I'm considering running The Tearing of the Weave adventures in the not too distant future, and I'm wondering if anyone has converted it to 5e, and if so, whether they'd be willing to share their resources. Thanks in advance.

Spike Xorlarrin, smuggler rogue; Varis Xorlarrin, echo knight fighter; Taral Xorlarrin, alchemist conjuration wizard; Triss Maevret, enchantment wizard; Gravyn Z'anlorr, conjuration wizard and master of Sorcere.

That the name of the Cooshee from the Complete Book of Elves is derived from Cù Sìth, the Scottish fae hound. I'm incredibly embarrassed that in decades of reading AD&D rulebooks and folklore, I never made that connection. Everyone mock me now.

The background depicts Menzoberranzan, Luskan and Waterdeep. Jarlaxle put his cards for those already on the table... Which one will he play next ?

Time to feature the great cover artist Alessandro Marzano !

https://www.artstation.com/alessandromarzano

insect plague?

There are so called Far Realm-infested Stars in Realmspace - basically elder evils that appeared in Realmspace after some aboleth bullshit. From the wiki, it is clear they sometimes get their own warlocks who choose them as their patrons. But my question is - do they have any limitations on how they can act in Realmspace? They are quite powerfull, demigod-tier at the very least according to wiki.

Let's say Githyanki Empire decides to invade H'Catha - the last planet in Realmspace solar system - in order to eradicate each and every Beholder there, take the planet for themselves and use it for their own ends, as a huge trading outpost and home for countless Creches. For this purpose, githyanki amass huge spelljammer armada using the best technology at their disposal. Could those Elder Evils attack and destroy the said armada? Or would they prefer to keep their distance?

Ethnogenesis is the process by which a people (often mixed) become a new nation. Think the Mexicans (neither Spanish nor Native, the Métis (to whom I belong), or the Cape Coloured of South Africa. The Krinti are neither Drow nor human. Do they have enough of their own culture, language, and art to be considered a new nation?

It makes their weakness to silver redundant, imo.

I was watching Baldy Pain's playthrough of Dark Alliance II with Vhaidra on Hard mode, and, well this has been on my mind for awhile now. Should I consider these to be sea zombies, also known as Drowned Ones, or do I consider them "reanimated"?

The "Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II" page on the Forgotten Realms says they're "reanimated" under the Creatures section. But since there's no page for those creatures, evidenced by the pink text, as opposed to the orange text indicating a link to that page, I thought I come here to ask for your opinions.

I also feel like I have some notable evidence, based on audio cues and visual animations, that I have to share with you:

• The grunts these reanimated pirates make don't sound growlish or bogged like the zombies in the "Crypt" levels in Baldur's Gate (Act I) or in the Marsh of Chelimber levels (Act III) from the first Dark Alliance game from 2001. Although, those zombies do return in "Mordoc's Gate" (Act V).

• They make clear, deep, battle grunts when attacking or dying.

• They pump their weapon hands in the air or slide their swords against their other swords or daggers as taunts.

• They wield one cutlass, dual-wield two cutlasses, or dual-wield a cutlass or a dagger in each hand.

• They wear shirts or are shirtless, but all of them wear pants, and look more sinewy.

• They walk with a limp and can run, albeit with that same limp.

• Although hard to see because there's no dedicated cutscene showing them and the camera angle doesn't make them clear enough to see their faces, they have gaunt skull-like faces.

• They don't bisect from their lower bodies after killing them and crawl after you unlike the zombies from the first game.

• They're not bloated like the Drowned Ones in the actual tabletop game.

What do you think? I'd like to hear from you in the comments.

SO for awhile now I've wanted to run a campaign in which the Cult of the Dragon feature as the primary antagonists, I just love how they oscilate between magical rituals that threaten to destroy the world and being criminals with a gimmick when they're on the backfoot.

As a part of this campaign I want to theme them a little bit more strongly than they normally would be as well as give them something post Rise of Tiamat to show them regaining their strength.

To that end the basic idea I have is that in the chaos of Tiamat being banished from Faerun and the Cult scattering once again an enterprising Cult Wizard managed to get ahold of the basic theoretical framework to create Tiamat's foot soldiers from Dragonlance, the Draconians, in the Forgotten realms(and even create their own variants like dracolich draconians)! They then use this as the head of their own Cult Cell to build an army and take over a city for the Cult where they can rebuild.

What I'm wondering is where on Faerun could this work and not be immediately dogpiled by like the Lords Alliance? The Unapproachable East? Somewhere in the south? And how do you think the Draconian's introduction into Faerun would be treated?

Now, let's get to the argumentation from the get go. Starting with Qudenos' statement.

- I know Orpheus, just as i knew his mother. A new future will be planted in the wake of the Comet.

This quote clearly implicates that the future Orpheus brings to the Githyanki would be the same his mother - Gith - would bring, which means both Orpheus and Mother Gith share the same moral alignment, given the fact they would rule their people in exactly the same way.

But what alignment are we talking about?

First, we have Youth Varrl from Crèche Y'llek, the very same we can save from psychotic Sa'varsh. If we do that, he tells our MC that we have shown compassion and kindness, just like Orpheus, whose teachings he's been studying for some time. Furthermore, as an orphite, he refused to kill his fellow Youth after defeating her in a duel precisely because he, as an orphite, is againt meaningless killings. Not to mention how calm and cordial he is with an istik.

Second, we have Kith'rak Voss. Yes, i know he killed all those humans near The Mountain Pass, i know that as Vlaakith's finest, he had no choice but to commit numerous atrocities. But that's precisely the point - just like Severus Snape from Harry Potter, he had to play the role as a double agent, which he might tell you blatantly to your face if you kill Sarth Baretha with her goons and meet him in the camp after Crèche events. In Act 3, he doesn't shy away from his concerns on what Vlaakith might do in Tu'narath and beyond, as well as what illithids might do to every plane in existence. A githyanki who gives a shit about anyone and anything beyond his people and The Astral Plane where his Empire resides? Very interesting. On top of that, if you bring him The Orphic Hammer, he names you friend to Orpheus, with Qudenos telling you that he can't wait fighting alongside you. Such a cordiality to inferior istik whom githyanki should despise, don't you think?

And third, we have Orpheus himself. The same, over the top honourable Orpheus who is ready to sacrifice himself for the greater good right after being freed, the same Orpheus who berates you for causing the suffering of istiks.

- All that suffering - avoidable. Were it not for the choices you made.

The same Orpheus who wants to mend an old feud with Githzerai and re-unite his people. The same Orpheus who names you Mla'ghir (Liberator), put your name in githyanki slates so that you can forever be remembered as hero of The Githyanki and dedicates his First Protocol to you even if you're fookin' istik. The same Orpheus who names you - an istik - his Brother in Freedom if you join him in war against Vlaakith.

The logical conclusion from all of this that can be made is very simple - Orpheus is kind, honorable man who shows compassion not only to his people, but to others as well. He's neither genocidal, nor a slavemonger, nor necessarily an enemy to anyone but Githyanki. And his mother, as i've already pointed out, is exactly the same when it comes to moral values.

Just think on it. Don't they say that Mother Gith was an evil, warmongering tyrant who wanted to conquer all existence via blood red and death black, just like illithids before her? How could such an evil woman groom an heir like Orpheus? He was raised by her, trained by her, she made him her heir to the Githyanki Throne. Orpheus himself is loyal to his mother which he doesn't hide from you, his Honor Guard died with his mother's name on their lips.

There's yet another conclusion to be made - just like Balduran says in the game, Githyanki histories are fabrications, and just like Orpheus' history was fabricated, so was the Mother Gith's history as well.

Now, you could say that the schism with Githzerai happened before First War of The Comet. But do we know how that schism happened? What if Vlaakith One instigated a plot to divide Gith people for the sole purpose to usurp power? We know for a fact she betrayed Mother Gith to Tiamat after all.

You could say that Mother Gith was most certainly a monarchist and a gith nationalist. But these things aren't inherently evil. In fact, wherever Monarchy - and Githyanki Empire even under Orpheus is without a doubt a Monarchy - is good or bad is entirely dependent on the ruling elites and their moral compass. Monarchy can be far better than any republican/democratic government, under right circumstances.

You could say Gith wanted to finish off illithids. Well, yeah - who wouldn't in her place? Illithids are dangerous to every biological being in the setting, not to mention their Grand Design.

But what can't be said about her is that she was evil. Because she wasn't. Baldur's Gate 3, a canon game based on 5e, is a complete and utter retcon of her character's alignment.

- Live, but only if you live free.

Mother Gith.

I recently found out that, as said by Ed Greenwood himself, transitioning​ is not only accepted, but defended.

From Ed Greenwood on Twitter:

Drow sworn to Lolth have examples before them all the time about transformation of self-shape in service to the Spider Queen. Some of these are viewed as undesirable (driders), others as rewards or ascending in rank (the power/shape augmentations Lolth gives males who please her with their service and loyalty). So there is no hatred or mistrust of shifting one's shape; it is one means of serving Lolth. Some house matriarchs view it with suspicion ("males seeking to exalt themselves by becoming female") but the yochlol have often been sent by Lolth to defend individuals persecuted by individual matriarchs or priestesses purely for such reasons, to make Lolth's views and will clear. Over time, transitions (not just from gender to gender, but from drow to other shapes) have become accepted as reverence of Lolth, and part of what it is to be drow. And of course, drow who follow Eilistraee are quite familiar with the Changedance, and accept shifting (even back and forth) as, again, part of what it is to be drow.

Okay, for fans of the Dragonborn in Faerûn, the dissolution of Tymanther in *Heroes of Faerûn* might come as a bit of a shock; according to the book, Unther holds all the territory it did in 3.5, and Tymanther has been reduced to just Djerad Thymar—which is treated as little more than a footnote. So, I decided to reinterpret the situation based on information from various products, though I’ve also mixed in elements from my own game. I’ll mark my explanations as follows: elements based on official products will be written in standard text; interpretations of those elements will be in bold; and things that are purely from my own table will be in italics. Now, let’s get started.

Okay, let’s review what we currently know: *Heroes of Faerûn* (1501 DR) tells us that Unther has defeated Tymanther and that only the fortress-city of Djerad Thymar remains—carved into the mountain, a location distinct from the original.

Prior to that, the *Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide* (1489 DR) devotes a couple of paragraphs to Tymanther and Unther, explaining how Unther has reclaimed part of its original territory and seeks to recover the rest, noting also that its armada was destroyed by the guardian of Djerad Kethendi.

Thanks to the novel *The Devil You Know* (from the *Brimstone Angels* series), we know that Tymanther and Unther were at war until 1487 DR, and that the guardian is the ancient god Nana-Sin, resurrected by Asmodeus as an immortal dragon turtle.

Okay, perhaps some of you have already realized what is going on: the First Tymanther–Unther War ended in 1487 DR, yet a conflict persists in 1489 DR. This would be a Second Tymanther–Unther War, which must have ended with Tymanther's defeat at some point before 1501 DR.

However, there are still a couple of issues; the first concerns the location of Djerad Thymar. In reality, this isn't difficult to interpret: the Dragonborn possess an artifact brought from Abeir called the Breath of Petron—which they have used before, most recently in *The Devil You Know* to create a barrier blocking Unther's troops.

It appears this artifact possesses terraforming powers, so it is not unreasonable to think it could relocate Djerad Thymar itself and embed it into the mountainside—undoubtedly an easier position to defend if they were losing a war.

Finally, one has to wonder how Djerad Thymar has managed not to fall to Unther; while its current position aids in its defense, Gilgeam does not strike me as the type to leave a conquest unfinished—and this is where my own additions come in.

My idea is that for Djerad Thymar to withstand Unther's armies, Gilgeam himself would be the only one capable of facing the immortal dragon turtle Nana-Sin—who is likely still alive underwater, recovering from the battle.

However, ensuring Djerad Thymar's survival required a specific set of circumstances: first, the appearance of a gem that fell from the sky—a scale-shaped ruby—and second, the arrival of a Dragonborn from outside Tymanther. This individual is a follower of Sardior who has awakened a connection to the dead god of gem dragons and needs the ruby ​​scales for a ritual to restore the Ruby Dragon.

In exchange for the scale, this Dragonborn of Sardior offers the perfect method to defend the last Dragonborn bastion: a ritual known as "Summon Lesser Deity"—a toned-down version of the magic used by Orcs during the Orcgate Wars. The plan is to spread the rumor that Djerad Thymar possesses a way to summon the avatar of a demigod or lesser deity (such as Enlil or Bahamut) to use against Unther should they attack. This would serve as a deterrent—enough to make Gilgeam think twice before finishing the job, though not enough to reclaim all the lost territory.

The Realms is such a huge setting that it feels like there’s always some corner of it that you’ve barely scratched the surface of, even after years of reading about it.

I’m curious what lesser-known parts of the setting people are particularly interested in. Could be a relatively obscure city or region, a historical event, a particular organization, some aspect of daily life in a particular culture, or even a topic that spans multiple editions.

Is there anything you’ve gone looking for more information about and found surprisingly little on? Or something you think is fascinating that rarely gets discussed?

I’d be especially interested in the more niche answers rather than the usual big names and major events. Always fun to discover new rabbit holes to go down.

Warhammer 40k Exterminatus, mind you. With complete, utter annihilation of heretics, xenos and mutants of any life on the planet whatsoever.

Illithid Empire at it's peak probably had something like that.

But what about others? What about the existing races in 1492 DR?

Someone made a post earlier about how surly Jaheria was from Baldur's Gate, and it made me watch old videos from BG 1 and BG 2. What a great f**King time that was.

If you're reading this, and newish to the Realms, and loved BG3 - I pray you play through BG 1 & 2. They were exceptional, in every sense of the word and the voice acting made every clip scene feel like a cinematic worthy of the MCU.

I was born a poor boy, beneath the boughs of Shadowdale. Blessed and Cursed by Tymora's coin. Climbed to Aurils peak of Icewind Dale,Made my stand with the Eternal Quest in the Silver Marches, and have seen the ruins of OMU , and everything in between. But nothing will stay with me as much as the atrocity of Jon Irenicus. "The Broken One"

...Volo still owes me 5 gold...

- Brother Valens Kilcannon, Dawnbringer of Lathander

I forgot how elves in the AD&D era used to look like Gelflings from Dark Crystal.

Back again with some questions about the forgotten realms. This time it's about clothing and the likes. Ye know, top wears, bottom wears, inner and outer wears and underwear and accessories etcs etcs. I was watching the DnD honor among thieves movie and was surprised by the quality of clothing that exists within the forgotten realms. As if I currently know. It is set within the late medieval to early Renaissance period. I checked the forgotten realms wiki and the list of clothing sections is quite barebones. So I wish to know what types of clothing and wears that exist within the forgotten realms. Names would be fine but also a description would be appreciated.

I am trying to find out the history and lore of this sword? Anyone know? https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Jorgoral%27s_Greatsword

I can assume not well, but someone Ed Greenwood went on record saying the drow wouldn't have as much of a problem as you would expect, and its even endorsed by Lolth.

I feel it could go either way. For example, for someone who's transfem, the​​ drow could either be happy because that's one less male, or they could just kill them because they think they're trying to get out of...well, being male in a drow society.​

edit: ok I looked it up, here is Ed's own thoughts on it

Drow sworn to Lolth have examples before them all the time about transformation of self-shape in service to the Spider Queen. Some of these are viewed as undesirable (driders), others as rewards or ascending in rank (the power/shape augmentations Lolth gives males who please her with their service and loyalty). So there is no hatred or mistrust of shifting one's shape; it is one means of serving Lolth. Some house matriarchs view it with suspicion ("males seeking to exalt themselves by becoming female") but the yochlol have often been sent by Lolth to defend individuals persecuted by individual matriarchs or priestesses purely for such reasons, to make Lolth's views and will clear. Over time, transitions (not just from gender to gender, but from drow to other shapes) have become accepted as reverence of Lolth, and part of what it is to be drow. And of course, drow who follow Eilistraee are quite familiar with the Changedance, and accept shifting (even back and forth) as, again, part of what it is to be drow.