Lore Assistance

[Maecius]

Is there anywhere I can find specific prophecies of Alaundo? Specifically about the Time of Troubles and/or Mystra's deaths (both Time of Troubles and The Year of Blue Fire)?

I used to quote Alaundo's prophecies on my Candlekeep character all the time. The ones from the BG video game are:

When shadows descend upon the lands, our divine lords will walk alongside us as equals.

The Lord of Murder shall perish, but in his doom he shall spawn a score of mortal progeny. Chaos will be sown from their passage.

In the Year of the Turrets, a great host will come from the east like a plague of locusts.

When conflict sweeps across the Dales, the great lizards of the north shall descend with fire and fury.

The worm shall wander the earth, and such a pestilence will follow in his wake that all who know of his passing shall be struck down by the plague.

There is also this article on the prophecies, over at the Candlekeep website: http://www.candlekeep.com/library/articles/alaundo.htm

Unfortunately, I've not been able to find a whole lot more on them. And believe me, I've looked.

[Ol' Kel]

*puts on his prophecy gloves*

Alright, here we go:

Alaundo's Prophecy pertaining to the Lord of Murder - this stuff is written down and should be in Candlekeep's library:

"The spawn of the Lord of Murder are fated to come into their inheritance through bloodshed and misery. It is the hope of their father that only one shall remain alive to inherit his legacy. I foresee that the children of Bhaal shall kill each other in a bloody massacre."

"During the days of the Avatars, the Lord of Murder will spawn a score of mortal progeny. These offspring will be aligned good and evil, but chaos will flow through them all. When the Beast's bastard children come of age, they will bring havoc to the lands of the Sword Coast. One of these children must rise above the rest and claim their father's legacy. This inheritor will shape the history of the Sword Coast for centuries to come......"

Oh and also, there's this - from Alaundo's Prophecy on The Death of Mystra:

"Mystra is troubled but can not say why. Shar hates Mystra and gives the assassin Cyric a black cloak. The assassin steals upon the White Queen. She can't see him gliding through the shadows. The sword screams. The White Queen falls. The tree burns and thrashes in agony. Branches break. Branches twist and grow together....the Weave falls into shadow."



I'll post some more when I've had some shut eye.

[Deathgrowl]

About warlock pacts: Is it possible to make a pact with a powerful entity that isn't a fiend or fey? Say Slaad or Djinn, for instance?

[Hoihe]

Does Aluando have anything regarding Bahamut?

[Catam]

So often I've seen information regarding classes, races, lore and just about anything else related to the Forgotten Realms Campaign setting shared with the best intent from the FR Wiki site. The obvious issue has been encountered and discussed quite frequently;

"Is that 1e, 2e, 3.x or 4e?"

An important thing anyone using a wiki and wanting to understand what edition is being referenced should do, of course, is look at the bottom of the Wiki Page for the references. The Sourcebooks listed will help you determine what edition is being used. It has been confirmed by by the staff numerous times that 3.5 is the latest edition we use and 4e is not relevant to our server lore, classes, races, etc. As far as lore is concerned, even 3.0 and 3.5 do not always apply. NWN1 and NWN2 are based on 3.X so it is mostly relative to mechanics of classes, feats and skills.

That being said, the most important thing to remember is (and is found at the top of the main page of the FR wiki) that the FR wiki is:

A wiki guide for the Forgotten Realms, a Core D&D setting from the Wizards of the Coast, that anyone can edit

You might be wondering, "So.... what..?" So, the articles found within any wiki are user posted and can be updated by anyone. The point is that the information shared within a wiki, even with the proper references cited, might not be accurate! I know! Right?! How can anyone put anything on the internet that isn't true?!?!?!

I'm not saying don't use wikis because they can be a useful guide to information. If you use them to check for resources used to create the wiki article, you can then go to that source. The Sourcebooks for D&D and Forgotten Realms are fairly accessible if you know where to look. I have a good co9llection of pdfs that I am also willing to share with the community. For now, here is a part of that collection of what you might need in one easy link!

Click it and now!

It is not a small file and may take some time to download but it has over 40 pdfs. I hope you enjoy the knowledge within.

Contents list:
Summaries of Classes, Dungeon's Master Guide, Faiths and Pantheons, Book of Herbs, Complete Series, Critical Hits & Fumbles Chart, Deities and Demigods, Dragon Magic, Drow Dictionary, Drow of the Underdark, Druid Spells, Dungeon Master's Guide II, Elven Dictionary, Frostburn, Grand History of the Realms, Heroes of Battle, Heroes of Horror, Hordes of the Abyss. Libris Mortis, Magic of Faerûn, Monsters of Faerûn, Mysteries of the Drow, Player's Guide to Faerûn, Player's Handbook, Player's Handbook II, Powers of Faerûn, Races Series, Sandstorm, Tome and Blood, Tome of Magic, Underdark, Ye Old Shop.

Only the books with the D&D or the Forgotten Realms logos on the cover are official Sourcebooks. Summaries of Classes and Druid Spells are user created pdfs based on 3.5 but I have found occasional errors so please refer to the referenced sourcebook for the most accurate info. There are some guides and charts that are just fun to browse and useful if you run PnP. The Book of Herbs and Guide to Alcohol are not official but can be very useful for characters into that those topics. Feel free to ask if there is something not included in the in the list above! Enjoy!

[Hoihe]

Some players said Races of the wild is not entirely accurate. is it true?

[Enaylius]

Some players said Races of the wild is not entirely accurate. is it true?

It should be said that it is a general source book. The given information is accurate though is superceeded by Forgotten Realms campaign setting errata. The best place to look for such errata is Races of Faerun, printed March 2003.

FWIW, if someone debates information in a general source book it's best to ask them exactly where they found the information in regards to Forgotten Realms errata. Book and page.

[Simian]

About warlock pacts: Is it possible to make a pact with a powerful entity that isn't a fiend or fey? Say Slaad or Djinn, for instance?

You can: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/frcc/20070328

Though, it is bit more towards Planetouched Origin, bloodlines, and all that.

[Simian]

Tymora, Beshaba, Waukeen, Mask, Lathander, Tyr, those are the deities merchants migth follow in addition to the ones you brought up:

Shaundakul
Overview
Shaundakul is a minor lesser deity who was formerly the god of travel and exploration during Myth Drannor’s heyday. Nowadays, a handful of his clergy call themselves the windriders, and minister to traders, explorers, and adventurers who wander through the forests of Cormanthor. The windriders help the lost and befuddled, but they also painstakingly watch out for looters and those who would desecrate the ruins of Myth Drannor.

Description
The windriders wear leather armor and forest-green cloaks, and they wield long swords and short bows. Windriders never initially let on that they are Shaundakul’s clergy. They can pass for “normal” adventurers. However, under their armor, windriders all wear small wooden holy symbols of Shaundakul: a disembodied left hand with a pointingindex finger. This status is revealed only when it is clear that the NPCs either need help or need to be stopped.

Role-Playing
The windriders know that, just like Myth Drannor itself, Shaundakul is not what he used to be. Yet, they still continue in their vigilance. Most windriders have an air of sadness, which gives way to a blazing righteous anger if they discover looters and desecrators within the ruins of Myth Drannor. Windriders are fond of traveling and exploring the limits of the Elven Court woods.

Special Abilities
Windriders can turn undead. They can cast spells from the same limited spheres as the druids, but they cast them at one level above their current level. (AD&D rules, try to prefer spells that appear more or less natural)

Special Disadvantages
Windriders will not willingly leave the borders of Cormanthor. The borders of this ancient elven land are their sacred charge. Windriders also must help out anyone who specifically calls upon Shaundakul for aid.

Waukeen (Merchants’ Friend)
Granted Powers
•Specialty priests of Waukeen can command and turn undead as clerics.
•
Specialty priests of Waukeen have the appraising and gem cutting proficiencies at no cost. These can be improved normally.
•
Specialty priests of Waukeen have the ability to discern true metal from false. They cannot identify metal per se, but can determine if a supposedly gold coin is truly gold or a gold-plated lead fake, or even if it was created magically (say, by a djinn). They do this by hefting the item in the hand and thinking of what the material should be. For mixtures they will get a “partial” result for those metals which are a significant component of the alloy.

WAUKEEN (Wau-KEEN)
Liberty’s Maiden, Merchantsfriend
Goddess of Trade, Money N
Lesser Power Concordant Opposition
Symbol: A woman’s full face or profile within a circle of gold.

NOTES: A relatively recent goddess, no older in her worship than that of Tyr, but quite favorite with the merchantclass and traders, who rever her, if not in hopes of her kindness, than in hopes they will be elsewhere when be brings financial ruin upon the unwary. She is portrayed as a richly garbed blonde woman with a pair of large golden lions at her feet.

[Amaer]

From an in-universe perspective, have Volo's Guides been published yet? Amaer's latest plan to achieve fame and fortune is to start chronicling the environs of the Gate...

[Maecius]

Is there anywhere I can find specific prophecies of Alaundo? Specifically about the Time of Troubles and/or Mystra's deaths (both Time of Troubles and The Year of Blue Fire)?

I used to quote Alaundo's prophecies on my Candlekeep character all the time. The ones from the BG video game are:

When shadows descend upon the lands, our divine lords will walk alongside us as equals.

The Lord of Murder shall perish, but in his doom he shall spawn a score of mortal progeny. Chaos will be sown from their passage.

In the Year of the Turrets, a great host will come from the east like a plague of locusts.

When conflict sweeps across the Dales, the great lizards of the north shall descend with fire and fury.

The worm shall wander the earth, and such a pestilence will follow in his wake that all who know of his passing shall be struck down by the plague.

There is also this article on the prophecies, over at the Candlekeep website: http://www.candlekeep.com/library/articles/alaundo.htm

Unfortunately, I've not been able to find a whole lot more on them. And believe me, I've looked.

Just re-discovered this song:

From an in-universe perspective, have Volo's Guides been published yet? Amaer's latest plan to achieve fame and fortune is to start chronicling the environs of the Gate...

Volo's first guidebook (Volo's Guide to All Things Magical) is written in 1356. His guide to the Sword Coast is written about ten years later.

Our server is just entering the year 1349. Volothamp Geddarm is thus virtually unknown to the world at large at this time.

[Simian]

Our server is just entering the year 1349. Volothamp Geddarm is thus virtually unknown to the world at large at this time.

Yet I believe we may have had an event or two about him, and some book of his regarding elven anatomy...

[DM Setanta]

Our server is just entering the year 1349. Volothamp Geddarm is thus virtually unknown to the world at large at this time.

Yet I believe we may have had an event or two about him, and some book of his regarding elven anatomy...

Well he is still alive, just has not written his most famous book yet.

[Aeb Ankor]

Our server is just entering the year 1349. Volothamp Geddarm is thus virtually unknown to the world at large at this time.

Yet I believe we may have had an event or two about him, and some book of his regarding elven anatomy...

Well he is still alive, just has not written his most famous book yet.

Does is say when he explored the Sword Coast?

Books may be researched decades or longer before they are written and published.

Written in 1356, does not mean he researched that book the same year.

[Maecius]

Our server is just entering the year 1349. Volothamp Geddarm is thus virtually unknown to the world at large at this time.

Yet I believe we may have had an event or two about him, and some book of his regarding elven anatomy...

Well he is still alive, just has not written his most famous book yet.

Does is say when he explored the Sword Coast?

Books may be researched decades or longer before they are written and published.

Written in 1356, does not mean he researched that book the same year.

I cannot find any reference (in a cursory search of the Lore, mind you) as to when Volo was born or when he became active as a travel writer. Nearly all of his great works were published in the 1360s, which is the decade during which he gains his celebrity.

It's possible he's adventuring already, and active in the Sword Coast region. I'll leave that up to the DMs. He's just not super famous yet.

Our server timeline makes Lore a little bit tricky, I'm afraid. Which is why we have this thread. Elminster's not even retired to Shadowdale yet.