-room).

Aside from turrets, spires, balconies, large windows (to display the wealth of the owner; large sheets of glass are EXPENSIVE in the Realms) and luxurious furnishings (again, to display wealth: tapestries and carpets are almost always present, but sculpture [especially life-sized statuary] and paintings [huge wall-panels in particular] are popular but very much a matter of personal taste [some nobles love 'em, some don't]), and a prevalence for building in stone, and massively (usually with marble flooring), the architecture of Waterdhavian villas can be almost anything. Some have doors of single sheets of copper fastened to wood, most have doors ten feet tall or more and with ornate handles, and most have greatglories (candle-and-crystal chandeliers), all scream "I have coin to hurl away recklessly, and see? I have!" and many have fountains of water-spouting dolphins or mermaids or fanciful monsters, both indoors and out.

Any large house requires a large staff; POWER OF FAERUN p22 and 24 outlines one typical "grand household" organization, but in brief, any Waterdhavian noble will have hostlers (sometimes called "grooms," and always run by a horsemaster or stablemaster; the former term implies skills as a horse trainer and doctor); gardeners (administered by a head gardener or groundsmaster); a kitchen staff of scullery maids, pantry jacks, and cooks (administered by a head cook, who reports to a chatelaine or steward); house guards (commanded by a captain, who reports to a seneschal); and "the household," the household or domestic staff, of chambermaids, pages, dressers (personal maids and jacks, what in more modern times are called "butlers") and doorjacks, who report to the chatelaine, who in turn reports to the steward. Sometimes the seneschal and the steward are the same person, sometimes there's no steward and the chatelaine reports to the noble lord directly, and sometimes the reverse is true (no chatelaine and the steward runs things). Any or all of these "commanding ranks" may have assistants (understewards, chatelaines-of-stairs, and so on), and there may or may not also be a house wizard, a chamberlain (accountant and lawyer), and an equerry (personal assistant to the noble lord) above all of them. Every noble dwelling in the house will also have personal servants; males generally have two (a dresser and a "sword" [butler/clerk/secretary/errand-runner]) or three (a page is added, to run errands and deliver messages), and females generally have three or four (add more maids to see to a far more elaborate wardrobe). Feel free to augment, and if things seem rather crowded, you've got it right: they are! A noble who entertains a lot may have seven cooks, three times that many scullery maids, and twenty or so pantry jacks in livery to serve at a feast or revel; one who's nuts about horses or gardening will have similarly large stable and grounds staffs.

So saith Ed.

Covered in depth and full, m'lord.

love to all,
THO

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On July 6, 2006 THO said: Can't fault your logic, Sammael, but as one who knows both Ed's original and the published Realms, I'm afraid the reverse is true: the published Realms is a lot less diverse and colourful than Ed's original.

Yes, there have been many, many cooks in the kitchen over the years - - but they've been hired to cook dishes chosen for them. Time and again the published Realms has visited the same locales, but not "filled in" areas right next to them.

So we've never had proper coverage of Everlund (or Silverymoon, for that matter!), the Dragon Coast, and so on and on and on. Nor ever had Ed's desired "merchant shipping cargoes" game, that would enable sailing the Sword Coast FOR A REASON play, complete with currents, uncharted isles, and those other continents.

We've never properly seen Sossal, or Semphar and the surrounding lands. We haven't even had in-depth coverage of Chessenta or the Wizards Reach. And then there's Sembia...

If we'd had all Ed, all the time, the published Realms would have come out far more slowly, yes. But if Ed had been the head chef, we'd certainly have had "full map coverage" (and NOT had the map get twisted and pruned between 2nd and 3rd editions to take away far too many gaps that hadn't yet been addressed.

Believe me, Ed has notes on everything. The published Realms (and especially game edition rules changes) has made that lore increasingly out-of-date, but Ed did paint (and hand to TSR, back in 1986) a tapestry far more diverse and creative than what's been published.

Remember, TSR and now WotC have been gaming companies interested above all in "what will sell." Someone always has to decide what to publish and what not to publish. And they'll always choose something "familiar" if it sold well last time, over some place new. Hence Waterdeep over and over, the Dales ditto, and so on.

Again: your logic is impeccable. However, in this case it just ain't true.

love,
THO

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July 7, 2006: Hello, all. Divers replies this time.

First, to Swordsage, Zeboaster of Ordulin, and Hoondatha: Ed looks forward to meeting any scribes who make the trek to U-Con at Ann Arbor. In the matter of who visited him, NDAs and modesty prevent (unless the visitor cares to spill the beans), but I will say some scribes are good guessers.

Secondly, to LoneHeroDragon: Feel free to ask Ed anything you'd like to ask publicly right here. However, he's not the person to contact if you're seriously interested in doing a Realms novel. That "best contact person" would probably be Phil Athans, Managing Editor of the Publishing Group at Wizards of the Coast, and he'd probably tell you to submit a sample and then a proposal to one of the Realms short story anthologies. That's the "front door" (see REALMS OF THE DRAGONS II for folks who followed that route). Save your novel idea, work on it, but don't expect Wizards to take an unsolicited Realms novel "cold" from an unfamiliar writer. That's not the way they work. (But hey, Rich, you can get this same reply from Phil Athans directly.)

Thirdly, Ed swings into action at last to reply to Kaladorm's recent comment: "This leads me to wonder then, as we know gods get their power simply by a person intoning their name (although obviously more so from their faithful), whether the gods power came from a sincere intoning of their name or not. Every time one of the other knights reprimanded Torm, would Torm the God become slightly more powerful. Bet that one would mess with his mind (aha Torm by misbehaving we rebuke you and so make the god of duty a bit stronger, get over that one ) Random musings :)"

Ed speaks:

No, gods derive no power from insincere intonements of their name, or mere discussion, or even proclamations. It's devout prayer (and oaths or curses made by individuals at moments of great emotion, such as fear or rapture) that empowers them. So someone cursing Torm the mortal would have no effect at all on Torm the deity. Someone cursing Torm the deity for influencing Torm the mortal WOULD affect the deity's power. Nor does merely hearing their name spoken (whether or ot it's "really them" or just a mortal namesake) drive gods crazy; there's a ceaseless thunderbabble of such namings coming to them, and all gods go crazy right away or learn to "tune it out," listening in to specific mortals or locations or events only when they want to. By the way: rapture includes moments during lovemaking, both deliberately (on the part of clergy) and spontaneous (everyone else). :}

So saith Ed.

Who must have spent a happy weekend. Ahem.

love to all,
THO

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July 8, 2006: Hi again, fellow scribes. Herewith, Ed makes reply to Rinonalyrna Fathomlin, about this: "All right, my question for today may sound really silly, but I have honestly been wondering about it for the past few days. The trivial things in life are part of what makes up... life. If my question has been answered before, I apologize

Do Faerunian women commonly shave their legs, underarms, and *ahem* other parts of their bodies? If so, what types of razors, creams, and other materials do they use? From what I understand, the common safety razors used today were invented only about 100-150 years ago--I can't imagine having to use a regular straight razor. I have also wondered sometimes how Faerunian women deal with their menstrual cycles..."

Ed speaks:

Nothing trivial at all about such matters! If the game makes note of what weapons or loot creatures carry, descriptions of their bodies (especially as corpses or captives being searched) are of vital importance. In the same way, if a Realms fiction writer is describing someone disrobing or getting dressed, or for that matter what's on view in a harem, festhall, or club where scantily-clad folk are dancing or otherwise on display, this becomes Need To Know information. This importance is only enhanced when we consider time-to-time adventuring necessities of hiding small items in various body cavities (ahem; I'm sure you understand).

So here we go...

[[scribes reading this be warned: specific biological anatomy words and details follow]]

First, the body hair. In a world with many races dwelling and working (or at least trading) together, there's a great tolerance for variety. So no one "looks down on" someone for being different (i.e. having heavy body hair or not). However, there are practical reasons for being hairless in warm climates (and for wrestlers and those who make coin by means of sex, too), and in the warmer countries of the Realms almost all adult folk do remove their body (not head) hair (by plucking-the mild pain of this technique is often used in prayer, in monastic communities; by shaving with sharp CURVED [crescentiform, sharp edge on inside of curve, but with a short, marked arc of sharpened outside edge at the end for doing armpits] blades; and-most popularly, by far-by the application of herbal depilatory ointments, of which there are many, widely known everywhere in the Realms). This is less common in cold areas such as the North, and men everywhere often leave chest and head hair alone, and merely trim other hair short (or shave just their cheeks, and trim moustache, sideburn, and beard hair). The majority of men DON'T shave their heads, unless they have head rashes or wounds that need treatment, and men and women aren't vain about hair that goes gray or white (they may dye hair for all sorts of effects or reasons, but pretending to not age isn't one of them).

As humans biologically have hair to catch and intensify natural body scent, and strong-smelling human odours aren't considered pleasant in most of the Realms, the great majority of humans do "wash their hairy areas" daily or even more often, and use scented oils when they can't wash properly, or before engaging in activities they know will be sweaty and during or after which they want to impress or be welcoming to others.

Many who do remove armpit and genital-area hair may leave small shaped areas of hair for adornment (e.g. a lightning bolt zigzagging down to a clitoris), and for adornment, when going nude or wearing garments that leave strategic areas bare, body paint (and dyes like henna), or even more permanent tattoos (usually blue or green) are sometimes used to "replace" genital hair.

It should be remembered that warriors and wrestlers also have practical reasons for minimizing hair, and anyone who's ridden a lot will know that hair literally "wears off" stress areas like the inner thighs. Nor does hair always grow back on scar tissue.

Second: menstrual cycles and their treatment. Social and practical. Social: Selune, Chauntea, and many other deities keep "closeness to natural cycles" strong in the minds of all Faerûnians; there's no religious or societal stigma about menstruation. Women aren't regarded as "unclean" at any time, menses are no bar to sexual activity, and any embarrassment is purely of the "Oh, now I've stained a nice [or borrowed] garment" variety. Menstruation is never called "the curse" or anything of the sort in the Realms; in Faerûn, it's "lifeblood" or "moonblood" or even "Selune's kiss" or "under the moon" (as in: "I'm under the moon just now, so pack extra redcloths").

Time for the practical. Please see my reply on page 21 of my 2004 replies, here at Candlekeep, for information about undergarments (specifically clouts and redcloths).

Blood-stained "redcloths" will be washed or at least rinsed out daily, often in scented water. To avoid being tracked by beasts following scent, wilderland-travelling women often discard (by burying them) redcloths as they go; if they can find dew or any sort of water in which to wash the cloths (including stagnant swampwater), they'll do so, often dousing the cloth with perfume beforehand to minimize any odours the water causes. The most popular "travelling wash" for redcloths (practiced, for example, by women stopping at a rustic inn) is cheap wine followed by rinsing with rainbarrel water. Please bear in mind that there's no embarrassment or stigma attached to this, even for young females experiencing their first menses; no one will be trying to do this "on the sly," and inns high and low will anticipate this need and have facilities for it (that's why there are ewers of water sitting in washbasins in most inn rooms, AND spare washbasins underneath beds, alongside the chamberpots). Most inns and taverns do a busy daily trade in buying new redcloths and disposing of old ones (they become scrubbing rags).

One last note: shaving your naughty bits with a straight razor isn't easy, but having someone else (who's skilled, in good light and with room to work, and not in a hurry) is just fine, if you aren't embarrassed and don't flinch). Just ask THO.

So saith Ed.

Who (as you can probably tell by now) lacks a lot of the hang-ups and prejudices of most of the males of his generation. I remember him cheerfully buying feminine products for both co-workers and family members, but thinking it ridiculous when they asked him to go make the purchase but were embarrassed to tell him their "sizes."

And yes, Ed's right about the straight razor, but the key word is "skilled." (Ed is more of a "gingerly-proceeding amateur" than "skilled" in any use of a straight razor, but I once encountered a grandfatherly army barber who tended to a row of female personnel with a gruff, "Spread 'em, ladies, and no telling jokes while I've got the razor out; laughers are bleeders.")

Amazing, what we get around to discussing in this forum...

love to all,
THO

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July 9, 2006: Hi again, all.

This time, Ed responds to scribe Miri - Jala's post: "Hi Ed and Lady Tho, Hope you and loved ones are having a great summer so far. I was browsing the Candlekeep website yesterday and found the Feb 2004 Interview at Mortality Radio and I thought it was great! I've been reading lots of posts by forum members and the ones in the "So saith Ed" archives. I can see from the insatiable appetite members have for more detail on just about evverryything that they love the realms. To hear someone vocally empassioned about it, though, is so much better than just reading the posts! I learned quite a few things I hadn't known before and thanks for doing the interview. I liked your Elminster vocalizations...coool. Do you have any mp3's you'd be willing to share where you're 'playing' some of the characters you've created? Or even some short avi files? For people who've never had the opportunity to get involved in or even see what a "home Realms campaign" is like, it would be a sweet treat indeed! If not...that's okay. I still get a kick out of reading all these posts.

I might as well put in another question for myself since I'm here... Were all the Seven Sisters born with the Silver Fire already in them? At the end of The Temptation of Elminster, Mystra sends El to watch three Chosen ones, Dove (4 yrs old), Storm, and Laeral. Since Mystra says they are already Chosen, does that mean they already have the Silver Fire? If so, when were they first able to call it forth? Was it painful or scary for them? Where they able to control it right from the start, or did they have to practice to make it do what they wanted? (If this is already covered somewhere, please let me know and I'll look there.) Thanks again Ed and Lady Tho"

Miri - Jala, you're very welcome. Gosh, was that radio interview really that long ago?

I'm afraid I don't have any such sound files available, in any format (though ever since the switch from typewriters, I've always used Macs capable of generating them, to write everything for the Realms on: I've honestly just been too busy writing to ever learn to use them), though that's a very good idea, and I'll pass it along to Wizards - - who would have to approve any such Realms-related release of them (yes, even if free and informal). I have participated in a promotional DVD for Tracy and Laura's BRONZE CANTICLES, and there are aging cassette tapes of some moments of Realmsplay with the "original cast" of players and yours truly nattering away, silly Monty Python and Goon Show homage moments and all... but nothing I could lay hands on for public distribution. Sorry.

Yes, the Seven Sisters were all born with the Silver Fire already in them. However, as infants, they didn't know that they did, or really what Silver Fire was, or HOW to "call it forth" from themselves.

That knowledge only came later, allowed by Mystra only after Elminster's tutoring (or in the case of some of the Seven, some alterative hard life experience) had taught them some ethics, morals, and ways of the world. Some of this learning (with the Sisters involved being "teenaged handfuls") is shown in my short story "Dark Talons Forbear Thee," which appeared in THE BEST OF THE REALMS BOOK II: THE STORIES OF ED GREENWOOD, a WotC mass market paperback published in July 2005 (ISBN 0-7869-3760-2 or, in the new "long" ISBNs: 978-0-7869-3760-8). The right answer to "when were they first able to call it forth?" is different (in terms of age) for each of them, because it's either "When Mystra deemed it needful to their immediate survival" or "When Mystra thought they were ready for it." If the former, it burst out, quite possibly painful and scary. If the latter, Mystra "paved the way" with dream-visions (moral lessons, demonstrations of its use, and the inner feeling of how to call it up and what it feels like to unleash it) beforehand.

And like anything else of great power, precision and control of its effects needs practice. Picture a loaded submachine gun in the hands of a grandmother who's never handled a firearm before. She "knows what to do" (pull the trigger) by watching media or reading, but may end up spraying a lot of things with bullets before she gets anywhere near hitting anything she's intending to shoot (being a little scared, unfamiliar with "pull" or recoil, and so on). And that's just the destructive "searing flame" of silver fire. Using it to mend broken things, heal, purge taints, power things (as seen in my tale "Tears So White" in the still-in-print anthology REALMS OF THE ELVES), or duplicate spells; these are all much more delicate tasks that must be learned and practiced.

Some day I'd like to write some fiction scenes that delve into this a bit more, but thus far there seems to have been far too much interest or emphasis placed on the 'peerless destruction' side of silver fire for gamers and game designers to really pay much attention to what else it can do.

So saith Ed.

The creator who will never have enough time to fully explore his creation.

love to all,
THO

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On July 9, 2006 THO said: Richard has superbly put the writers' point of view in this, so let me (as an editor) add some of the publishers' views:

Publishers are in business to make a profit. For every book, they must decide press run, format (including length), and price. (With an eye to profit margin.)

Move the price point up, especially if the book seems "small" to a casual buyer, and the sales go down. Shift it too high, and sales will be to a select few. Make it too low, and some buyers will suspect the product is no good. Make the format too different from what the chain bookstores want (in terms of shelf space), and they'll refuse to carry it, chop their orders down, or you'll suffer when buyers decide. And let's face it, a bookstore can put six copies of something slim on the rack in the same space that will only hold three thick "doorstop" mass market paperbacks.

In some cases (examples: Tor Books, with the current series Charles Stross is writing and with Paul Park's first novel), publishers cut books in half regardless of authors' wishes, to get the price point they deem right.

Wizards is no different. If they put out a book that's too expensive for its size (example: the current Dragons: Worlds Aflame) the orders and sales will be low. That's a different problem from printing too many copies of something that the public just doesn't seem to want. That's one of the reasons most WotC books have a "standard" wordcount, inside a given series or line. So the 1000-pagers will tend to appear only as omnibus collections of already-successful books.

Now, if * I * was running Wizards (and how many times have you heard THAT phrase?), I'd release omnibus volumes with new covers, authors' notes, and a new short story involving (some of) the same characters and locales, or as an expanded epilogue, or the like: always including "goodies" to boost sales.

However, as Ed Greenwood always says, it's probably a very good thing I'm not running Wizards.

love to all,
THO

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July 10, 2006: Hi again, all. Ulitharid recently posted: "As the game has progressed, new systems have been added without what would appear to be too much fuss in regards to implementing them into standard realmsore (at least imo, though yours might be quite different). However, and this might be a redundent/already asked question, but what about Incarnum and Truespeak in relation to traditional "magics" i.e psionics/magic.

At least to me, they seem to be unique enough mechanically and fluffwise to bypass the current implementation of magic systems in the realms (i.e tapping into the weave/shadow weave) in that truespeak are the primal words of creation, such that a weave of some sorts is completely unnecessary, and one's potential mastery of the multiverse through truespeak is limited only by the potential of the individual in question, as opposed to divine interventia via portfolios.

i also feel the same way about incarnum, in that, while power-from-the-soul is itself not a new idea, the concept behind incarnum and harnessing the essence of souls seems so out of the box, as to be a sin to chain it to the standard boundries of typical magic/deific patronage.

so, i guess to move onto a more specific question rather than detailing my thoughts... how would you handle implementing incarnum/truespeak into the realms(if at all), and what would be the corresponding lore that you'd put behind the "new" systems?"

Ed replies:

You're entirely correct: magic (as in: harnessing natural forces to bring about specific and immediate effects) doesn't need the Weave or (specific) deities. There are indeed "many other roads" to tapping these powers; incarnum and truespeak can be used alongside (in addition to) the more familiar and popular spell systems. Kuje correctly pointed out true names have been part of the Realms since its beginnings (before the D&D game), and therefore it follows that truespeak (using the same concept of "words of power" that also, thanks to the Vancian magic system the D&D game spell system is based on, is there from the first in D&D) must work in the Realms.

That doesn't mean that DMs must use it, or must agree with all of (and only) the rules presented in the recent Tome of Magic: like everything else in D&D, everyone is constantly tinkering with rules and approaches.

However, as of right now, the arcane and divine spell systems predominate in Faerûn: a typical travelling character will encounter relatively many clergy and wizards, fewer sorcerers and psionically-gifted beings - - and users of other systems of magic (such as incarnum and truespeak, or table magic for that matter) will be far rarer.

I love using mavericks, as my players will tell you, because the moment "the unknown" pops up, roleplaying must increase.

So saith Ed, Auld Sage Extraordinaire.

(Well, 'tisn't the worst thing he's been called.)

love to all,
THO

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July 11, 2006: Hello again, everybody. Ed recently replied here to a query about a peninsular name, saying in part: "It's true that in the latest (3rd edition) projection maps of Faerûn the region wherein the Vast and Impiltur are located LOOKS somewhat like a peninsula..." and RevJest responded: "I wonder how the Northmen feel about the island of Gunderlun disappearing from the face of Faerun."

Ed now responds in turn:

Very down in the depths, I'd say...

Ahem. Seriously, I'd say the isle in question (about which I provided some lore on page 20 of the 2005 vintage of this thread here at Candlekeep) is just "off the map" (to the west) because of its projection, or perhaps just omitted by cartographers oversimplifying, rather than truly vanishing in any physical sense. Er, I hope. I would NOT want to have to design, in a balanced 3.5e sense, the spell that could "vanish" such a large landmass without anyone noticing (or not causing tidal waves, current alterations, and the like).

So saith Ed, sounding somewhat like Slartibartfast.

love to all,
THO

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July 12, 2006: Hi again. This time Ed tackles Dargoth's query: "What's the relationship like between Auril, Thrym, Kostchtchie (Demon Lord of Frost Giants) and Zzutam (The wanabe Elemental god from Prince of Lies) in the FR? Does Kostchtchie exist in the Forgotten realms? Or does Thyrm take his place in the Realms? (ie the same way Ghaunadaur has taken Jubliex place in the realms)?"

Ed replies:

Worship of all the deities you mention takes place in the Realms, because creatures from many planes and worlds have found their way to Toril by various means. However, veneration of Kostchtchie in Faerûn strengthens Thrym, master of frost giants (unless a Faerûnian mortal has the power to summon Kostchtchie, a Demon Lord, and does so, but in doing so has the carelessness or ignorance to bring Kostchtchie to the Realms uncontrolled - - whereupon Kostchtchie would gain power from worship, but also attract the attention and enmity of Thrym and other Faerûnian giant deities, who would move to harm, hamper, and banish him).

So between Thrym and Kostchtchie: hatred; they are rivals. (But very little contact.)

As for the relationships between Auril and Thrym: they have very little to do with each other, as Auril concerns herself foremost with frost, cold, snow, and winter, and their effects on humans (and to a lesser extent other races), and Thrym concerns himself with frost giants. They largely ignore each other; Auril doesn't mess with frost giants and Thrym pays attention only to frost giants.

As for the relationship of either of them with Zzutam: none (at least, no more than any deity pays heed to ambitious mortals). PRINCE OF LIES uses unreliable narrators, remember, and therefore not everything stated or implied in its pages is true.

Frost giants in the Realms, like humans, are both intelligent and spiritual: everyone "believes" in the gods, remember, having to take nothing on faith except the "true nature" of specific deities, and therefore whom they should worship. Frost giants can worship any deity they hear of, but are likely to worship only relevant deities (a drow divinity of fire, for example, would be largely meaningless to them) - - and in the Realms, Thrym is by far the most relevant. Ergo...

So saith Ed.

Underscoring once again that the Realms is polytheistic, not monotheistic; most intelligent Faerûnian beings don't worship just one god, and outside of professional clergy and zealots, only a minority of them even have "patron deities" (primary gods they worship before or above all others).

love to all,
THO

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July 14, 2006: Hello, all. Gray Richardson recently asked: "Hi Ed, I was wondering if you could tell me about taxes in Suzail. Is there a sales tax on the kinds of items that adventurers might want to buy? Things like food, ale, lodging, both basic goods and the more expensive kind: special inks, spellbooks, finely crafted armor and magic items. What about on services like stabling and hiring a messenger or guide? How are such taxes collected? What are the rates? And do they vary based on the type of good or service?

What if an adventurer were to sell his own items, would he owe the crown a portion? How would he go about paying that? And what might be the penalty if he failed to give the crown its due?

Also, what about property taxes? Are there taxes on the sale of land? Any periodic taxes on owning land? How often might they be collected? Quarterly? Annually? Monthly? Are you required to go and pay your taxes or does a tax collector come round and collect?

Thanks in advance for your kind answers!

What other surprising taxes, tarrifs or fees might an adventurer in Suzail stumble across?"

Ed replies:

I've already written a two-part Realmslore web column for Wizards about specific taxes in Suzail, and therefore can't repeat here what I wrote for it, but in general there are no sales taxes on either goods or services. The usual exceptions are magic (items and scrolls, not castings), and when purchasing ships or land (upon which the levy is five to ten percent of the purchase price, if Crown officials deem that price "market fair").

Vendors usually don't pay taxes on selling items, but do pay a tax in the form of a rental for stall space at a trade fair (just like renting an exhibit hall booth at GenCon), even if they're just selling without actually setting up a stall.

There are also annual "head taxes" paid only by land or building owners or the heads of households, that Crown tax collectors "come around" to collect.

To this can be added also gate-entry fees for wagons or coaches, and riding beasts (so a mounted man pays, even if he gets off and leads his horse), but not lone travelers afoot. Ships are charged berthing fees. Crown employees, conveyances, and vessels are all exempt.

(There are few surprises for an adventurer in Suzail, because the Crown of Cormyr doesn't have to be greedy for funds; it has the Crystal Grot and many sources of fee-based income.)

I'm afraid the amounts for most of these are part of my column, so you'll have to wait for it.

Taxes vary widely in the Realms, but generally, in the Heartlands, in all communities depending (or profiting mainly) upon mercantile trade, taxes are light. In "unorganized" areas, such as wilderlands, and nominally ruled but unpatrolled lands, where the only settlements are individual steadings, hermitages, and monasteries, taxes are either non-existent or take the form of "provide food and shelter to the ruler or his representatives when they happen by, and request it." Forceful rulers may extend this to "protect our stuff and give us mounts or fresh draft animals and mounts," too, whereas fairer ones will pay for the beasts they take.

So saith Ed, who just once wants to lounge naked on a bed of shiny new gold coins (or so he tells me).

love to all,
THO

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On July 14, 2006 THO said: Hello again, all.

The Crystal Grot is covered in VOLO'S GUIDE TO CORMYR, and regarding the taxes, Ed does mean new lore (web columns you haven't seen yet).

love to all,
THO

P.S. I'd say I'm most like Storm, of the Seven. Not much of a surprise there, eh?

P.P.S. Wooly, here I am, lounging. (I'll describe myself in more detail privately, soon. Promise.) Ed's the buried-in-coins bearded lump yonder, but don't worry: he'll just watch us quietly. I hope.

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July 15, 2006: Hi again, fellow scribes. This time Ed tackles a very interesting query from Chyron: "The official roll of years stops in 1600. Much has been written in terms of the past, including some jaunts involving time-travel. But I wonder how Mr. Greenwood sees time and 'the future' in the Realms.

Do the realms have a future? Is the progression of things (time - technology) slower? Is Faerun ever likely to move beyond 1600? In a Faerun 2001 DR does he forsee world of orcs in suits, skyscrapers, taxis, technology and magic (the closest gaming equivalent I can think of is Shadowrun) or is the world moving at a much slower pace and never meant to achieve such a period in his mind?

Ed replies:

Chyron, the Realms DO have a future. NDAs prevent me from saying anything about what I'm working on beyond what Wizards of the Coast has publicly revealed, but suffice it to say that many people are always planning ahead for the Realms, thinking of what will happen both "in-game" and in terms of FR products, and the Realms is "moving ahead" technologically.

This "progress" may seem achingly slow to some, but it should always be remembered that the Realms is NOT an analogy or copy of Earth; what we may see as medieval in some ways, and Renaissance in others, when looking at Faerûn, is inevitably seeing things from our point of view: the Realms may develop in very different ways than the real world did. Also, society may be moving and changing very rapidly right now in the real world, and communications make this readily apparent to most - - but for much of human history, the changes didn't SEEM to be moving ahead all that fast, most of the time, to people living in the middle of them.

I can say that the published Realms has in the past, and will in the future (including the very near future) include mentions of various "inventions" that do change life in the Realms, in ways large and small. The Realms IS constantly changing, and not moving to a Great Big End in my mind (various big changes, yes; an endpoint: no).

Wooly Rupert posted a very good and entirely correct response to you; there are indeed more years on the Roll than have been published yet (though who knows when we'll get to them?). I can reveal that as recently as last week I was chuckling with another Realms creator over the Roll of Years, and once again planning an event (not a big one; not everything Shakes the Realms) to match a year name.

Obviously, (for reasons of prudence, professionalism, and legal commitments, to say nothing of not wanting to ruin the ongoing, ever-unfolding party for us all) I can't say much more.

So I'll just stress once again: the presence of magic that works in the Realms, and gods who have personalities and desires and the power to advance them, may tug the "march of technology" in the Realms into very different paths than it took in our real world. We'll all just have to see.

So saith Ed.

Who's obviously choosing his words very carefully. And once again underscoring the point that although to work as entertainment for us all the Realms have to evoke our dreams or fantasies of some real-world places and times, the Realms are NOT a coherent echo or copy of our real-world, and may "work" and turn out very differently. As always: stay tuned.

Ed penned this before seeing your query, Winterfox, so although this might seem a reply of sorts, he'll no doubt write a specific response to you. The specific passage of 1st Ed FR text that was "quoted at you," that you passed on, was written by Jeff Grubb, as I recall.

love to all,
THO

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On July 15, 2006 THO said: No, it's the severed head (unless too large to be practical, whereupon it's usually a fang/tusk, the tongue, or an eye), brought wrapped or in a chest, and displayed before the community officials or elders, in such a way (town square, or official "presentation," or in the tavern of an evening where everyone's gathered) that the public also gets to see.

(I'm basing this on years of Realmsplay with Ed Greenwood as the DM.)

love to all,
THO

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On July 15, 2006 THO said: Well, El Magnifico, the Knights have been nothing BUT supporting "side-characters" in print, thus far, so I doubt there are ANY "huge fans" of them.

However, I quite agree with you about not preferring the "saving the world again" tales. Unfortunately, when the editor settles on involving Larloch, the Srinshee, and getting Elminster and the Knights out of Shadowdale for the duration of The Last Mythal trilogy, Ed's sorta stuck with telling a "high-level" tale. Just as, when he's writing the annual Spin A Yarn stories, he's stuck with all the wild, risque, and outlandish story elements the GenCon seminar audience saddles him with (and that's how they get THEIR fun).

Ed has written and spoken many, many times about preferring to write low-level, character-driven rather than uber-plot-driven Realms tales, if HE were "controlling the Realms." However, too many editors and designers know he can write the other sort rather well, so they keep asking him to do it. If he refuses, they just get someone else to write that sort of tale, so he says yes.

Check out some of his Castlemourn short stories, when they start to appear, for tales that peer over the shoulders of relatively low-powered characters, caught in the middle of action they'd prefer to be far away from.

love,
THO

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July 16, 2006: Hi, all.

This time, Ed reaches back to November of 2005, to answer Sourcemaster2's questions:

"1) Is there any common organization for the fey of Faerun? Do they have a leader? How do the different races interact? How do druids rank within fey society? How about half-breeds? Any random fey details would be useful.

2) Are magical items created by priests any different than those of arcane origins? Specifically, if an item blessed by a benign clergy falls into the hands of an evil priest or person, will the deity care, or even take steps to get it back? I don't necessarily mean artifacts or major devices; would, for example, a Selunite-forged sword falling into a Malarite's hands cause consequences?

3) This question may have been answered already, but does incarnum have a place in the Realms? If so, how does it relate to magic in general? Is it like psionics, in that it doesn't require divine intervention/approval to use, or does Mystra or another deity control it?"

Ed replies:

1. No, the fey have no common organization or single dominant leader. They have many would-be leaders, of course, but as most fey seem to have a strong individualistic streak, they don't have all that many would-be followers to make those wannabe leaders dominant. :}

If you're familiar with THE LORD OF THE RINGS, think of the fey as Tom Bombadil: NOT the all-powerful side of him, but the close-to-nature, chosen-to-be-apart-from-the-politics-and-struggles-of-others side. The fey tend to resist rankings and even commonly-accepted standards; to most, everyone is judged and dealt with on a personal basis. To some, blood descent and purity is very important, and they might treat half-breeds haughtily or with hostility. To most, bloodlines don't matter, personalities do. A strange fey is judged by their personal behavior, not their heritage.

Obviously I'm speaking in generalizations here. When brought down to specifics, asking about the fey is like asking about the real-world human race - - that is, there are hundreds of correct and contradictory answers to all of your questions about them.

2. Most aren't, but they can be. It depends on the details of their creation (did the clergy intend this item to be used only by those of their faith or alignment? does their deity agree with that intent? did their deity tell or show them how to give the item those properties? do church records available to the creating clergy tell how to make the item behave so?). The majority of temple-made items DON'T react any differently when in the hands of non-believers, but specific uses of them may attract the attention of a deity or servitor beings. In general, divine etiquette seems to be that gods inspire mortals to be their agents in recovering items or punishing or thwarting those who (in their eyes) "misuse" them, rather than stepping in themselves, though Realms fiction has shown us many exceptions to this "rule."

Again, I'm speaking generally. There are obviously powerful, important "holy" items that clergies and deities will value more highly; these items may even have sentience of their own, and work against bearers of the "wrong" faith, race, alignment, or intent.

3. Incarnum has a place in the Realms if you want it to, as I said in a previous answer. It co-exists with the Weave ("normal" spellcasting, as set forth in the PLAYER'S HANDBOOK and DUNGEON MASTER'S GUIDE), alongside it, without Mystra or any other deity controlling it. So, no, it doesn't require divine intervention or approval to use or have - - unless you as a DM want things to be different in your Realms. It should be much rarer than "usual" arcane and divine spellcasting; if it were prevalent, it would have been put into the "root" sourcebooks.

So saith Ed.

Who adroitly avoided some NDAs in those replies (Sourcemaster2, if they seem a trifle stilted, that's why). Oh, and Sage: sorry, no. No ASCII art. You'll just have to dream...

love to all,
THO

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July 17, 2006: Hello again, all. Jamallo Kreen recently posted: "Please correct me if I'm wrong, Ed, but my understanding is that one can -- without violating the time stream -- even go back in time to Netheril, study with an archwizard for a year and then come back with cool new tricks to show off at one's New Year's Eve party. Is it not so, or does Mystra purge one's memory of spells learned in the past? One can imagine what hilarity would ensue if such a time travelling magical apprentice returned to 1374 and then happened to bump into Tabra, whom he knew from their student days in jolly old Netheril. Apropos of which hilarity, has Tabra cast Iolaum's longevity more than once, or was her casting of it centuries ago the only casting of it which she has done?"

Ed replies:

Unfortunately for would-be avid scholars, "the new" Mystra and Azuth, having observed and discussed some previous mortal doings and experiences (and the consequences of same) have now both agreed to neatly fix matters so that arcane spellcasters moving into the past "leave their lore behind them." In other words, mortal spellcasters arrive back in the past knowing NOTHING about magic, not even recalling their aptitude for it (they still have that aptitude, but unless circumstances point it out to them, they have "forgotten" that they have it - - along with all memorized spells, of course!).

So they COULD study, back in the past, but it would be as green novices - - and for each year spent "back in the past" studying, their chances of returning sane decrease. In effect, the various deities of magic allow someone who jaunts back into the past for a specific bit of information (a word of activation/command word, a specific conversation between mages, the whereabouts of a hidden magic item, and the like) to be able to "bring it back," but NOT to profitably study in the past to improve performance in the present.

And yes, Tabra HAS cast Iolaum's longevity more than once. She's cast it twice, but the second casting is NDA.

So saith Ed.

Who was not all that pleased with chronomancy, as I recall...

love to all,
THO

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July 18, 2006: Hello again, fellow scribes. Dagnirion recently posted: "Hey, Great Ed! Howareya? Don't remember if I ever asked, or not...either way, it doesn't matter too much. Anyway, could you share with us some of the common Elven food dishes of Evermeet and Evereska? Thanks!"

Ed replies:

Certainly. Elves have created and refined a huge variety of incredibly complicated "special feast dishes" (some involving cantrips that allow dry ingredients to be "breezed" [a human observer would probably describe this as 'swirl-mixed'] in midair), so I'll confine myself here just to a modest selection of plain 'everyday' fare. Please note that the drinking of wines is common with most meals, both dry wines with the main fare and sweet dessert wines to finish - - and that (to elves; humans and halflings may find them potent indeed) most wines aren't nearly as readily intoxicating as most human wines are, to humans.

Quaffs/Slakes (non-alcoholic):
Sprucebark quaff (cleanses palate/freshens breath before meals and after)
Mintwater
various berry-juice drinks (unfermented)

Vegetables (eaten raw, sometimes diced and fried with herbs and other vegetables):
Cress
Leek (also chives, hotwhips [spring onions], searshoots [wild Faerûnian vine onions]: these last are a staple of elven cuisine, and if left to dry until fall, can grow as hot as garlic, but never give elves "garlic breath")
Parsley
Coushoots (the green, growing "new" shoots of certain forest vines, such as Chokevine and Thaelthorn)
Greenspear (asparagus, a staple with many elves, both raw and steamed with herbs)
various ferns, from fiddleheads to stewed broadleaves
Brownbuds (brown Faerûnian wild forest radishes)

Fruits:
Many sorts of berries
Rhubarb
Roseapple (a mild-flavored apple-like fruit that grows at the thorny junctures of a particular sort of forest vine, the "rosethorn," that grows abundantly in the Heartlands)

Soups (usually served cold):
Leek
Turtle
Blalatha (certain mushrooms, diced and then boiled)
Darblalatha (certain mushrooms, diced, then fried with leeks, and then the mixed result is boiled)
Haendur (simmered glow worms, seasoned with particular sharp-tasting leaves)
Blackbark (literally, the stewed bark of four or five different sorts of forest bushes; tastes and looks a little like a thick beef stew)
Snake (four sorts, beheaded and then boiled until skins separate from flesh; skins, like heads, are discarded)

Meat and Fish Dishes (some elves eat flesh, some do not):
Seared Rabbit
Thaenwing (spiced-and-diced grouse, partridge, quail, and woodguth [wild turkey]; most elves are revolted at the thought of eating owls, whom they deem "intelligent souls," and believe dining on raptors brings misfortune on oneself and one's kin)
Silvereyes (fish stew, of silverflash and other small forest stream fish)
Sornstag (roasted hotspice [equivalent of curried] venison)
Surkyl (beaver: belly-slashed to insert leek and herbs, then rolled in clay and fire-baked, to remove hide and quills with hardened mud shell) Hooroun (moose, always marinated with particular herbs to counteract the natural seasonal tastes of spruce in winter and spring [when moose have been eating evergreen tips] and swamp in summer and fall [when moose have been grazing on swamp vegetation])
Lulleth (muskrat and equivalents [from shrews and voles to "branchcats," which are a tree-climbing Faerûnian cross between a mink and a raccoon], usually simmered into a thick stew; most elves dislike boar, but when they do eat it, treat it in this same way)
Groundsnake (beheaded and roasted on skewers over a fire)

Trail Food:
various nuts and dried berries
mintnut cheese
Taece (fire-dried tiny forest-stream fish, that look a little like brown, finger-length sardines, contain a lot of fat, and are "crunched" [eaten whole, bones and all])
Marruth (sometimes disparagingly called "root pies" by dwarves and humans): pastries into which cooked spiced and herbed mashes of vegetables have been baked, and then let cool, and then rolled into rallow leaves (heavy, oily, waterproof broadleaves) to keep them from rotting, and carried for eating cold when on the move

Desserts:
Mint jelly
tarts made of various berries, sweetened with a mash of berry juices

I could go on at length, but I'm afraid I haven't the time just now to set down a lot of detailed recipes, so I hope this helps. Elven cuisine is more sophisticated than human, though it uses almost no non-forest ingredients, so if you have to improvise, look at some of the dishes whipped up on, say, IRON CHEF and think of "forest-friendly equivalent ways" of making some of them.

So saith Ed.

Who must be tearingly busy right now, to resist giving you recipes!

love,
THO

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July 19, 2006: Hi again, all. Scribe Chyron asked: "Do bards serve as the top critics as well as creators? For example who in the realms would be among the most notable Drama, Music, and Food critics (The ones nobles and common folk alike might bend an ear to)? Would these be other Bards due to their wide variety of knowledge or is the domain of 'criticism' left to others (sages, or scholars, etc)?

Is the 'best'* food imbued with magic? Are the Julia Childs, Jamie Olivers of the realms required to be dabblers (i.e. Bards or other casters) to be considered among the top artisans of feasting fare? Is this something that is only reserved for/accessible to the nobles?

(*Best being subjective I know…but I wonder if nobles might see 'enchanted' food as being above standard or even rare edible fare as the enchantment might make it more pricey and exclusive).

My thanks and good eating to you both :)

Ed replies:

Many bards, priests, and sages do act as critics, but in rural areas of the Realms, most folk pay attention to the opinions of particular local "elders," and in cities, various "high society" types set themselves up as esthetes and are either jeered out of acting thus, or heeded. So there are "notable" critics only in the local sense, and endless war between various noble "aging aunts and uncles" who speak out, in cities; the trend-setters among the younger generations (who of course often disagree sharply with the "mossbrained" opinions and tastes of the "graybeards") in those same cities; and travelers such as Volo (and, yes, bards and minstrels, but more often eloquent and successful merchants, who publish and sell chapbooks of their travel accounts and opinions, spreading "their judgments" of matters culinary and cultural.

So, no, bards don't serve as top critics (except to "captive audiences" of students in academies they may be tutoring at).

And no, the best food is NOT imbued with magic, because of centuries of fear and abhorrence of magical tinkering with food (poisoning foes, transforming foes, or just tricking foes into eating dung, vomit, and glass shards, and other disgusting or harmful substances that were temporarily transformed into something more appetizing). Just about every society shunned magical meal preparations (except for specific and sharply limited tasks such as peeling and ingredient mixing), and so the prevailing attitude across the Realms now is admiration of cooking done without magic (though no one is going to cavil at someone who uses a spell to get drenched wood burning as a cooking-fire in a rainstorm, or thaws out frozen food in a blizzard).

However, your suspicion is correct: some nobles DO see "enchanted" food as being exclusive, rare, and special because it's forbidden or frowned on, and pay wizards (and especially sorcerers who can work magic without a lot of obvious casting preparations) handsomely to prepare food magically at private feasts and revels. Of course, nobles who love such fare claim it has taste that "more mundane" food can never achieve.

So saith Ed.

Who has certainly described some wild revels in Realmsplay, down the years, and (in censored, toned-down form) in more than a few short stories and novels set in the Realms, too.

love to all,
THO

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On July 19, 2006 THO said: Which is as good a cue as any to remind younger scribes of what Wizards Books Department (oop, sorry, they're calling it the "Publishing Group" these days) let slip at a long-ago GenCon: the top-secret, long-delayed Realms short story collection project they've been "privately" assembling:

EDTIME STORIES.

(No, I'm NOT making this up. Many drinks have been hoisted in dimly-lit nooks, late of GenCon nights, as Ed and various WotC editors contemplated this project. Peter Archer thought of it, and the title, I believe.)

love to all,
THO

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July 20, 2006: Hi again, fellow scribes of Realmslore. This time, Ed tackles RodOdom's post: "Dear Ed and Lady Tho, Here's another question about names. The ruler of Halruaa is known by the title "Netyarch". The great druid of the Great Dale has the title "Nentyarch". Is there a link between the two names?"

Ed replies:

Yes, there's (only) an etymological, historical link.

The title "Tarnentyarch" was an archaic word for "leader, speaker of decrees" as Netheril rose to greatness, and through usage the word (corrupted to "Nentyarch") became a Netherese title, roughly equivalent to "sheriff" or "district supervisor." In other words, a Nentyarch was an official who kept order, settled disputes, and disseminated information over a specific (and fairly small; so there were many nentyarchs, and the rank wasn't exalted) geographical area.

Many folk fled in various directions during Netheril's fall, and the title (corrupted again, into "Netyarch") was obviously adopted by the ruler of Halruaa (perhaps the largest and most successful diaspora 'colony'). In uncorrupted form, it obviously also found its way to the Great Dale.

So saith Ed.

Tireless painter-in of all the little uncoloured details of Realmslore.

love to all,
THO

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July 21, 2006: Our pleasure, RodOdom!

And hello again, all.

This time Ed tackles atlas689's quintet of questions: "1. Are there any future plans for any books on Netheril such in the format that of the novels of Cormyr or Evermeet were written from either you or any other author?

2. Not much is known of Barauble of Cormyr before he was seen in the elven forests of Cormyr. I know that he is from Netheril, but what of his life in Netheril is known to us?

3. Elaith Craulnober has obviously massed a huge fortune in Waterdeep, Mirt seems also to be extremely well off also but who has the greater and the more valuable keepings?

4. In City of Splendors the novel Madeiron Sunderstone is mentioned as Piergeiron's body gaurd, what is known of him other than the few worded description given to him in the novel.

5. In the novel Farthest Reach when the whereabouts are questioned about Elminster and the Knights of Myth Drannor, it is said that they are on a mission along with the Simbul to do something with the Shrinshee, is this the possible storyline of the upcoming book Swords of Eveningstar? Tempus thanks you!

-Atlas"

Ed replies:

A solid roster of queries, atlas689, and kindly scribes have ably leaped into action to deal with them already. So I'll bat cleanup, as follows:

1. I don't know, but I doubt it. (I don't decide what novels are being written about the Realms, and am not privy to the plot details of many books being worked on by writers whose names don't happen to be Ed Greenwood.) However, I have a pretty good idea of how many titles are scheduled and who's hard at work on what, and there don't seem (to me) to be too many slots unaccounted-for - - which leads me to suspect that there aren't plans in, say, the next three years to deal with Netheril. You are familiar with the out-of-print Arcane Age mass market paperback trilogy that dealt with Netheril, yes?

2. Not all that much. The large, grim-looking shield I'm raising and hiding behind is an old, battered, yet still-valid NDA. Isn't its silence heavy, and somehow menacing? But let me hint: he was assigned (ordered into) to the role he ended up in. I leave you to speculate by whom.

3. Skeptic has directed you to the relevant reply (page 16 of this year's thread), but to be more specific: Mirt is a LOT wealthier than Elaith, but Elaith doesn't realize it and probably wouldn't believe it, because the bulk of Mirt's business as a landlord is well hidden beneath several layers of apparent building owners and sub-owners (whereas his moneylending business is conducted very openly). Mirt also sponsors many small businesses in a completely confidential manner, and does "banking" for several guilds in a highly profitable sideline that's even more secret. Elaith has the larger profit-per-transaction and is making more gross profits in recent years (because more of his business is criminal, hence high-margin), but Mirt has a huge head start as a landlord and in money-laundering business investments for Elaith to overcome. In terms of influence, Elaith can command more fear - - but Mirt is a Lord of Waterdeep AND much better-known and more liked. So Elaith's lifespan will make him the eventual winner (if he stays alive and stays interested in Waterdeep), but for now Mirt wins any shrewd wealth comparison of the two in a walkover. Not that either of them is particularly interested in any direct competition (both see the other as a convenient "cover excuse" for a lot of things, and Mirt's formerly deep apprehension that Elaith is out to wreck or covertly rule Waterdeep has faded; he now correctly sees the elf as caring about Waterdeep's future).

4. Arkhaedun has mentioned Piergeiron's first appearance (in FR1); there was some amplification in both VOLO'S GUIDE TO WATERDEEP and the 2nd Edition CITY OF SPLENDORS boxed set (complete with an illustration of him: he's the taller guy in the illustration on page 70 of the Campaign Guide booklet). He's a pretty straightforward guy, with few secrets. Trust me. :}

5. Skeptic and Arkhaedun both took care of this one. "Tears So White" in REALMS OF THE ELVES deals with the whereabouts of the Knights during the events of the Last Mythal trilogy. SWORDS OF EVENINGSTAR is set in the past, specifically during the year the adventuring group that later became famous as the Knights of Myth Drannor was formed, winning their charter and beginning their adventuring careers.

So saith Ed, the original and still-bubbling font of Realmslore.

love to all,
THO

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July 21, 2006: I asked Ed about this, and he told me someone at TSR 'relabelled' what was in the original (written by Jeff Grubb, I believe, not Ed), replacing an invented Realms word with a real-world phrase.

Here's what those letters were:

GRAVVENDREN: written documents entitling and legally empowering the bearer to collect a debt in future, either monetary or in terms of service (aid in doing a task, or furnishing space or materials to the bearer for carrying out the task).

(That's a double v, not a "w" in the word, BTW.)

In this case, various thieving guilds had needed help (in hiding and smuggling contraband goods or funds or sought-by-the-authorities guild members or persons kidnapped by the guild for ransom) in the past, and had received said aid from another organization (usually another thieves' guild, but often a legit guild that wanted to win the good regard of the thieving guild), and had written an I-O-U in recognition ("gravvendar" is the singular). And those at Darkhold had been assembling and stockpiling them, so as to be able to carry out concerted operations with a lot of help in the future.

A gravvendar has a "cash out" value in lieu of aid. In other words, if the guild or organization (trading costers use them, too) refuses or is unable to help you in terms of performance, they owe you a specified amount of cash.

The "legally empowered" bit means the organization members will work with you and not swindle or harm you, even though you don't know their passwords, have membership in them, and so on. To use the recent phrase "if I told you that, I'd have to kill you," consider a gravvendar as a certificate of immunity.

love,
THO

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July 22, 2006: Hi again, fellow scribes. Ed felt he'd been neglecting Wooly Rupert, and so has tackled Wooly's query: "A discussion in another thread has mentioned something from one of the Elminster's Ecologies books: the existence of dinosaurs in the Stonelands. To some of us, this seems to be an odd place to drop dinosaurs... And, now that I think about it, I'm not recalling any other references to dinosaurs being there. So, in your Realms, are there dinosaurs in the Stonelands? And either way, is there anything you could add about their official presence there?"

Ed replies:

The Sage is quite right to remind us of my Candle04Page38 reply: there once were many dinosaurs in the Realms, but the dragons flourished by dining on almost all of them, leaving only handfuls behind (usually in jungles or other "good cover from flying wyrms" terrain).

The Stonelands are just such terrain, with their knife-edged ridges, deep ravines, caverns and overhangs, and exposed horns and faces of stone. So, yes, there are a few dinosaurs lurking deep in the Stonelands. Almost all are ostrich-sized or smaller velociraptors (bird-like, darting and hopping predators, of the sort featured so prominently in JURASSIC PARK: see fleshraker and swindlesplitter under "Dinosaur" in the MM3), though there are a few deinonychus (MM). They hibernate in deep, "warmrock" rifts (near earth nodes and volcanic flows) and hunt in cover, never leaving the Stonelands or racing along heights of land (for fear of being devoured by dragons; the Zhent foulwings, dark horrors, and other aerial steeds remind the dim-witted dinosaurs of the "death from above" that they now instinctively fear).

So saith Ed, who will recall Torm trying to interest Jhessail in a skewer of dinosaur steaks that she said VERY rude things about. Even Rathan, with the aid of much wine, downed them only with difficulty, finding them "tough, and with a curious dead-mushrooms taste."

love to all,
THO

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July 23, 2006: Hello again, all.

Blueblade, Ed tells me he wasn't planning on reading from SWORDS, but rather from "a few old favourites." He warns that this is part of the province-wide Summer Reading Club (which Ed helped design, one year, back when he was working for NYPL), and that the audience may be rather young; he'll tailor the reading to his listeners.

This time Ed tackles two queries from Blackwill: "Greeting madame THO and sir Ed, I am a member of a community (ALFA) dedicated to recreating your realms within Neverwinter Nights (2) and sometimes we have strange and funny questions which add flavor to the world we've created. Here goes. Is there any whale catching within the realms? Are there specific types of whale?

What is your personal favorite region in the realms, and why?"

Ed replies:

Yes, indeed, there's whaling in the Realms (in the western and southern seas that bound Faerûn, almost never in the Sea of Fallen Stars). These days, it's practiced by Chultans, by pirates in the Nelanther when food is slim or they need to waterproof their hulls, by a handful of Korinna Ffolk and Tashalan seacaptains, and especially by the Northmen.

(I'm distinguishing here between seeking whales at sea to slay them, and fighting off sea creatures that attack ships; many warm shallow waters are plagued by tentacled things that snatch sailors off decks at night, and even drag down or tear apart smaller vessels.)

Here are the main species of whales hunted by whalers:

o The Araun

This huge species is the largest of known Faerûnian whales (many are more than two hundred feet long), and in shape resembles a gigantic cucumber or Zeppelin. It usually drifts slowly through the sea, mouth open wide, scooping up plankton and small fish alike-but it can charge at astonishing speeds to ram and sink ships, if aroused, or [males only] to 'head-butt' other araun to establish dominance over a bay or a specific female during spring mating times. Araun females can carry fertilized eggs and fetal whales within themselves for years, giving birth only when conditions are ideal (clean waters, abundant food, lack of bad weather or predators, warm spring or summer conditions). Araun have jet black skin, underlaid by a thick white layer of edible blubber, with huge amounts of quite pleasant, "roast beef"-like meat underneath, that keeps well if kept submerged in salt water or sealed away from air in a barrel that's been smeared with blubber (araun blubber has a smell like fresh cut grass, and rapidly forms a "skin" like varnish when exposed to air, so it's doesn't stay sticky to the touch, but water softens this skin on contact; the blubber can be used for frying, boiled down into a cooking oil or fragrant lamp oil if combined with the right herbs (both for smell and taste, and to alter it so it won't congeal back into blubber). Araun organs are also edible, the liver and heart being incredibly rich and a prized ingredient in some recipes for beneficial potions; a dead araun can feed a village for months.

o The Daerasluke

This fast, agile, whale likes to play (leaping clear of the water, chasing each other around ships, islands, and undersea obstacles) in pairs or small groups. Daerasluke are slender, 50 to 70 feet long when full-grown, have large front fins and heads like very large flat arrowheads, and are sandy-hued. Under their hides is a thin layer of spongy yellow skin that leaks a yellow oil that can be burned as lamp oil just "as is" (so stabbing a beached or dead daerasluke causes an outflow of oil that barrels and lamps can be filled from). Under this is white, fibrous, "whitefish"-like flesh that's very oily, but edible; it can be squeezed to "drive out" the oil and the less-oily flesh then eaten (it "fries itself" when cooked), or it can be cooked down or boiled down to separate out a lot more oil if the flesh isn't wanted for eating. Daerasluke are plentiful, and females usually give birth to six or seven frisky young at once; they may produce two such families in a season if conditions are favourable.

I've cut Ed's reply in half here to avoid hitting the post size limits, and will post the rest here tomorrow.

love,
THO

Hello again, scribes. Herewith, the second half of Ed's replies to Blackwill, beginning with another two species of whales:

o The Karrask

This is an armored-headed, fearsome-looking monster of many seafarers' tales, the whale that "likes to fight," ramming ships, shearing off oars, and even leaping out of the water to land on and swamp small boats. Karrask have large, glistening black-and-gold "false eyes," but actually see out of many tiny orbs studded here and there in the fissures between their armor plates. A karrask has a head like a giant horseshoe crab (except that where a crab has an unbroken plate as its "shoe" snout, a karrask has the same shape made up of many overlapping plates), and an adult is usually around 80 feet long, with some old warriors reaching 120 feet or more. Karrasks are loners, meeting in shoals and deserted islets far out to sea to mate, with only the males "cruising the coasts" (where they'll eat anything organic, including sailors fallen overboard). Karrask yield almost no oil, but have thick white muscles under their skins (feet thick) that's said to resemble but surpass the finest white pork in flavour. A single slain karrask can feed a village very well for almost a month, or make a merchant's fortune if the meat (white flesh that hangs together very well, and is often cut into blocks about the size of a handkeg, by men wielding double-handled saws and holding the meat in "coffers" made of boards while they work on it) is brought fresh to a port market.

o The Browntail

The most common sort of whale, found in large pods swimming slowly around harbours and along coasts, "grazing" on weed (and the algae that bloom on sewage). Small (most adults are between 30 and 40 feet long), placid, and bony, resembling large trout in shape. Their skins are mottled light and dark brown, and white on the underside, with the tails being darker, unmottled brown. Browntails are easily caught, even by whalers working harpoons and nets from ashore, and yield much edible but oily beige-hued flesh that despite their diet, doesn't taste bad. It is, however, heavy on the stomach and an acquired taste. Browntail oil is gained by boiling the hide, and yields a fitful, flickering, brownish light when used in lamps; its horrible taste bars it from cooking use (except by orcs and goblins, most of whom drink the raw oil avidly). It is, however, ideal for "waterproofing" canvas (it makes the cloth resist being waterlogged, protects it from rotting, growing molds or breaking down in the sun), and when mixed with several other (secret) ingredients, works as a very effective sealant on leaky wooden hulls, and so is much prized by pirates, who often come into harbours to hunt whales more than raid shipping.

Now, as for your second question: I honestly don't have a single favourite region in the Realms, because I can't choose between the Dalelands, Cormyr, Waterdeep, Silverymoon, the Unicorn Run, and the Border Kingdoms. I love 'em all. (This is like asking someone to choose which of their children is their favourite!)

So saith Ed, who can talk "Salty Old Cap'n Highliner Pirate Seadog" with the best of them. No, DON'T encourage him.

Especially if you're a flirtatious female.

And even vaguely human.

love,
THO

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On July 23, 2006 THO said: Will, it's like this: I can rarely swing the time off from my job to attend GenCon, but I often, ahem, detect something we just have to "deal with, right now" in the vicinity of the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, on a few specific dates, if you know what I mean...

Ed doesn't anxiously await GenCon so much as he writes like heck and hopes he can get done whatever he has to get done, before GenCon rushes up to meet him. He loves attending GenCon, yes, despite the cost (writers don't make all that much, and Ed is one of those rarer sorts of guys who loves to shop), and says it "recharges his batteries" seeing old friends and meeting fans.

He wasn't planning on doing a SWORDS OF EVENINGSTAR reading at GenCon, except perhaps informally, to friends (because all GenCon events have to be carefully planned and cleared with the GenCon staff, and it doesn't seem that WotC included such an event on their request list), but Ed usually doesn't know his "final, final, FINAL" con schedule until mere days before he starts the drive down. So, if you see him at the con, ask him to do a reading. If he gets the chance, he will.

love,
THO

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July 25, 2006: Hi once again, fellow scribes. Ed herewith tackles a query from Naeryndam: "Do you have any information detailing Antarn the Sage's life or perhaps stats (if he is still alive)? The only information I can seem to find on him are quotes from "The High History of Faerunian Archmages Mighty"."

Ed replies:

You have found the only in-print Realmslore on this individual, but here's more:

Antarn the Sage is indeed still alive and flourishing, as a wealthy sage in Athkatla. It's hard to get to see him these days, as he grows elderly and increasingly reclusive in his modest, always-shuttered tower in the east end of that city, and deals with would-be clients through two trade agents: retired adventurers (fighting-men) named Hyelan Zorandel and Drethtar Wildtree, who take turns dining at Taerandamlur's feasthouse (we would say "restaurant") of early afternoon and evenings on Antarn's coins, awaiting anyone who wants to drop by their table and try to hire the sage to provide information on a matter. Zorandel and Wildtree are empowered to engage Antarn's services, setting very stiff fees (10 gp minimum, even if no lore is given; refusal to pay means Antarn will never entertain another query from the same source; on top of this, 10 gp per name, yes/no answer, or location provided, plus 25 gp per identification, simple description, or simple explanation; fees escalate for more complex lore, usually starting from a base of 50 gp and easily reaching 80 gp). They later bring back written results to the same tables in Taerandamlur's (which stands on Sardel Street, and is a many-lamp-hung, haughty place of marble pillars, many wines, and superb food), for clients to return and collect. Throughout such dealings, the short, slender, dapper, brown-bearded (he dyes it to retain its chestnut hue) Antarn is never directly seen.

Antarn does go out to buy his own provender (he cooks for himself, Zorandel, and Wildtree), to (rarely) stroll and see the evening sights, and to seek highcoin (refined, quieter and older) ladies-of-the-evening, with whom he likes to play board and card games before "bed games." On such occasions, he avoids identifying himself to anyone, and goes about protected by an [[ironguard ring]], a [[ring of shooting stars]] and an assortment of minor magic items. Antarn is a loner who has devoted his life to study, and copies stolen books (except for actual spell text) for various Athkatlan thieves (whom he deals with through Zorandel and Wildtree) in return for their supplying him with whatever books he wants to consult (temporarily stolen from Athkatlan private and temple libraries). He's perfectly content to live out his days reading and writing, with Zorandel and Wildtree as his only real friends (as well as employees; they also serve as his bodyguards and errand-runners when he wants them to), having other human contacts only on his terms. He faces danger calmly ("fatalistic" is a good description), and can't be moved by threats of torture, ruin, death, and maiming. Book burning will enrage him, but he will remain in firm control of his outward emotions and speech, turning to inwardly plotting doom...

In game terms, Antarn is a LN male Tethyrian human Exp14 [sage: Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (history), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nobility and royalty)]. Antarn will provide lore about the deeds, lineages, and descriptions of practitioners of Art, but NOT about spells or arcane lore, pretending to know "regrettably, almost nothing about magic." His major work thus far is THE HIGH HISTORY OF FAERUNIAN ARCHMAGES MIGHTY, but he has also penned the chapbooks DURSUNDER STREET: A LOCAL HISTORY and HUNTSILVER ERRANT: A LIFE OF ONDAMARR HUNTSILVER (about a young male adventurer of the Huntsilver noble family of Cormyr, who came to Athkatla almost a century ago and made his fortune, ending up transformed into human female form and the wife of a very rich Amnian cloth merchant, Harstel Maunkvaer).

So saith Ed.

Who roleplayed a meeting between the Knights and Zorandel (an amiable but formidable individual), once. We never had dealings with Antarn, though. As Torm put it, "Hire some stuffy sage to tell us something when it's much more fun to find the right person to tell us for free - - after we've taken hold of his throat and shaken him long enough?"

love to all,
THO

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On July 25, 2006 THO said: A postscript, to Na-Gang: Ed DOES have notes on Tharsult, because I've seen them. He probably stopped hammering them into Realmslore web-columns when Eric Boyd asked for Tharsult info (figuring Eric would use them). I'll add your request to the heap on his desk, but right now he's so blamed busy that anything that involves a search for something may not happen until after year-end.

But then again, maybe he has it right in front of him, right now.

love,
THO

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July 26, 2006: No, Ed "retired" from Toronto Public Library (North York Public Library) when his wife did. He now works part-time in a different library system (in Port Hope, Ontario; Ed's there about 15 hours a week or so; sometimes more, sometimes less). He's also chair of his local library board.

Ahem. Hello again, all.

This time Ed pulls together parts of two widely-separated posts by createvmind (don't worry, neither he nor I have discarded the rest of those posts; they, too, will get answered in the fullness of time): "Side question, the Skindancer in MM3 does it exist in YOUR Realms?" and the earlier "One last thing, do half-vampires exist in YOUR Faerun?" and replies:

Yes, both half-vampires and skindancers exist in the Realms, but both are rather rare (the latter only as guardians in certain ancient "dungeon" tombs).

Ed also responds to this, from createvmind: "Looking forward to hopefully meeting you at Gencon."

I hope we can meet, and talk Realmslore somewhere. Aside from buying gaming goodies and seeing old friends, meeting fans of the Realms and enjoying the Realms together is the reason I come to GenCon. I'll look forward to it!

So saith Ed.

Who can certainly talk.

love to all,
THO

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July 27, 2006: Hi, everyone. Ed tackles two related posts this time: first, from RodOdom: "Have the Malaugrym had any dealings with that other shape-shifting race, the dopplegangers?" and second, from createvmind: "The above post just made me wonder if there are female Dopplegangers and what would be offspring of her and Malaugrym?"

Ed replies:

Oh, yes, the Malaugrym have had dealings with dopplegangers (mainly enslaving them; quite a few dopplegangers have ended up as agents of Malaugrym). And yes, Malaugrym and dopplegangers are cross-fertile and have had offspring, but NDA as to just who, and on what powers that who has. :}

So saith Ed.

Who's sitting on something VERY interesting. About which, of course, I cannot say more.

love to all,
THO

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July 28, 2006: Hello again, everyone. This time Ed makes reply to Kuje's post: "Hey Ed, I've always wondered if you could tell us more of Kyrial Alathar Pellinore, son of Chiros Pellinore. Third Lord of Everlund and proud servant of Tyr.

This guy always interested me ever since I saw him mentioned a few times in the Spelljammer black boxed texts in some of the Spelljammer material but I've never really seen any FR logo'd material on this person.

Does Everlund have some spelljammers? Does Kyrial captain any spelljammers? Or what's the deal with him? :) So basically, I'm just asking for any general details about him...."

Ed speaks:

Yes, at least two (and probably more) of the mansions of Everlund are grounded and overgrown (but still usable; in emergencies, they'd come bursting up out of the ground, shedding garden earth, vines, and the like) spelljamming vessels. One of these (which looks like a simple three-floor stone keep, bulging out into a cylindrical tower at its northeast cormer) is Kyrial Pellinore's home.

Kyrial is a much changed man, in recent years. He "fell away" from Tyr, and then returned to the god, but not before faking his own death (over a decade ago), to get out of all civic duties and end a dispute with an angry husband that was shaping up into something that might have riven the ranks of Everlund's Elders.

He now poses as his own cousin, come back "from afar" to bring up "the young Pellinores" (Aunglautha, Neerelle, and Jahanrisse, the three daughters, now beautiful but rebellious teens, of Kyrial's now-deceased younger brother Bran; Bran and his wife Klarra were killed fighting off wolf-riding orcs who raided Everlund in a howling blizzard some years back). The three young ladies know his secret, but haven't let it slip out. Yet.

Kyrial is tall, aging but still athletic and handsome, broad-shouldered and goatee-bearded. He was once stern, just, and warlike, then became a scourge-of-the-ladies, and is now just, kind, gallant, and now much less driven to conquer all the good-looking females in sight. (His spelljamming is also largely behind him.) These days, he's interested in covertly defending Everlund (avoiding much of its society and politics, and working with Harpers and local druids and rangers to patrol the surrounding countryside as scouts, so no raiding bands will ever get close to Everlund again without its defenders being warned and ready), and in living quietly with his new lady: Emmura Silverlock (LG female moon elf Rgr6/Wiz7/Bladesinger4), whom he rescued from Zhentarim captivity while adventuring (she had been "experimented upon" magically by Zhent mages and beholders, and is under a "curse" [recurring magic Pellinore has not yet found a way to remove] that every few days causes one of her limbs to alter into scaled snake-body form or taloned, furred panther-like form (transformations that cause her agony), and stay that way for 1d4+1 hours, changing back with the same pain. Aunglautha, Neerelle, and Jahanrisse know of this affliction, but no one else in Everlund does - - because no one in Everlund has ever knowingly seen Kyrial's mysterious "Lady Silverlock" (there's much rumor about her). She (or one of the three younger ladies, pretending to be her) dons an iron mask and an all-concealing cloak and ankle-length robes, if anyone visits unexpectedly.

Obviously, there's a tale here I'm not telling anyone, yet.

Time... I need to find a spell that will give me a lot more writing time...

So saith Ed, Master Spinner of Realmslore, Cryptic and Otherwise.

love to all,
THO

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July 29, 2006: Hi, assembled scribes. Ed herewith tackles createvmind's queries: "Hello Ed, How does one find out the all the secret names of a deity that they don't serve especially if the person is not evil therefore above torturing that deities loyal follower? And does this knowledge confer any power or leverage to the person?"

Ed replies:

As to your first question: I don't know. You'll have to roleplay it to find out. (Hint: joining the priesthood of that deity and ascending its ranks to receive names in instruction, study of religious tomes, and through prayer is the best way to discover ALL the names of a deity. Those unfriendly to a faith, who try to learn about the deity of that faith, will encounter hostile and prepared resistance from worshippers of that faith as they gain more and more names, because the deity will become aware of it and instruct its faithful accordingly. Peeking at holy texts in temples one sneaks into - - and then leaving, without taking or desecrating anything, is the swiftest way to learn more than one secret name at a time... provided, of course, that you search the right book in the right place in the right temple, and manage to get in and out whilst doing the minimum amount of harm to any priests encountered.)

The answer to your second question is: Yes. First, knowing some names makes possible the performance of certain prayers, leading to the granting and casting of otherwise "forbidden" or "restricted" spells. Second, knowing some names confers actual rank within many priesthoods ("Oh! If you know THAT, the god must consider you fit to be a THIS!"). And third, knowing more and more secret names of a deity draws you closer and closer to understanding their true nature, falling under their sway, and becoming a fanatical worshipper of them. [Yes, this IS a roleplaying instruction to DMs. :}] In short, learning a few secret names of a deity can be useful in PC dealings with clergy of that deity, give a PC lore they can sell or trade to NPCs, and help in PC understanding of what said clergy is doing, locally. Learning more than a few secret names of a deity is only helpful to PCs who want to embrace that deity and rise in the service of that deity. As a weapon to use against that deity or that deity's clergy, it's more dangerous to the wielder than to intended targets (deities make sure of this).

So saith Ed.

Creator of the gods of Faerûn, from Shar to Mystra to Eilistraee to Lurue.

love to all,
THO

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July 30, 2006: Hello again, all.

No, Wooly dearest, Ed created Gwaeron Windstrom. Trust me. I have a pencil lore write-up of Ed's from 1981 (when no one in gaming had yet heard of Bob Salvatore), that provided my character a quick paragraph of lore information about Gwaeron.

Speaking of Realmslore, and deities...

This time, Ed responds to Uzzy's post: "Hello Ed! Another question about Lliira from me. Ive been looking through various bits of lore about Lliira, looking for a reason as to why Lliira has two Portfolios, those of Freedom and Liberty. They certainly get mention in various Lliiran based feats, etc, but with Lliira being described often as a flighty and detached Goddess, I dont see where she has Freedom and Liberty from (except maybe having Freedom due to her dancing nature, Freedom of Movement and all that)

Basically, what im asking is this. Where is this part of Lliira coming from? Would revolutionaries/freedom fighters really worship Lliira? Because, even with Lliira having those Portfolios, I dont see it happening. Perhaps shes just neglecting those Portfolios?

Thanks in advance."

Ed replies:

I see your point. I suspect you're using one pair of particular meanings of "freedom" and of "liberty," whereas I and other Realms designers are using other meanings.

First,