Original and Source Material Design: Ed Greenwood, Robert J. Kuntz, Colin McComb, Roger Moore, Carl Sargent, and James M. Ward, the primary authors of the demihuman pantheons in Deities & Demigods, Best of the Drqgon Volume III, Dwarves Deep, Drow of the Underdark, Monstrous Mythology, and On Hallowed Ground.. Also inspiration or original source material from: Lynn Abbey, L. Richard Baker III, Jim Bambra, Wolfgang Baur, Tim Beach, Grant Boucher, Jim Butler, Loren Coleman, William W. Connors, David “Zeb” Couk, Monte Cook, Bruce R. Cordell, Elaine Cunningham, Michael Dobson, Dale Donovan, Nigel Find-ley, Karen Wynn Fonstad, Ed Greenwood, Jeff Grubb, Gary Gygax, Scott Haring, Paul Jaquays, Steve Kurtz, James Lowder, David E. Martin, Julia Martin, Colin McComb, Frank Mentzer, Blake Mobley, Roger Moore, Rags Morales, Robert S. Mullin, John Nephew, Bruce Nesmith, Douglas Niles, Kate Novak, Chris Perry, Jonathon M. Richards, Chris Perry, Anthony Pryor Tom Prusa, David S. Reimer, Carl Sargent, R. A. Salvatore, Steven Schend, Dave Simons, slade, Bill Slavicsek, Keith Francis Strohm, Rick Swan, John Terra, James Ward with Robert Kuntz, Steve Winter, Peter Dosik. We apologize for anyone we missed.
Proofreading: Linda Archer
Cover Art: Todd Lockwood
Priest Color Plates, Interior Illustration, and New Deity Symbols: Ned
Dameron
Interior Page Layout Design: Dee Barnett
Interior Page Layout Art: Red Hughes
Typesetting: Eric Haddock
Production: Matt Adelsperger
Research Assistance: Brian “Volo” D. Gute (for compiling all the demihuman deity lore in all of the Volo’s Guides), Thomas “Marduk” M. Costa and Bryon <Dracolich> Wischstadt (for help with proofreading), Thomas “Marduk” M. Costa (for his help in cross-balancing avatars and specialty priests), and Alistair “Realms Moderator Emeritus” G.Lowe-Norris, Andrew “Realms Moderator” Hackard, Ariane <Cnith of Fenrisulven> Fournier, Austin “AFrisbie” Frisbie, Bobby “Cat Dragon” Nichols, Boedyn, Brian “Volo” D. Gute, Bryon <Dracolich> Wischstadt, Christopher “Demihuman Deity” Dwinell, Christopher “Seldarine” D. Perry, Damir “Maki” Makovica, Daniel “Highmoon” M. Perez, David “Mulhorand” Welt-baum, Elric, Ezra “Sneezy” S. Freelove, George “Phalorm” Krashos, Grant “Scribe” Christie, John “Bishop” R. East, Jay “Pukje”, Jeff “Sacredl2” T, Jenn “Kethry” Millinkton, Kain “CullA” T. Whitehouse, Lestat d’Lioncourt, Malcolm “Agrivar Nekros” the Undead Paladin of Tyr, Mark “Northern Journey” Oliva, Martin “Prescient” Brabander, Matthew “Arawn” McSorley, Mike “Warlock666” Hill, Nigel “Eilistraee” Bennington, Phllip <Sleyvas> Wallace, Rich “Bushcat93,” Rick “Maul1”, Russell “Wastri” Timm, Ryan McCoy, Thomas “Marduk” M. Costa, and Toby “Runedarspace” Mekelburg.
Eric apologizes for anyone he missed.
To Letitia for her unconditional love and support, to my family for their understanding, to the members of the Realms list for their inspiration and thought-provoking posts, to David Wise for his patience, to Ed Greenwood and Steven Schend for their invaluable assistance and ready answers, and to Julia Martin, the visionary, original designer, and editor of this trilogy of supplements who took a chance on a dedicated Realms fan and novice author.
Campaign setting based on the original campaign world of Ed Greenwood,
Based on the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS rules created by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.
TSR, Inc. is a subsidiary of Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
This product is a work of fiction; any similarities to actual people, organizations, places, or events ispurely coincidental.
© 1998 TSR, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
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AMERICA Wizards of the
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PANTHEONS OF THE REALMS
Demihuman Deities is a companion product to Faiths & Avatars, and Powers & Pantheons. In the Forgotten Realms, the gods and goddesses of the Realms are referred to as powers, and they are grouped into collections of gods referred to as pantheons. Demihuman Deities details the pantheons of the demihuman races, including the dwarves, elves (and drow), gnomes, and halflings.
Ownership of the Player’s Handbook, the DUNGEON MASTERR Guide, and the Tome of Magic are required to use this product. Ownership of Faiths & Avatars, Powers & Pantheons, Pages from the Mages, Prayers from the Faithful, the MONSTROUS MANUAL tome, the assorted MONSTROUS COMPENDIUM Annual volumes, the PLANESCAPE MONSTROUS COMPENDIUM appendices, and the four volumes of the ENCYCLOPEDIA MAGICAT tome is strongly encouraged and would supplement the information presented here. Without them, DMs will be forced to substitute their own information from some heavily referenced material. Other products mentioned in this book are of tertiary importance; information referenced from them is summarized in this volume or may be omitted completely without significantly influencing the flavor of the entries presented here.
To avoid excessive duplication between the three supplements, only an overview of the format of each deity entry is repeated in Demihuman Deities. For a general overview of divine powers in the Realms, the reader is referred to Faiths & Avatars. For details on the new priest classes referred to in this supplement, such as the crusader, mystic, and shaman, the reader is referred to either Faiths & Avatars or PLAYER’S OPTION FM: Spells & Magic.
The entries for the powers detailed in all three supplements follow a standard format. Notes on that format are given here in a format mimicking that used in the text:
Name of Deity
(Common Title and Epithets)
Power Ranking of Plane Name, Alignment
Alignment abbreviations used throughout each deity’s entry are:
LG=lawful good, NG=neutral good, CG=chaotic good, LN=lawful neutral, CN=chaotic neutral, N=true neutral, LE=lawful evil, NE=neutral evil, CE=chaotic evil.
PORTFOLIO: These are the topics, things, ideas, or emotions over which the deity has dominion, power, and control and about which the deity is concerned.
ALIASES: Other names the power is known by are given here. These may be “puppet gods” the deity has wholly subsumed, regional names, older names, or simply alternate names.
DOMAIN NAME: The layer of the plane the deity’s domain is found on is listed here, followed by the domain’s name. If the plane the domain is on is undivided, the plane name is repeated. (Note that some planes also have layers with the same name as the plane they are part of.)
SUPERIOR: If the deity takes orders from another power, that power is listed here.
ALLIES: Traditional allies are given here.
FOES: Traditional foes are given here. Powers the god rivals or competes with are not foes. These are discussed in the text, not here.
SYMBOL: A brief description of the deity’s symbol is given here.
WOR. ALIGN.: The alignments required of dedicated worshipers of the deity are given here. Powers generally try to be as liberal as possible to attract as much worship as they can.
This introductory paragraph describes the way a power is generally
depicted (or actually looks) if it is different from the deity’s avatar
form. It gives the accepted pronunciation of the power’s name. It
details additional titles and epithets the power is known by, common
worshipers of the power, and the qualities attributed to the deity,
such as its general demeanor, bearing, and personality. It also
discusses any relations between the power and other powers not covered
by the “Allies” and “Foes” entries above.
Deity’s Avatar (Character classes and levels)
This paragraph describes the avatar’s appearance and the schools or spheres of magic from which it may draw spells. When discussed in this avatar section, a deity’s avatar is spoken of as the deity, not as “the avatar of so-and-so,” to economize on space. The avatar’s statistics use this format and these abbreviations:
AC Armor Class; MV movement rate, Fl flying (maneuverability class is assumed to always be A), Sw swimming, Br burrowing; HP hit points;
THACO To hit Armor Class 0; #AT number of attacks per round Dmg typical damage done per attack (weapon, if one is used, Strength bonus notation, weapon specialization notation) MR magic resistance; SZ Size notation (size in feet)
STR Strength score, DEX Dexterity score, CON Constitution score, INT
Intelligence score, WIS Wisdom score, CHA Charisma score
Spells P: number of priest spells per spell level including Wisdom spell
bonuses, W: number of wizard spells per spell level
Saves (saving throws) PPDM poison, paralyzation, or death magic saving
throw; RSW rod, staff, or wand saving throw; PP petrification or
polymorph saving throw; BW breath weapon saving throw; Sp spell saving
throw
Special Att/Def: This entry discusses any special attacks or defenses the avatar has, its magical items of note, and any particularly distinctive tactics it tends to use.
This section discusses other manifestations of a power aside from its avatar. These manifestations are much more commonly encountered than the actual avatar of a deity. They often convey benefits to the faithful or indicate favor, direction, danger, agreement, or disagreement by the deity. Sometimes they are merely used to comfort and assure their worshipers that they are aware of a situation or appreciate their followers’ devotion.
In the headings in this section, the following abbreviations are used for character classes: C=cleric, Cru=crusader, D=druid, SP=specialty priest, Mon=monk, Mys=mystic, Sha=shaman, F=fighter, Pal=paladin, R=ranger, W=all wizard classes, M=mage, Abj=abjurer, Con=conjurer, Chr=chronomancer, Div=di-viner, Enc=enchanter, 111=illusionist, Inv=invoker, Nec=necromancer, Spell=spellsinget, Tra=transmuter, T=thief, B=bard. Note that the chrono-mancer wizard character class is described in ‘Chronomancer’, the spellsinger wizard class is described in Wizards and Rogues of the Realms, and the crusader, monk, mystic, and shaman priest classes are found in Faiths & Avatars.
CLERGY: The different character classes open to members of the clergy are listed here. Always remember that a religion can have lay members of the clergy who have no character class. They are treated as 1st-level fighters unless otherwise specified.
CLERGY’S ALIGN.: Members of any class who belong to the clergy must be one of these alignments (within the constraints of the alignments to which the class is restricted). The allowed alignments of specialty priests are specifically noted in that section.
TURN UNDEAD: Abbreviations for all character classes of clergy and
whether they can turn undead
CMND. UNDEAD: Abbreviations for all character classes of clergy and whether they can command undead Bonus proficiencies or other game-relevant material applicable to all priestly members of the religion’s clergy are presented in this introductory paragraph.
Following paragraphs in this overview of the church discuss the regard of the public for the religion, typical details of temple or shrine construction, names different forms of the clergy call themselves by, distribution breakdowns of kinds of character classes within the clergy, church hierarchy, and titles of different ranks of clergy.
Further information on the church is broken down into sub-headings:
Dogma: Here are detailed the beliefs, tenets, doctrines and sayings of the religion.
Day-to-Day Activities: Typical activities of the church are described here. This entry covers what the church does, as opposed to what the religion believes. This entry also discusses what believers and priests or me religion are ex-pected to tithe or donate to the church or sacrifice to the deity.
Important Ceremonies/Holy Days: Important ceremonies and major holy days in the religion are discussed in this entry. Major Centers of Worship: This entry describes major centers of the deity’s worship. These may be the largest temples of the god, those with the most far-reaching influence in the religion, or those of historical importance in the religion.
Affiliated Orders: Knightly and military orders affiliated with the church are briefly discussed in this entry. They are named and the character classes their members belong to are mentioned. The functions and duties of these orders and other information pertaining to their relationship to the church are also touched on briefly.
Priestly Vestments: This entry describes the ceremonial vestments of priests of the deity and any differences between the vestments of different kinds of priests who serve the deity. Differences in garb according to rank or in different regions are also discussed here. Typical coloration or construction materials of symbols and holy symbols of the god are mentioned here if they are important.
Adventuring Garb: This entry describes the typical priest’s adventuring garb. It also discusses any differences between the adventuring garb of different kinds of priests who serve the deity.
Specialty Priests (Class name, if applicable)
The experience progression table for all priest types is found in Faiths & Avatars. An optional specialty priest experience point progression table is found in Appendix 1: Demihuman Priests.
REQUIREMENTS: Minimum ability requirements for this type of specialty
priest
PRIME REQ.: Abilities that must have a score of 16 or above for the
character to receive a 10% experience point bonus
ALIGNMENT: Specialty priests must he the same alignment as their god, unless specifically noted differently here.
MAJOR SPHERES: Spheres of priest spells to which specialty priests have
major access
MINOR SPHERES: Spheres of priest spells to which specialty priests have
minor access
MAGICAL ITEMS: The kinds of magical items specialty priests are allowed
to use
REQ. PROFS: Nonweapon or weapon proficiencies specialty priests must
purchase with proficiency slots at 1st level
BONUS PROFS: Nonweapon or weapon proficiencies specialty priests receive without spending a proficiency slot. Specialty priests may spend additional slots as normal to improve their skills.
· The first bullet point in this section notes the races and/or subraces and genders allowed as specialty priests by the power.
· The second bullet point notes multiclass combinations that a specialty priest of this power is allowed to be part of and which kits, if any, she or he may apply to his or her class or classes.
· This section contains a list of special powers granted to specialty priests of this deity. Clerics do not receive these abilities unless that fact is specially noted. (Usually changes to other priest classes of a deity are noted earlier in the first text paragraph of the description of the church.)
· Spell-like abilities are often expressed in terms of the spells they are similar to. When specialty priests receive such an ability, it is usable in addition to their normal spell complements. It should not be read as a restriction on the number of times that the priest can cast the comparable spell per day or per tenday. Such spell-like abilities require no verbal, somatic, or material components to use, and function as innate abilities in combat (discussed in the Innate Abilities subsection of the Special Attacks section of the Combat chapter of the DUNGEON MASTER Guide). They have an initiative modifier of +3 no matter what the casting time of the spell they resemble is.
Here are listed the religion-specific spells of a faith. Unless the Dungeon Master makes an exception or an exception is noted, only priests of the religion where the spell is listed are allowed to cast these spells. Priests, rangers, and paladins of a particular religion can always cast these religion-specific spells, even if the spells do not fall within their normally allowed spheres of access. When used as a material component, holy symbols are never consumed in the casting of a spell. An asterisk (*) indicates a cooperative magic spell.
Group 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Priest 20 20 20 18 18 18 16 16 16 14 14 14 12 12 12 10 10 10 8 8
Rogue 20 20 19 19 18 18 17 17 16 16 15 15 14 14 13 13 12 12 11 11
Warrior 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Wizard 20 20 20 19 19 19 18 18 18 17 17 17 16 16 16 15 15 15 14 14
Group 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
Priest 8 6 6 6 4 4 4 2 2 2 0 0 0 -2 -2 -2 -4 -4 -4 -6
Rogue 10 10 9 9 8 8 7 7 6 6 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1
Warrior 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 -7 -8 -9-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10
Wizard 14 13 13 13 12 12 12 11 11 11 10 10 10 9 9 9 8 8 8 7
Extended Priest, Wizard, Bard Spell Progression
Spell Levels Spell Levels Spell Levels
Lev. 1 2 3 4 5 6* 7** Lev. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Lev. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1 1 - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -
2 2 - - - - - - 2 2 - - - - - - - - 2 1 - - - - - -
3 2 1 - - - - - 3 2 1 - - - - - - - 3 2 - - - - - -
4 3 2 - - - - - 4 3 2 - - - - - - - 4 2 1 - - - - -
5 3 3 1 - - - - 5 4 2 1 - - - - - - 5 3 1 - - - - -
6 3 3 2 - - - - 6 4 2 2 - - - - - - 6 3 2 - - - - -
7 3 3 2 1 - - - 7 4 3 2 1 - - - - - 7 3 2 1 - - - -
8 3 3 3 2-- - - 8 4 3 3 2 - - - - - 8 3 3 1 - - - -
9 4 4 3 2 1 - - 9 4 3 3 2 1 - - - - 9 3 3 2 - - - -
10 4 4 3 3 2 - - 10 4 4 3 2 2 - - - - 10 3 3 2 1 - - -
11 5 4 4 3 2 1 - 11 4 4 4 3 3 - - - - 11 3 3 3 1 - - -
12 6 5 5 3 2 2 - 12 4 4 4 4 4 1 - - - 12 3 3 3 2 - - -
13 6 6 6 4 2 2 - 13 5 5 5 4 4 2 - - - 13 3 3 3 2 1 - -
14 6 6 6 5 3 2 1 14 5 5 5 4 4 2 1 - - 14 3 3 3 3 1 - -
15 6 6 6 6 4 2 1 15 5 5 5 5 5 2 1 - - 15 3 3 3 3 2 - -
16 7 7 7 6 4 3 1 16 5 5 5 5 5 3 2 1 - 16 4 3 3 3 2 1 -
17 7 7 7 7 5 3 2 17 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 2 - 17 4 4 3 3 3 1 -
18 8 8 8 8 6 4 2 18 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 2 1 18 4 4 4 3 3 2 -
19 9 9 8 8 6 4 2 19 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 3 1 19 4 4 4 4 3 2 -
20 9 9 9 8 7 5 2 20 5 5 5 5 5 4 3 3 2 20 4 4 4 4 4 3 -
21 9 9 9 9 8 6 2 21 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 4 2 21 5 4 4 4 4 3 -
22 9 9 9 9 9 6 3 22 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 3 22 5 5 4 4 4 3 -
23 9 9 9 9 9 7 3 23 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 23 5 5 5 4 4 4 -
24 9 9 9 9 9 8 3 24 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 24 5 5 5 5 4 4 -
25 9 9 9 9 9 8 4 25 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 25 5 5 5 5 4 4 1
26 9 9 9 9 9 9 4 26 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 5 26 5 5 5 5 5 4 1
27 9 9 9 9 9 9 5 27 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 27 5 5 5 5 5 5 1
28 9 9 9 9 9 9 6 28 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 28 6 5 5 5 5 5 1
29 9 9 9 9 9 9 7 29 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 6 6 29 6 6 5 5 5 5 1
30 9 9 9 9 9 9 8 30 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 30 6 6 6 5 5 5 1
31 1010 9 9 9 9 8 31 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 31 6 6 6 5 5 5 2
32 101010 9 9 9 8 32 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 32 6 6 6 6 5 5 2
33 10101010 9 9 9 33 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 33 6 6 6 6 6 5 2
34 11111010 9 9 9 34 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 7 7 34 6 6 6 6 6 6 2
35 111110101010 9 35 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 35 6 6 6 6 6 6 2
36 111111111010 10 36 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 36 7 6 6 6 6 6 2
37 121211111010 10 37 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 37 7 7 6 6 6 6 2
38 121211111111 10 38 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 38 7 7 6 6 6 6 3
39 121212121111 11 39 9 9 9 9 9 8 8 8 8 39 7 7 7 6 6 6 3
40 131313121211 11 40 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 8 8 40 7 7 7 7 6 6 3
· Usable only by priests with 17 or greater Wisdom.
The Ssri-Tel’Quessir of Abeir-Toril, the dark elven subrace of the Fair Folk, have long been divorced from the Seldarine, the traditional elven pantheon of Arvandor. The drow, as they are now known, venerate a wide range of dark powers, the most prominent of which are presented hereafter. The deities of the drow are a pantheon in name only, united only by the common heritage of their worshipers, longignored familial ties among four of them, and occasional, short-lived alliances forged only as a matter of convenience.
By Corellon Larethian’s decree, the destiny of the dark elves was placed long ago in the hands of his consort, Araushnee the Weaver. At that time she was a minor, but secretly ambitious, elven power and member of the Seldarine. After a series of betrayals of her fellow gods, Araushnee was banished to the Abyss by Corellon for plotting against her lover and for secretly assembling a host of evil deities-the anti-Seldarine-to assault Arvandor, home of the Seldarine, in a bid to replace Corellon as Coronal of Arvandor. After her banishment, Araushnee assumed the name Lolth, Demon Queen of Spiders. She set about establishing her new realm in the Abyss and driving off or subjugating rivals like Ghaunadaur, Kiaransalee, and Zanassu. Araushnee was not the only elven power to be cast out of Arvandor and the Seldarine, however, for her webs ensnared her two children as well. When his mother’s perfidy was exposed, Vhaeraun, son of Araushnee and Corellon, was banished to Abeir-Toril for his complicity in the Weaver’s plots to replace Corellon as head of the Seldarine. Vhaeraun’s sister, Eilistraee the Dark Maiden, agreed to exile as well, although she was only an unwitting participant in her mother’s plots. Lolth dominates all the other powers and brooks (or at least admits) no challenge to her ultimate authority. Only Kiaransalee and Selvetarm acknowledge the Spider Queen as head of the pantheon, an unavoidable acknowledgment of Lolth’s great power. Eilistraee, Vhaeraun, and Ghaunadaur remain in- dependent of the Spider Queen’s control, but none of them is strong enough to challenge her directly, and their mutual enmity precludes any possibility of alliance against her. Kiaransalee only recently fought free of Lolth’s shadow, but she has little influence (and few worshipers) in the Realms. Selvetarm is still firmly enmeshed in his grandmother’s webs, despite the efforts of his followers to break away from the Spider Queen s cult. Eilistraee and Vhaeraun are brother and sister, children of Araushnee (Lolth) and Corellon Larethian. Selvetarm is the offspring of an ill-fated tryst between Vhaeraun and Zandilar the Dancer (Sharess), a goddess of the Yuir elves. Ghaunadaur is a primordial evil who joined the other members of the anti-Seldarine in the assault on Arvandor. Kiaransalee is a once-mortal dark elf of another world who achieved divinity and was named drow before the fall of Araushnee.
With the notable exception of Eilistraee, the dark powers of the drow pantheon are intimately involved in the lives of their followers, demanding absolute obedience and exclusive veneration in exchange for great power. Aside from the Dark Maiden, the gods of the drow pantheon care nothing for the fate of their followers except as it advances their own personal power. All but one dwell in the Abyss or other dark realms, embodying the banishment of the drow from the Lands of Light. Eilistraee seeks to redeem the fallen dark elves and lead them back to the great forests of the surface world that their ancestors forsook many millennia ago. However, the Dark Maiden is quite constrained in her actions by the power of Lolth and the other gods of the pantheon, and she acknowledges the need for individual drow to find their own path to redemption that heavy-handed interference on her part would preclude.
The origin of the drow is firmly enshrined in the minds of all the elven subraces whose ancestors fought in the great Crown Wars that split the Fair Folk. While the other elven subraces recall with horror the depraved actions of the Ilythiiri, as the dominant tribe of dark elves was known, that led to the Descent, the drow weave their own lies regarding the perfidy of the Seldarine and the other elven races whom they hold turned on the Ssri-Tel’Quessir and unjustly banished them to the Underdark. Only those drow who have answered the redemptive call of the Dark Maiden recall and preserve the elven myths regarding the ancestry of the Fair Folk, for such tales are of little interest to those who seethe in anger at the Creator they now scorn, Corellon.
Drow culture is distinguished by a curious mixture of monotheism and polytheism uncharacteristic of most human and demihuman cultures of the Realms. Most drow cities-such as Guallidurth, Menzoberranzan, and Ched Nasad-are ruled in the name of Lolth by priests of the Spider Queen and even the mention, let alone the worship, of other gods is forbidden. A few drow cities-such as Llurth Dreier (Ghaunadaur) and V’elddrinnsshar (Kiaransalee)-are ruled by the clergy of the other drow powers in similar fashion, but they too forbid the worship or mention of all other gods. The few drow cities that exhibit the open worship of two or more deities-such as beleaguered Eryndlyn, located beneath the High Moor, or Golothaer, from whence the founders of Menzoberranzan and Ched Nasad fled-are riven by strife and are usually destroyed by civil war within a generation of such a split appearing. Nevertheless, most of the drow gods have a few secretive worshipers in every drow enclave, as such devotions afford dissidents the opportunity for additional weapons in their endless quest for increasing personal station. Aside from the faithful of Eilistraee, who venerate the Dark Maiden in a fashion resembling the veneration of the Seldarine by elves of other races, most drow venerate one (or in some cases two) deities out of fear, respect, and a desire for additional power of their own, not out of any sense of true piety.
Over 10,000 years ago, the Crown Wars exposed the depths to which most dark elves had fallen in the service of fell powers such as Vhaeraun, Ghaunadaur, and Lolth, despite the mitigating efforts of the good-hearted Eilistraee. As a result, by means never discussed by the Fair Folk, the dark elves were forever banished to the deep tunnels beneath Faerun by the Seldarine and the allied elven nations and thereafter named drow (originally dhaeraow, an elvish term meaning face of shadow, heart of night, traitor), circa-10,000 DR.
The first drow civilizations arose in the Underdark of southern Faerun circa -9,600 DR. The first great kingdom of the drow was Telantiwar, with its capitol in the great cavern of Bhaerynden, the conquered heart of the first great kingdom of the Stout Folk seized by the drow in -9,000 DR. The drow fought among themselves, noble against noble, priest against priest, for rule of their new realm. This all-out war ended amid great magical explosions that brought down the roof of Bhaerynden. The ceiling collapsed entirely, burying many drow and the shattered dwarven cities that they had seized. The cavern, now open to the sky, became known as the Great Rift, and the chasm and the surrounding caverns were later resettled by the ancestors of the gold dwarves to form the Deep Realm. In a great diaspora known as the Scattering, the surviving drow nobles and priests gathered what people, slaves, and equipment they could seize and fled into the Underdark in search of places to dwell. Since that time, countless cities and smaller settlements have risen and fallen, and the drow are now found throughout the deep tunnels beneath all of Faerun and even farther afield. The web of chaos and cruelty that enmeshes the drow is embodied in the constant strife between the gods they venerate. Likewise, the hatred they hold for all other races, particularly the Fair Folk of the surface world, is played out as well in the never-ending conflict between the Seldarine and those they banished long ago. Only a small fraction have returned to the surface lands of their forefathers, typically by way of the welcoming hand of Eilistraee.
General Drow Priest Abilities: The general abilities and restrictions of drow priests, aside from the specific changes noted later in this section for each drow faith, are summarized in the discussion of drow priests in “Appendix 1: Demihuman Priests.”
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