Ask Arkanis

[DM Arkanis]

Hi there! So here's my question:

Do the Grand Dukes of Baldur's Gate currently own or lay claim to the island off the coast of Ulgoth's Beard (in spite of it being de facto owned by the Sahuagin)?

To my knowledge the Dukes don't claim anything on that island. I can stand to be corrected if anyone knows some server lore on this that I don't...? Ark

[DM Arkanis]

in the FR lore is the socerer more powerfull then the wizard or in the Neverwinter nigh t2?

Hard one to answer because it depends on how you define "powerful." Certainly there are benefits and drawbacks to each form of magic but it would also come down to build (RP potentially vs power builds) and how the real life player chooses to play the toon. I have seen powerful examples of both builds - I'll let the players chime in here to give examples.

[Xndar]

Lore-wise, most of the powerful and famous mages in the Realms are wizards. Halaster, Elminster, Sammaster, Khelben Blackstaff, Alustriel Silverhand, Gromph Baenre, Ssaz Tam, Larloch etc. The only well-known sorcerer I can think of is the Simbul, and even she has some wizard levels.

NWN2 Mechanics-wise, sorcerers can pretty easily stand toe-to-toe with their wizardly rivals. In the area of meta-magic, they can easily surpass them, as a sorcerer has instant access to any of his or her spells with whatever meta-magic they want to apply to them at any given time, as opposed to wizards, who have to prepare their spell specifically with meta-magic in mind.

Downside? A combat-oriented sorcerer is going to miss out on a lot of neat rp spells that can come in handy during a DM event or in the course of roleplay (trace teleport, detect magic/poison, dimensional anchor etc).

[Deathgrowl]

Player driven events/ideas/plans/plots/schemes may indeed deviate from lore but it doesn't mean that they are necessarily banned. In the case of Cowled Wizards, Amn may have outlawed them but it doesn't mean they know anything about them being in/around their protectorate of Beregost. "Found out" I believe is the key, and server lore is server lore and we move with it in ebbs and flows as it happens. Ark

Agreed. My point was that they do not in canon lore serve the government of Amn. They are not approved of the council of six and thus not an actual policing force.

[Lockonnow]

in the early days of Forgottn realms novels was there only Few sorercer so the yare rare to so it could be that they are the powerfull and they have high charisma so pppppeople will follow them more then a wizard but they more aggressiv couse the lack of intelligence wizard need to make up lies to gte pepople to follow them

[Xanfyrst]

Lore wise, and not mechanically-wise, I'd say the wizard comes out on top as they have the potential to learn pretty much any spell in existence, including those insane Netherese spells that are rumoured to exist out there.

Also why most of the most powerful casters in the FR lore are wizards (Elminster, Blackstaff, Larloch, Telamont Tanthul, Halaster etc)

[Rasael]

In Faerun lore wizards are considered the more powerful kind of mage. This is because the most powerful mages are wizards. Take for example Elminster and Larloch, which our character might have heard whispers or rumours of. Powerful sorcerers also exist but not of that calibre. To my best knowledge.

[Nomster]

Hey Arkanis!

Is Fzoul Chembryl a Chosen of Bane at this timeline?

The Zhentarim have seen quite a bit of derivation from the lore (Manshoon and Semmemon are out of the picture). Fzoul Chembryl is the leader of the Zhentarim where we stand now and the High Priest of Bane... but is he the Chosen as well?

I found references to him being Chosen but not when it occurred.

[Valkyrie]

Are warlocks accepted members of society in BG cities now? Before they had been distrusted and feared, but now everyone seems open about it. Has the lore and NPC reaction to it changed in the past year, sir?

[Marigold]

Ok a couple of Game of Thrones questions

Do you think Jon Snow is Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark's child?

She made her brother give a promise, the content of which remains unknown, as Eddard apparently never shared Lyanna's secret with anyone.

Is it possible she died in childbirth and for fear what was being done to the other Targaryen children made him keep it a secret?

Also I am thinking R'hllor is perhaps the evil one and the white walkers are perhaps some force sent to purge the world of it's evils.

[DM Arkanis]

Hey Arkanis!

Is Fzoul Chembryl a Chosen of Bane at this timeline?

The Zhentarim have seen quite a bit of derivation from the lore (Manshoon and Semmemon are out of the picture). Fzoul Chembryl is the leader of the Zhentarim where we stand now and the High Priest of Bane... but is he the Chosen as well?

I found references to him being Chosen but not when it occurred.

Off the top of my head Fzoul doesn't become chosen for a few years from our present server time - I need to dig into some books and get back to you on this one.

[DM Arkanis]

Are warlocks accepted members of society in BG cities now? Before they had been distrusted and feared, but now everyone seems open about it. Has the lore and NPC reaction to it changed in the past year, sir?

To the best of my knowledge nothing has changed.

[Deathgrowl]

In Faerun lore wizards are considered the more powerful kind of mage. This is because the most powerful mages are wizards. Take for example Elminster and Larloch, which our character might have heard whispers or rumours of. Powerful sorcerers also exist but not of that calibre. To my best knowledge.

There is the Simbul, Alassra Silverhand. Chosen of Mystra.

And then there's Dyrr, the lichdrow in Menzoberranzan.

But yeah, there's very few sorcerers. I think it has to do with the nature of their magic. Most sorcerers, by lore, have no idea where their magic comes from or even understand it. After all, they don't need to understand their magic to use it, as the wizards do. Many tend to become reckless (and with magic, that means an early grave), whereas wizards study more and practice discipline.

[Xanfyrst]

Hey Arkanis!

Is Fzoul Chembryl a Chosen of Bane at this timeline?

The Zhentarim have seen quite a bit of derivation from the lore (Manshoon and Semmemon are out of the picture). Fzoul Chembryl is the leader of the Zhentarim where we stand now and the High Priest of Bane... but is he the Chosen as well?

I found references to him being Chosen but not when it occurred.

Off the top of my head Fzoul doesn't become chosen for a few years from our present server time - I need to dig into some books and get back to you on this one.

He's already Chosen in our timeline. That's what has been told to me 3 years ago when I joined the Zhentarim.

Your best bet is to ask Void. He's responsible for the derivation from lore regarding the Zhentarim.

[mireigi]

Since the current limeline is pre-ToT, the deities are not yet dependant on their followers to gain power and as such very few care about their followers at all. A few of the goodly deities care more than others, but still nowhere near to the same extent as post-ToT.

What is the relationship between the various faithful clergies and their respective deities in regards to the afterlife, when the deities have no incentive yet to reward their followers in their afterlife for faithful worship and service?

Furthermore, would the clergy embrace death during service and duty with a smile, as they will be taken to their afterlife as a reward, or is this line of thinking not present pre-ToT?

In other words:
Does the clergy of the various faiths, pre-ToT, expect to be rewarded in death by being granted passage to their afterlife to serve eternally by their deity's side?