It's come to my attention that there are many people playing DDO who know almost nothing about Eberron. Moreover, many of those people don't want to shell out forty bucks for a new book that they may never use. While I can't honestly blame you for that, Eberron is a fantastic setting and so to cut yourself off from all of the amazing information that surrounds this game we play is an unfortunate occurance.
Therefore, I've decided, along with some other knowledgeable fellow players, to create a place where people who want to know more about Eberron can come to ask questions about the setting. I'm going to kick us off with a few frequently asked questions, but from there on, you can ask anything you want about the campaign setting, and I'll do my best to answer it.
To keep things pretty streamlined, and to avoid having a whole bunch of answers, or long discussions about topics, I'm going to ask that for now we leave the answering of questions to me and a few other designated people. Obviously, I have no moderating powers, so I'm going to have to rely on your own good natures to keep the thread nice and clean, so that it makes a good resource for people who genuinely want more information about Eberron. If anyone else feels like they're well versed in the setting background and wants to pitch in with answering questions, just throw me a PM and we'll talk about it. Also to this effect, if you feel the need to get into a really serious discussion about a topic that might involve a lot of back and forth, I'm going ask that you take it to another thread.
On to the questions!
Q. Who put robots in my D&D?!
A. Warforged aren't robots. They're living constructs. This means they are, for many purposes, intelligent golems. Constructed by House Cannith to serve as troops in the Last War, the true origins of the Warforged race is uncertain. Much of the populace believes them to be a creation of the House of Making, but many within the House know better. Aaren d'Cannith returned from Xen'drik with the schema that allowed House Cannith to build the Creation Forges that actually birthed the warforged.
It wasn't until the Treaty of Thronehold that Warforged were given the status of "free and living beings." For much of the Last War they were considered property, and there are many who believe that they should still be considered property. Others continue to associate the race with the ravages of the last decades of the War and fight their inclusion in society.
Q. Woah, slow down. House Cannith?
A.House Cannith is one of the twelve Dragonmarked Houses of Khorvaire. Each of the twelve Houses is made up of what amounts to an extended family, or bloodline. Select members of each house develop Dragonmarks, mystical symbols that give them limited magical powers. Each House has developed a niche industry centered around the effects of their Mark. House Cannith, who's Dragonmarked Scions bear the Mark of Making, run the Tinkers' and Fabricators' Guilds. Given that each mark is tied to a bloodline, most Dragonmarked Houses are made up of a single race. The exception to the rule is House Tharashk, whose members come from both the Human and Half-Orc races, though the reason for this is uncertain. The remaining Houses are as follows:
Dragonmarked Houses are made up of three teirs of members. Marked and Unmarked members of the familial bloodline and unrelated members of the house guilds or affiliates. Marked members hold a place of esteem within the House, but all members of the bloodline follow certain protocols. Members of the House bloodline append the house name to their own, and those with a mark preceed it with the d' prefix. So Elaydren Vown d'Cannith is a member of House Cannith who bears a Dragonmark, while Kemellik Kundarak is an unmarked member of the Kundarak bloodline.Code:Mark House Race Influence Detection Medani Half-elf Warning Guild Finding Tharashk Human Finders Guild Half-orc Handling Vadalis Human Handlers Guild Healing Jorasco Halfling Healers Guild Hospitality Ghallanda Halfling Hostelers Guild Making Cannith Human Tinkers Guild Fabricators Guild Passage Orien Human Couriers Guild Transportation Guild Scribing Sivis Gnome Notaries Guild Speakers Guild Sentinel Deneith Human Blademarks Guild Defenders Guild Shadow Phiarlan Elf Entertainer and Artisans Guild Thuranni Elf Shadow Network Storm Lyrandar Half-Elf Windwrights Guild Raincallers Guild Warding Kundarak Dwarf Banking Guild Warding Guild
Q. And what about this Last War?
A. Over a century ago, King Jarot ruled the Kingdom of Galifar on the continent of Khorvaire. His five children, Mishann, Thalin, Kaius, Wrogar and Wroann, rule what are known as the five nations, Cyre, Thrane, Karnnath, Aundair and Breland, nation-states that made up the core of the Kingdom of Galifar. Mishann being the eldest stood to inherit the Galifar Throne, but three of her brothers ans sisters refused to acknowledge her claim, and so a war for the crown broke out.
This war lasted for 102 years, until a catastrophic event of unknown origin literally destroyed the entire nation of Cyre. This event, and the day it occured, became known as the Mourning and the devastated ruins of Cyre have become the Mournland. The suddenness of this presumed attack, and the threat that it might happen again, drove the present day rulers of the five nations, along with representatives from many nations that had fought or bought their independence over the course of the century-long war, to meet at the ancient seat of Galifar, the island of Thronehold to sign a Treaty ending the war.
The Treaty of Thronehold recognized new nations, including the Talenta Plains, home to nomadic halfling tribes, Zilargo, a nation of gnomes, Q'barra, a swampy rainforest inhabited mainly by lizardfolk and some brave fronteir dwellers, the Lhazaar Principalities, a loose confederation of island nations ruled by pirate princes, the Mror Holds, home to the mountain clans of the dwarves, the Eldeen Reaches, forest wilds inhabited by some hardy farmers and a wide variety of druid sects, Darguun, the remnants of the ancient Goblinoid Empire of Dhakaan, and Valenar, a desert nation of warrior elves.
Q. Ok, I'm starting to like the sound of this. Tell me more about...
A. I'd be happy to, just tell me what you want to know about. Your questions can be as specific or as general as you want. From "Why are there two houses that bear the Mark of Shadow?" to "Tell me about who some of the bad guys are." If you want to know more about Eberron, fire away.
Q. So what is this Khorvaire you keep speaking of? I thought we were on a continent named Xen'drik.
A. (Mystic Theurge) Khorvaire is the continent where the majority of Eberron D&D games take place. It's one of Four (and a half) continents that make up the world of Eberron. It's the most similar to what most people might expect from a campaign setting. Nations, kings and queens, wizarding colleges, cults and evil masterminds of various shapes and sizes attempting to upset the status quo.
Aerenal is its closest neighbor and is home to a nation of Elves who migrated there following the fall of the ancient Giant Empire. The Elves of Aerenal preserve their revered ancestors as members of the Undying Court, a sort of undead powered by positive, rather than negative, energy. The elves worship their anscestors, and the priests of the island continent draw their spells from the combined power of the Court.
Xen'drik, the continent that DDO is set on, is the home of the aforementioned Giant Empire. Centuries ago, the Giants of Xen'drik were brilliant mages who ruled over the entire continent. They civilized the Elves, enslaving them to do many of the things the large giants couldn't. Their civilization thrived, until the residents of the Plane of Dreams, the Quori, attempted to invade Eberron. A long, drawn out war ended when the Giants accomplished some arcane feat that managed to throw Dal Quor permanently out of orbit around Eberron and turn back the invasion. Unfortunately, the same feat began the downfall of the empire, shattering the continent and eventually leading to the ruined lands we currently adventure in.
Sarlona was the cradle of Human civilization. The first humans migrated from Sarlona to Khorvaire led by Lhazaar. Centuries later, events on Dal Quor (yes, the same Dal Quor) led to a number of Quori seeking to escape the plane, through a series of strange events, these Quori managed to find their way to Eberron and bound themselves to a number of human monks living in Riedra. Always seeking to destroy the Kalashtar and restore their people, the Quori followed them, eventually managing to take total control of Riedra and take over the rest of the continent, except for Riedra which became the mountain refuge of the Kalashtar.
The last continent, Argonessen, is home to a nation of Dragons who devote themselves to interpreting the Draconic Prophecy, a series of foretellings that are written all across Eberron (and some speculate even in the Dragonmarks of the "new" races). The island of Seren lies off the northwest coast and is home to tribes of barbarians who worship the dragons. Some members of these dragons travel to the other continents, forming a group called The Chamber, to study the prophecy. Most of the dragons of Eberron call Argonessen their home, and act as one might expect from incredibly intelligent creatures. There are, however, a few "rogue" dragons who fulfill the role one might expect from their D&D dragons (a la Velah).
Q. Warforged were created by House Cannith, but after the "technology" was brought by them, did that "technology" spread? I mean, did the other houses produce their own warforged later, or it was exclusive of the Cannith House?
A. (Mystic Theurge) No, the warforged "technology" has not spread. In fact, since the Treaty of Thronehold declared warforged to be independent and living beings, the creation of warforged has been prohibited. Some people (such as Haywire) continue to attempt to create them, but all Creation Forges were in the custody of House Cannith and have all supposedly been shut down. There's some suggestion that Baron Merrix d'Cannith continues to operate a Creation Forge in secret.
The Warforged were one of House Cannith's main products for sale during the Last War, and like any mercantile enterprise protects the things that are making it money, they jealously guarded the secrets of Warforged Creation from everyone else.
Q. You said that the warforged are "intelligent golems", but that means that they all are sentient? I mean "they think therefore they are"? Or there are some that are simply intelligent on the AI method, compute and solve?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Every modern day warforged is fully sentient. They have personalities and thoughts just like everyone else, though their true nature is a matter of much debate. One of the big controversies at the Treaty of Thronehold was whether Warforged would be given the status of beings of if they would continue to be property. Agents from House Cannith were joined by Advocates from Thrane (which is currently a Theocracy run by the Church of the Silver Flame) argued against Breland in hopes of keeping them as they were. House Cannith obviously wished to retain the rights to produce and sell warforged, but Thrane argued for a different reason. Some within the Church of the Silver Flame believe that Warforged don't have souls and therefore shouldn't be considered living creatures.
Warforged psychology is an interesting topic and one that could go on for a very long time. The main gist of it is that these are beings who know they were created for war, have known nothing but war for their entire lives and now find themselves in a world where war no longer has a place. In many ways, particularly those outside of the role they played in the Last War, warforged are almost childlike. In others, such as combat, discipline and the like, they are like highly trained soldiers.
There are other warforged-adjacent creatures which have very limited intelligence. The Warforged Titan is an example of this. Titans were produced by House Cannith during the last war as well, as living seige engines. Cannith created the Titans before they refined the creation of the warforged, so you could consider the Titan a sort of prototype warforged. The Titan has very limited intelligence and you or I might consider it "AI." It has the ability to follow simple commands and make basic decisions, but it doesn't have the full thinking power of the Warforged.
There are also suggestions of ancient warforged that date back to the Giant Empires, though whether they were created by the Giants or the Quori remains unclear. (Most likely the Warforged Titan we fight in DDO would fall into this category.) As creatures that don't sleep, and therefore don't dream, they would be near-perfect weapons against the Quori, which makes a good argument for them to have been created by the Giants. However, some recent materials have suggested that the quori might have created them, and there's some logic to this as well. The warforged might have been early versions of the Empty Vessels (humans who allow Quori spirits to possess them, the result of which are called the Inspired and rule over Riedra). The early warforged might've been little more than bodies for the Quori to use while in the material plane.
Q. Warforged are made primarily of wood right? That wood is different from ordinary wood? (I mean it's Darkwood? Soarwood?) If not, would the warforged be extra-vulnerable to fire? Or worst, would they decompose, and eventually die of age?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The wood that makes up the majority of a warforged's body is Livewood. Livewood, much as its name would suggest, is a type of wood that doesn't die when cut off from its tree, but continues to function and grow like a normal plant. As such, warforged are no more vulnerable to fire than humans; a living tree has a lot of moisture in it.
The warforged are a very young race on the whole, the old warforged being less than 30 years old. It remains unclear as yet whether they'll die of "old age," though much suggests that they won't (such as the presence of warforged from the ancient Giant Empires). However once a warforged does die, the magical energies and the life force that animated its form leave and the body does decompose at approximately the same rate as a human.
Q. Could you also be pressed into answering differences between Eberron and the old PnP ways - I haven't played since ADnD 2nd edition, and several things are different - some are logical, others, not so much.
A. (Mystic Theurge) I'd rather not go into the rules/game mechanics changes between 2.0 and 3.5, but stick to using this thread to cover Eberron related information. If you want more information on the 3.5 rules however, the core rules set is offered free online from Wizards of the Coast in PDF format, but I prefer to use one of the many html versions on the web.
Q. If WF are mostly wood, why do rust monsters find them so tasty?
A. (Mystic Theurge) While much of a warforged's body is made up of wood, those portions are mostly internal. Every warforged is covered in plating of some sort (base warforged get composite plating, mithral and adamantine warforged get plating of the appropriate type). And while warforged are largely wood interally, they do have some metal parts. As such warforged take HP damage from a rust monster, just as human-types take HP damage from acid attacks (which is probably the closest analogy to the breaking down of a substance caused by the rusting effect).
Q. Well, since you suggested it, why are there two houses with the same mark?
A. (Mystic Theurge) House Phiarlan, the original House of the Shadow, was founded over three thousand years ago among the elves of Aerenal. They quickly recognized the potential in their Mark and went about creating one of the first economic dynasties the Dragonmarked Houses would become. However, much more recently, during the Last War, some unspecified secret work within the House led to a schism. Portions of the family favored one side or the other and eventually the two rival factions split into two rival houses. House Thuranni now competes directly with House Phiarlan in the areas of their expertise.
Q. Also, a bit more detail on what the marks actually do for the bearers would be nice.
A. (Mystic Theurge) There are four different "levels" of Dragonmarks: Least, Lesser, Greater and Siberys. In mechanics terms, a mark gives you a small bonus to a certain skill (usually related to the type of job your house performs) and the ability to use a spell-like ability a given number of times per day, with each higher level of mark giving a more powerful ability. With the exception of Siberys Marks, which I'll discuss in a second, the Marks are a progression. A fraction of the members of the house will develop a Least Mark, then a fraction of those with Least Marks will develop Lesser Marks, then a fraction of those with Lesser Marks will develop Greater Marks. As a scion progresses up this path, developing more powerful marks, she retains the abilities granted by her lesser marks.
Siberys Marks are extremely rare, and always develop on persons who have displayed no other mark. They provide extremely powerful abilities, usually emulating a ninth-level spell.
Most Dragonmarked scions use their abilities in the service of their House, offering them up to those who can pay the price. For example, the gnomes of House Sivis use thier mark to offer services like translation or mediation, as well as providing long-range communication. A Least Mark of Scribing gives might allow a scion to use the Comprehend Languages spell, or send a message using the Whispering Wind spell, while a Greater Mark allows the scion to perform a Sending.
House Orien uses its marks to provide courier service as well as to transport people over great distances instantaneously, if you can afford it. The Least Mark of Passage might allow you to use Expeditious Retreat, to speed up your travel, or the Mount spell-like ability to provide yourself with an ever-present steed. Meanwhile the Greater Mark of Passage allows its bearer to Teleport or use Overland Flight.
A note about these effects. Any given person can only ever perform a single one of these tasks. That is, a gnome with the mark of scribing can't choose to use Comprehend Languages one day and Whispering Wind the next. The spell-like ability is determined when your mark develops and never changes from then on.
Additionally, some of the more impressive benefits of having a Dragonmark don't actually come from the Mark itself but with the effects it has on other items, especially those crafted with Siberys Dragonshards, which tend to enhance the powers of Dragonmarks. For instance, a wheel of wind and water allows a Lyrandar captain with the Wind's Favor variety of the Mark of Storm to pilot both the Airships that the House owns and its Wind Galleons (elementally powered sailing ships), while the Speaking Stones that make up House Sivis communication network spread across Khorvaire are only usable by gnomes with the Whispering Wind type of Mark of Scribing.
Q: Are there any lost dragonmarks that are known about?
A: (Thanatos) There's just the Mark of Death, which was possessed by the elven bloodline of Vol. Aberrant Dragonmarks are not stable and tend to change their powers and pattern from one generation to the next.
The Lost Mark
The elves of Aerenal and the dragons of Argonnessen have had periodic wars for thousands of years. The elven family of Vol attempted to forge an alliance with a green dragon by producing a joint heir, who would then be the diplomat for peace between elves and dragons. That offspring was Erandis d'Vol, an elven half-dragon.
She was hidden away until maturity, but when she was introduced to other elves and dragons, both saw the mixing of the races as an abomination, and ironically they did agree to ally for one purpose; to destroy House Vol and the half-dragon. House Vol was eradicated, and Erandis was killed, but the matriarch of the family managed to use the Mark of Death to turn Erandis into a Lich (dracolich?). Her own Mark of Death does not work now that she is undead, but one of the goals she's been working on for the last 2600 years or so is to find a way to restore her own mark and rebuild House Vol.
Interesting notes:
Half-Dragons are possible in Eberron, but are destroyed without question by true dragons.
Half-Dragons seem to be an exception to the rule that a true dragonmark will only appear on members of a very specific race. For example, while a half-orc may develop the Mark of Finding, it's not going to inherit any of the other human dragonmarks because of it's orc blood. Apparently, dragon blood doesn't preclude the development of a true mark inherited from the nondragon side.
Various things in Eberron at one time numbered 13, but now number 12.
There were 13 moons, but one was destroyed.
There are 13 planes (besides Eberron itself) but one was knocked out of orbit to be permanently remote.
There were 13 true Dragonmarks, but the Mark of Death was cast down. (Destroyed)
Q: I would like to know more about elves and the Undying Court.
A. (Thanatos) The original elves were living in very primitive tribes when the Giant Empire began to capture and enslave them. They did benefit in some ways from the accelerated pace of their civilization and magical development, but ultimately they were still slaves, and the giants used them both for suicidally dangerous work and even sacrificed them to power magic rituals. One elf, Aeren, managed to pick up on the principles of the necromantic blood magic from observing his giant master. Over time, he secretly taught other elves, and they planned a revolt. They succeeded enough that they were able to flee to the subcontinent that is now known as Aerenal. Aeren actually sacrificed himself with his own blood magic, but was able to use that power to provide protection for his people, and to transform himself into the first Undying. Over time, a city was built on a manifest zone to Irian (positive energy), where more Undying were created. The Undying councilors as a collective make up the Undying Court, and are the spiritual center of the Aerenal elves. It is the highest dream of most to become Undying, even if it's just as an undying soldier to protect the City of the Dead. Some even use alchemical treatments to give themselves deathlike looks in life, including pale grey skin or skull-like tattoos over their faces.
The Valenar elves are an offshoot that believe it isn't those who effected the escape that should be venerated, but the warriors who stayed behind and died to allow the others to live. Each Valenar elf has a ancestor that she tries to emulate and honor in valorous combat. They live the life of horse nomads in the deserts of southeast Khorvaire, and in fact their horses are considered to be spiritually connected to them as well - they've even declared eternal war on House Vadalis for an attempt to steal a few of the fine Valenar steeds to use as breeding stock. Valenar prefer shortbows to long, as they may be fired from horseback, and prefer scimitars and other curved blades over longswords or rapiers.
Khorvaire elves and "Urban" elves are those that have lived in the human nations so long that they identify more with their nation than they do with their racial history, and are integrated with the cultures of those nations. House Phiarlan left Aerenal after the destruction of House Vol, because they felt it was in their best interests to distance themselves from the culture that had just turned on the other dragonmarked elves. House Thuranni is a recent offshoot of Phiarlan, so they are Khorvaire Elves as well.
The Drow may be considered elves or a seperate race. It is not known for certain if they occured naturally; some evidence suggests that they were created as a result of giants trying to perfect the elves to serve as better troops. There are different drow cultures, which MysticTheurge has covered already. They tend to view other elves as weak for fleeing their homeland instead of attempting to stand and fight the giants until one or both were destroyed.
Q. What are mind flayers doing in Eberron and how do they relate to the Quori?
A. (Mystic Theurge) They don't actually. The mind flayers, along with most other creatures of the Abberation type were created by the Daelkyr, extra-planar lords of madness who inhabit Xoriat.
At some point in the relatively-recent past (at least compared with the Giant Empires), the Daelkyr attempted to invade Eberron as well. The Daelkyr possess immense power to reshape the world around them, and many delighted their insanities by experimenting on the local populace. Chokers, for instance, were halflings before the daelkyr got their hands on them.
The Mind Flayers were some of their more powerful lieutenants during the war.
Eventually, the invasion was turned back by the Dhakaani Empire, a powerful nation of goblinoids, in coalition with the Gatekeepers, a sect of then-orcish druids who had been taught the magic needed to seal the planar gateways by the black dragon, Vvaraak. However, many of the Daelkyr, and their creations remained trapped in Khyber, sealed away through a series of spells and the power of Khyber Dragonshards, which are associated with the powers of binding.
Psionic power in Eberron generally comes from powerful emotions or untapped subconcious potential. The main places we see this is in those related to Madness and Dreams, namely the Daelkyr and their creations, and the Kalashtar and the Quori.
Q. Tell me about the Gods.
A. (Mystic Theurge) People have covered them pretty well so far, but there's something rather important to note, that no one's really brought up yet.
Gods in Eberron are much less involved than those in other settings. In fact, their actual existance is uncertain. Unlike in, say, the Forgotten Realms, where Gods pop in every now and then to chat with their followers, no one in Eberron has actually seen, or even talked to the Gods.
Spells that would normally contact your God instead put you in touch with high-level outsiders who, in theory, serve your god. A cleric of Boldrei who casts Commune doesn't actually speak to Boldrei, but rather a powerful Archon who can answer her questions.
Q. Tell me about the Religions and Guilds.
A. (Mystic Theurge) The main religions in Eberron are the worship of the Sovereign Host and the Dark Six, which often go hand in hand, the Church of the Silver Flame, the Blood of Vol, the Priests of Passage who worship the Undying Court, and the philosophy/religion followed by the Kalashtar called the Path of Light. There are also a variety of cults who worship the darkness under the world collectively called the Cults of the Dragon Below.
There are, of course, a wide variety of variations in how people worship these things, and even some other lesser known religions such as the drow worship of Vulkoor, or warforged who revere the Becoming God.
Adherents of the Sovereign Host like to enfold other religions into their own, believing that other religions are simply a different view of the same Gods. For instance, many among the churches of the Sovereign Host believe that the Silver Flame is simply a manifestation of Dol Arrah.
As for Guilds, aside from the Dragonmarked Houses, there aren't really many. The Houses have a sort of monopoly on much of the economy. There may be other, unaffiliated craftsmen, but the Houses are the only real organized economic force.
Q. Tell me about Famous People.
A. (Mystic Theurge) That's a pretty open-ended question but I'll try to name a few.
King Boranel ir'Wynarn rules Breland and was a major force for peace and advocate of the warforged at the Treaty of Thronehold.
Queen Aurala ir'Wynarn rules Aundair and though she advocates peace as well, she still longs to unite the former nation of Galifar under her rule.
King Kaius ir'Wynarn III is the current ruler of Karnnath, he regrets having forged an alliance with the Blood of Vol and seeks to regain control of his nation.
Oargev ir'Wynarn is the last remining member of the royal house of Cyre, and leads his former nation in exile from New Cyre, in Breland.
Queen Diani ir'Wynarn rules Thrane in name only, the nations is truly ruled by the Church of the Silver Flame
Jaela is the twelve-year-old Keeper of the Flame, leader of the Church of the Silver Flame. She seeks to reform the church to be more modern and accepting, but there are factions within the church, namely led by the Cardinal Krozen who wish to keep to more traditional ways.
House Cannith is currently split, since the main leaders of the House were in Cyre on the day of Mourning. Barron Merrix d'Cannith leads Cannith South based out of Sharn, while Baron Jorlana d'Cannith leads Cannith West from Fairhaven in Aundair and Baron Zorlan d'Cannith leads Cannith East from from an enclave in Korth.
House Tharashk is lead by a triumvirate of leaders, representing the old clans, Daric d'Velderan, Khundar'aasta and Maagrim d'Tharashk.
The other Barons are Baron Kwanti d'Orien, Baron Trelib d'Medani, Baron Morrikan d'Kundarak, Baron Elar d'Thuranni, Baron Yoren d'Ghallanda, Baron Breven d'Deneith, Baron Ulara d'Jorasco, Baron Esravash d'Lyrandar, Baron Elvinor Elorrenthi d'Phiarlan, Baron Lysse Lyrriman d'Sivis, and Baron Dalin d'Vadalis.
The leader of the Wardens of the Wood, a sect of druid that essentially leads the disparate farmers and fronteirsman of the Eldeen Reaches, is the Great Oak Oalian. And yes, he really is an Awakened oak tree.
The Circle of Night is made up of the up the most powerful of the Inspired and is led by the Devourer of Dreams who leads the agents of the Dreaming Dark.
The ancient lich Erandis d'Vol is the last, well not living, but active member of the House of Vol, and now leads the the religion the Blood of Vol, from behind the scenes.
The Daughters of Sora Kell are three powerful Hags who rule of the monster-nation of Droaam. Sora Katra is a green hag who acts as the voice for the trio. Sora Maenya is a annis hag who leads the sisters troops in battle. Sora Teraza is a dusk hag prophet, who dispenses cryptic advice even when dealing with her sisters.
Mordain the Fleshweaver is an outcast elven wizard. Once a member of the Twelve he was cast out for the unorthodox experiments that gave him his name.
The Lord of Blades is a mysterious warforged who believes in warforged supremacy and seeks to create a nation of living constructs in the remnants of Cyre.
The Lhesh Haruuc hopes to return the tribes of Darguun to the former glory of the Dhakaani Empire.
The Sibling Kings of Aerenal, Belaereth and Tezaera, hold temporal power over the island continent, while the Undying Court shapes the destiny of the elves, by selecting, advising and empowering the rulers.
Lathon Halpum leads one of the largest Halfling tribes in the Talenta Plains and so many of the other Laths defer to him, that he was selected to represent the Plains at the Treaty of Thronehold.
King Sebastes ir'Kesslan rules Q'barra in a fuedal system like old Galifar. The grandson of the nation's founder, Sebastes rules from Newthrone, though in many places the dispensation of justice falls to the local lord or magistrate.
One thing to note about Eberron is the setting is designed to allow the PCs to be the real heroes of the story, which means there aren't a lot of very powerful hero-types. Most of the more powerful good guys are very limited in some way, from Oalian who is a high powered druid but utterly immobile, to Jaela who is a low-level cleric except within the confines of Flamekeep where she's empowered by the Silver Flame. This leaves the PCs free to actually fulfill the role of Heroes, rather than being sent to perform (apparently menial) tasks by other more powerful (epic level) good guys.
Q. Anyways, a moon got destroyed? How'd that happen?
Q. (Mystic Theurge) There are currently twelve moons that orbit Eberron, with one additional moon being lost or destroyed.
Exactly how the thirteenth moon was destroyed is unclear, but it likely occured in one of the great cataclysms that ended an age (I think the Age of Giants, but I'll have to check).
Keith Baker, the setting's creator, wrote a free, online article about the moons, that is definitely worth a read.
One interesting thing to note, is that on Eberron, a Lycanthrope is affected by the full state of all twelve moons. Meaning there are months where she's never unaffected and others where she's only unaffected for 3-4 days. This is a large part of the reason for the Lycanthropic Puge, an inquisition led by the Church of the Silver Flame in an effort to wipe the disease of Lycanthropy off the face of Khorvaire.
Certain fanatics in the time of the purge also sought to wipe out the Shifter race, who, while seemingly descended from Lycanthropes, are incapable of passing the disease though wounds or bites and therefore pose no real threat. This resulted in some very real discord between many Shifters and the Church of the Silver Flame.
Q. Is it true that the war ended around two years or so ago?
A. (Mystic Theurge)The suggested starting date for an Eberron campaign is 998 YK. The Treaty of Thronehold was signed in 996 YK. So yes, generally the war eneded "two years ago."
That said, any DM can set their campaign in any year they'd like, and it's unclear from what I've seen in DDO exactly when our "campaign" is set. It remains likely however that we're using the suggested starting date and so the war would have ended two years ago.
Q. I'd like to know more about "shifters."
A. (Mystic Theurge) Shifters are one of the new races introduced with the Eberron Campaign Setting. Sometimes called the "Weretouched," they are the result of Lycanthrope/Human interbreeding far back in the line. Current Shifters "breed true," that is Shifters come from other shifters, not from a Lycanthrope/Human pairing. (A curious aside is that many of the half-elves in Khorvaire are this way as well, particularly the bloodlines of the half-elf Dragonmarked Houses.)
Shifters are unable to completely alter their form, the way their lycanthrope ancestors could, but each one is able to "shift." While shifted, a Shifter takes on a more animalistic appearance and is more powerful than his unshifted form. There are six main types of shifters distinguished by their "Shifter Trait." These are Beasthide, Longtooth, Cliffwalk, Razorclaw, Longstride and Wildhunt shifters. (Further Eberron supplements added additional shifter traits such as Dreamsight, Gorebrute, Swiftwing and Truedive.)
Each different trait dictates how the shifter's abilities improve while shifted, as generally described by their shifter trait. Longtooth and Razorclaw shifters gain bite and claw attacks respectively. Longstride shifters move faster. Beasthide shifters gain a thicker skin.
Even when they aren't shifted, Shifters bear some animalistic qualities. Their bodies often have a lithe nature to them, and the bearing of a large predator. They often move like animals, crouched and springing ahead or around their companions as they travel. Their faces often have animalistic undertones, large, piercing eyes and wide, flat noses. They are also, on average, hairier than humans. They don't have fur, but their body hair is thicker than a humans and grows longer.
As befits their animalistic nature, many shifters avoid highly civilized areas, preferring to dwell in the wild areas of nations such as the Eldeen Reaches. Many also continue to blame the Church of the Silver Flame for the atrocities heaped upon the shifter race during the Lycanthropic Purge by certain fanatics.
Q. What are the novels to read?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Again I'd like to focus on actual setting/background information here. But a search for Eberron Novels on Amazon reveals this.
Q. Now I'd like to know more about the Giant Empires.
A. (Mystic Theurge) There isn't a whole lot that's known about the Giant Empires except what scholars have been able to glean from the ruins left behind and the legends of the elves.
Scholars estimate the Giant Empire first arose about eighty thousand years ago, becoming one of the first true civilizations in Eberron. They arose into a world that seemed ready for the rise of civilization. According to legend, the Age of Fiends had recently ended as the fiends, rakshasas and their ilk had been destroyed, driven back or bound in Khyber by the Couatls with assistance from the Dragons, in an ages long war.
Many scholars suspect that the Giant Empire arose much as human civilization has, with various tribes being consolidated under the command of a number of warlods, then developing into nations and finally joining together to form the larger empire. Some scholars believe that the individual giant races (Hill Giants, Storm Giants, Fire Giants, et al.) existed at this time and made up the various tribes, but more the commonly accepted theory is that giants during this time were a sort of primordial giant race, and it wasn't until after the fall of the empire that this race split into the races of giants we know today.
Additionally, some scholars question whether the Giant Empire was ever actually a single empire or if, even at the peak of their civilization, the giants dwelt in a number of seperate nations or empires. Proponents of the theory that the various giant races existed during this age often favor the latter theory as well, believing that each race of giant likely had its own nation and that a number of these empires coexisted during the Age of Giants.
Two things are known for certain about the Giant Empire, they enslaved the elves and they were powerful mages. Much of the rest is speculation based on oral history, legend and what can be determined from the ruins the giants left behind.
Q. If the Sovereign Host (also referred to as The Nine) is a pantheon of nine gods and goddesses, why does the holy symbol have eight points and not nine?
A. (Mystic Theurge)The symbol is sometimes referred to as the Celestial Crown or the Octogram and its meaning is often the subject of scholarly debate.
Kol Korran, the only second generation deity not found in the Dark Six, may not be represented by the Octogram. That is, the eight points may represent the eight gods before his "birth."
Another theory suggests that the Octogram actually refers to the entire pantheon made up of both the Hose and the Dark Six. Since the Octogram is made up of two colors and has eight points, it could, in fact, refer to sixteen deities. According to this theory, the Octogram refers to the original pantheon of "the Nine, the Six and the One."
Which of course begs question, who is the One, and again there are many theories. Some scholars believe the One is one of the Progenitor Dragons, mostly likely Eberron, but perhaps Siberys as well. Others say the One refers to the pantheon as a whole, and proponents of this theory translate references to the Nine, the Six and the One as "the Nine and the Six in One."
Some believe that the One refers to a now-forgotten deity, though many scholars believe this to be a ridiculous claim. Those opposed to this their point out that the Dark Six were actively banished from the Host, but were not destroyed or forgotten. To them this makes the idea of a deity being lost from the Host nigh impossible. However, there is some evidence that the goblinoids of Dhakaan worshiped a deity whose name has since been erased from history, so perhaps these scholars are correct.
Q. Eberron is a world full of magic, therefore is implied that magic affects the normal life of the Eberron denizen (the same way technology affects us in the planet Earth). So its implied as well that there are laws or rules to control its use. So the questions are, there is a common law that regulates all magic use, or an institution that enforces it? And if yes, is magic use prohibited somehow, in a way that you need authorization to practice it?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Your question is a good one, and the answer varies from area to area.
There is no overall governing body that regulates magic all across Khorvaire, however most of the more civilized nations do have "police forces" that attempt to protect their citizens from magical dangers.
During the height of the Galifar empire the King of Galifar was advised and assisted by the Arcane Congress. It is likely that during that time the Arcane Congress also regulated the use of magic throughout much of the nation, especially the more civilized areas. And during that time they wrote the portions of the Code of Galifar justice that governed the use of magic in civilized society. Since the fall of Galifar, the remnants of the Arcane Congress survive in Aundair and answer to Queen Aurala.
Sharn has an arm of the City Watch known as the Blackened Book who are responsible for persuing magical criminals as well as dealing with any side effects of magical crimes in the city.
Sharn's laws on the use of magic are the best example we currently have of how these kinds of laws are worded. Based on the Galifar Code of Justice, Sharn's Misuse of Magic laws prohibit the use of any spell to inflict physical harm on another being (including any spell that permanently incapacitates a target such as blindness or flesh to stone), spells that incapacitate a target (such as sleep), spells that tamper with the thoughts of another (such as charm person or confusion), as well as a few other more obscure laws that protect the Dragonmarked Houses' monopolies or limit certain spells to only being used in private. The Blackened Book looks particularly harshly on careless use of Fire magic within city limits.
Additionally, the Dragonmarked Houses tend to police their own. If a member of the House is abusing magic (or really doing anything that will reflect poorly on the House), the House is quick to put a stop it. The Twelve is the arcane arm of the Houses and therefore would likely be responsible for dealing with members who misuse magic.
As for being accredited or licensed to practice magic, this isn't required in any way. There are several schools of magic throughout Khorvaire and many new mages will learn their first skills there. However, there are a number of renegade mages, such as Mordain the Fleshweaver, or simply hermit mages who might take on apprentices.
Q: Wandering around the world we see quite a few of 'critters' that normally upon sight we slaughter first then ask questions. Is there a viable reason for the co-existence of kobolds, minotaurs, vampires, etc? Especially the ones that are freely exposed within the city limits of Stormreach?
A: (Thanatos) Here's one of my favorite quotes from Races of Eberron, as spoken by the leader of the goblinoid kingdom of Darguun:
"We goblinoids are just like you humans, except our empire lasted eleven thousand years." -- Lhesh Haruuc
Goblinoids in particular usually mix freely with the other "player race" humanoids. They have a history of military might, and often work as mercenaries.
Orcs are also not the near-mindless brutes they're portrayed as in some other settings. In fact, they were some of the first druids, and in ages past they saved the world from a planar invasion from Xoriat. To this day, they guard and reinforce the wards to keep the Daelkyr trapped in the depths of Khyber and seal the connections to the plane of madness.
While it's not generally liked by it's neighbors, there's even a "nation" of mixed monster types; particularly ogres, trolls, and gnolls. This nation of Droaam is ruled by a trio of hags called the Daughters of Sora Kell.
The Blood of Vol is a popular religion in the nation of Karrnath, and some temples see undead as the embodiment of victory over death. Note that the common folk don't know that the main branch of the religion is still run by the lich, Lady Erandis d'Vol herself. As far as they are concerned, the religion is more of a philosophy that death is the ultimate evil, because a soul will go to Dolurrh and fade away into nothingness over time, and Undeath is a path to defeating that evil.
My own cleric Lillin is a priestess of the Blood, but she's from a minor sect (of my own creation, not official) that knows the truth about Erandis and avoids the lich's influence. She is trying to find a way to incorporate a balance of positive and negative necromancy - Undead and Deathless - and since Xen'drik is the origin of the giant blood magic which the elves took and developed into both the Vol and Undying religions, she's here to find out more. Is she a villain, simply because of her religion?
Stormreach has a "kobold problem" to be sure, but as you can see, individual kobolds who don't mind respecting the lives and property of other Stormreach inhabitants are allowed to live in relative peace. The Catacombs quests are an example of a situation in which you can't always trust the so-called "good" races and religions, and on the isle of Sorrowdusk, you help a mostly-agreeable tribe of ogres recover their home and drive out the Cult of the Six.
Basically, unless it's a creature that essentially has no mind (lesser undead, oozes, vermin, etc.), you can't really assume you know what it's behavior will be, because in Eberron alignments are not dictated by race, and alignment itself doesn't necessarliy dictate that something is a threat.
Even if you're a paladin or cleric that can use detect evil, the law in most places isn't going to put much stock in your claims about some cheating merchant's "aura" or excuse you for putting your sword in his gut. After all, no one can prove the existence of most gods, and divine magic may just be a manifestation of personal faith, not so different from psionics or sorcery.
It wouldn't be too far off the mark to say that Eberron has a lot of social parallels with Earth. The more civilized nations have come around to the idea that racism is a harmful thing, and that spirituality is essentially unprovable and thus left as a personal matter. Evil is most often defined relative to it's context, and human flaws can screw up even the most noble of philosophies.
Anyway, if you think Stormreach is cosmopolitan, you should see Sharn (I hope we do in DDO someday), and in fact your character probably has, since most expeditions to Xen'drik leave from there. Try to drop some of the predjudices that you're used to roleplaying in worlds like Forgotten Realms, because unless your character is from somewhere pretty remote, they've probably been exposed to and dealt peacefully with civilized "monsters" before.
Q. I see you mention the Quori often in the history of Eberron, what are/were they?
A. (Thanatos) The quori are the natives of the plane of dreams, Dal Quor. They are highly psionic, and the majority of them are evil in the current age. In spiritual form, they are capable of inhabiting and possessing the minds of most humanoids. The more common dark ones have essentially taken over the continet of Sarlona, and the populace there view it as a high honor to host one of these spirits. They believe (because they have been lied to) that the quori are wise and benevolent, but by the time one of the specially bred "Empty Vessels" has a quori in his head and becomes one of the "Inspired", he's totally brainwashed and dominated. The quori are using their subjects to build massive psionically charged monuments at various locations around their empire of Riedra, which some suspect to be a type of planar magnet or anchor. If it is, they may be able to drag Dal Quor back into it's original orbit, and allow the plane to become coterminous with Eberron once more.
Opposing them are the Kalashtar, who were actually the first quori-inhabited humans. These quori believe that it is wrong to possess their host unwillingly, so instead they have formed a symbiotic system with them where their minds have merged and share their strengths. The Kalashtar appear to be "perfected" humans, and they can interbreed with humans and half-elves. because of the way the quori spirit is inherited, the offspring will only be Kalashtar if it is the same sex as the Kalashtar parent.
Naturally, the Kalashtar are some of the world's greatest psionicists. There aren't many of them in the first place, so they are nearly all combat-trained, not "commoners". Psion (psychic mage, essentially) is their most favored class, but they have Psychic Warriors, Soulknives, and Wilders among them in significant numbers as well as various prestige classes such as the Quori Mindhunter.
They use their powers to combat the Inspired where they can, but on the continet of Sarlona they are too outnumbered to do much beyond protecting their haven, Adar. In Khorvaire and elswhere in the world, they seek out and combat members of the Dreaming Dark, hidden Inspired spies and assassins that seem to be working their way into the power structures of many powerful governments and organizations. In a very "X-Files"-ish fashion, the Kalashtar may be all that stands between Khorvaire and a shadow coup engineered by aliens of a nightmare world.
Here's a good link on the subject.
Just imagine, an expansion with Kalashtar, Psions, and maybe the other three psionic classes, with some mysery adventure where you have to discover who are the Inspired agents of the Dreaming Dark and who are innocent humans... and each time you play it, different NPCs are part of the conspiracy.
(Mystic Theurge) One thing I'd like to add is that the interpretation of Quori as this terrible force for evil is certainly debatable. The Quori and the Kalashtar are in direct opposition because the Kalashtar seek the Turning of the Age and the Quori hope to avoid it at all costs.
There are shadows of the Jedi/Empire conflict. Much of what the "bad guys" did might be considered good. They bring a sense of order and stability, but at what cost.
I think it's difficult to argue that the Riedrans have been duped into doing something that's not good for them. They may have been manipulated into handing power over to a force that doesn't really care for them beyond their use as tools, but that's a trap that's all to easy to fall into.
Q. Who runs or is in control of Stormreach?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Stormreach is very much a fronteir town, so the question of who is in control of it, if anyone, is a little bit tricky. Stormreach was originally built as a pirate haven, and existed as such for quite some time. Finally, the Dragonmarked Houses petitioned the King of Galifar to put an end to the root the pirates out of Stormreach in 800 YK. Two years later, through a combination of diplomacy and naval action, the feat was accomplished. Sort of. The city was then given over to the control of five hereditary nobles known as the Storm Lords, the first of whom were promoted from the ranks of the pirate captains.
The present day Harbor Lord oversees the docks, trade and comings and goings, while the four Coin Lords oversee the maintenance of the city, as well as the city guard. However, to say that they control the city is something of a misstatement. To say anyone controls the city is really untrue. Stormreach close to a lawless city and the analogy to a fronteir town is most applicable. Consider the typical Wild West town. A sheriff is technically in command, but his actual control extends about ten feet away from his person.
The other factions who wield some significant influence in Stormreach are the Houses. Stormreach is very much a trade town, and as befits their station as Barons of Industry, the Dragonmarked Barons have some considerable power in the city. While all of the houses have agents in the city, and many have enclaves, House Lyrandar, House Kundarak, House Deneith and House Tharashk have deep roots in the city and the Storm Lords often go out of their way to accomodate those Houses.
Q. Did the elves and dragons go to war? Could you tell us a little of the battle?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The Elves and the Dragons have clashed on a number of occasions. The first would be at the end of the Giant/Quori war. As the Giant Empires spiraled out of control following the cataclysm the threw Dal Quor out of orbit, it became ever more clear that the Giant Warlocks would turn to the same magic again in an attempt to restore their empire to its former glory. However, the Dragons, ever watchful of the Prophecy, forsee the terrible result and attack the now-weakened Xen'drik. Though this war is not entirely one-sided, the Dragons clearly have the upper hand and in the end the Giant civilization is shattered. Those Elves who still remained slaves to the Giants at the time would certainly have battled the Dragons alongside their masters.
Shortly after the Undying Court was formed in Aerenal (relatively speaking), the elf-dragon wars began. The first of the battles between the new Elven nation and the Dragons occured almost 26 thousand years ago and would kick off a centuries-long period of alternating peace and war. Long periods of peaceful coexistance would be shattered by sudden devastating battles. Not much is known about these battles, though it is commonly believed that they have stopped only because the Undying Court has amassed enough power to truly challenge the Dragons, creating a precarious balance of power.
Q. Aeren actually sacrificed himself with his own blood magic, but was able to use that power to provide protection for his people, and to transform himself into the first Undying. Could you maybe please go into a lil more details? Is Aeren still around?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The legends of the birth of the Aereni nation are many. One goes as you describe. An Elven apprentice by the name of Aeren Kriaddal served a Giant Warlock intent on unlocking the secret power of blood sacrifice. Over time Aeren came to realize that the true potential lay in a willing sacrifice and so banded together with 100 other conspirators to create an opportunity that would allow the Elven people to escape their captivity.
He and his conspirators, on a predetermined day, approached their Giant masters, uttered the final words of a ritual that took their lives and brought destruction down on the heads of the Giants in a cataclysmic first strike. The Elves, led by agents of Aeren and the conspirators, fled to the shore where they found a journal describing what Aeren had done as well as the process to create the Undying. This legend claims that Aeren himself became the first of the deathless and predecessor to what would become the Undying Court.
There are flaws with this legend however. Much of what makes the magic of the Priests of Transition possible is the manifest zone to Irian on present day Aerenal. If this special connection to the plane of positive energy is needed to create an Undying, how then would Aeren have become one on Xen'drik? Proponents of this legend point out that there were other magical forces involved and this might have allowed for Aeren's conversion to an Undying despite the lack of the manifest zone.
Another legend claims the Elves and the Giants had been at war for sometime, as the Elven uprisings sprang up amidst the Giant/Quori war. In this legend, Aeren is an elven visionary who forsees the cataclysmic end to the Quori/Giant/Elven war and convinced a number of Elves to flee the collapsing empire and seek out a new home. As dragonfire shattered the continent of Xen'drik, these Elves landed on the island nation that would become Aerenal. Aeren, however, is said to have died of a wasting disease over the course of the long sea voyage, and never saw the new nation. The Elves who would become the Aereni buried their prophet in the soil of this new land and named it "Aeren's Rest."
The mere fact that legends are unsure of whether Aeren was male or female, seem to suggest that, even if Aeren was one of the first deathless, he or she is no longer among even the Undying.
Q. Are the Undying undead? If so what types?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The Undying are not undead, but rather deathless, a form of creature quite similar to undead. However, where undead creatures are animated and sustained by negative energy, the deathless have the same relationship with positive energy.
Q. The Twelve united and fought a war/crusade against what are called Aberrent Dragonmarks, some of which included intermarried members of the Twelve Houses. Sounds interesting. Can you tell us more?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The War of the Mark, as this crusade is commonly known, occured a relatively-recent sixteen hundred years ago. The body of arcane mages known as the Twelve, wasn't actually created until the end of the War of the Mark. Hadran d'Cannith suggested, during talks to end the war, that the houses work together to create a place where magic could be studied cooperatively, with a focus on dragonmarks and their application in the world.
As for the for the War of the Mark itself, it was mainly a crusade to eradicate Abberant marks, though whether the impetus was the Houses' desire to consolidate power to themselves or if they truly believed those with Aberrant marks to be evil, none know for certain. In the third year of the war, Halas ir'Tarkanan and a woman known only as the Lady of Plagues took control of the city of Sharn and transformed it into a haven for those seeking to escape the Houses' persecution. History shows that the powers of Aberrant marks were once far greater than those seen today, and few displayed more power than Tarkanan and his Lady. However, in the end, those with Aberrant marks and their allies simply didn't have the numbers to withstand the Houses' assault, and it soon became clear that Sharn would fall to the forces of the Pure Marks. Unwilling to accept defeat, Tarkanan and the Lady of Plagues called on the full force of their marks and unleashed forces that would devastate Sharn. Earthquakes rocked the city, causes portions of it to collapse and rivers of lava to flow up from far below the city. Those who died in these catastophes were the lucky ones, however, as vermin and disease ravaged the rest of the city.
In the end, the Dragonmarked Houses were victorious, but Sharn paid a terrible price. For centuries, people refused to resettle in the city, until Galifar the First sent House Cannith forces to rebuild the city. Even today, though, there are some who claim that the curse of the Lady of Plagues still fells the occasional resident of the deeper parts of the city.
Q. Are there any dragonmarked warforged? Or is this simply a "humanoid" trait?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Each Dragonmark is tied to a specific race (or in the case of the Mark of Finding two). Only members of that race, who are also members of the Dragonmarked family or bloodline have the possibility of manifesting a true Dragonmark.
You never see a Mark of Scribing on a Human, or a Mark of Handling on a Halfling.
Any member of a Dragonmarked race (Elf, Human, Halfling, Gnome, Dwarf, Half-elf, Half-orc) has a chance of manifesting an Abberant mark, though it is more likely among those who have Dragonmarked blood somewhere in their family tree.
This means there are no Warforged, Shifters, Changeling, Kalashtar, Gnolls, Bugbears, Goblins, etc. with any kind of Dragonmark.
An interesting note. Eberron avoids using "subraces" in many cases, the argument being that a dwarf is a dwarf is a dwarf. There are however, a few instances where subraces do come into play, most notably the Drow. Technically speaking a Drow is an Elf and therefore has the potential to manifest a mark, however given that the bloodline of the Mark of Shadow is not a Drow bloodline, it's unlikely you'll see Drow with a True Dragonmark. They do, however, have the possibility to develop an Abberant Mark.
Likewise, Half-elves who are Human/Elf offspring (which are rare, most half-elves are born to two other half-elves) cannot develop any of the Half-Elf dragonmarks, because they won't belong to the appropriate families. Nor will they be able to manifest one of the Human or Elven marks because they are of the incorrect race. (The novel, the Crimson Talisman gets this particular point wrong, giving its half-elven protagonist the Mark of Passage.) Like the Drow, a Half-Elf like this could certainly develop an Abberant Mark, though, especially if both of his parents belonged to Dragonmarked bloodlines.
Q. Can you tell me more about the Mournlands? I heard somewhere that healing magic don't work there.
A. (Mystic Theurge) That is correct. Neither natural nor magical healing works in Mournlands. This does not include, however, the magic used to repair Warforged, making it the perfect location for the Lord of Blades to begin his nation.
The Mournlands is the entirety of what was once Cyre. The Mourning affected Cyre and Cyre only. You could have be standing twenty yards outside the nations borders on the Day of Mourning and you would have been totally unaffected.
While this certainly points to magical causes, the exact cause of the Mourning will likely never been known. But whatever it was it utterly destroyed the former Jewel in the Galifar Crown.
Now the Mournland is bounded by a dead gray mist that follows its borders and stretches up over the region to create a canopy above it. This barrier provides the first obstacle for those attempting to enter the Mournlands. Visibility is almost nil within the mists, often hiding falls or other hazards. The mist is thick and cloying and seems to suppress sounds within it, leading to an even higher likelihood of getting seperated or lost.
Once you make it through the mists things don't get much better. The land beyond is scarred and broken. The sun, when it's up, fails to pierce the dead-gray mists, leaving the land in a state of perpetual twilight. Almost nothing natural remains. Plants and animals are twisted, even magic has become unstable. Many spells that were active or cast at the time of the Mourning have become Living Spells, actually oozing about the broken landscape seeking prey.
Perhaps most disturbing of all, the natural process of decay seems to have been halted by the Mourning, leaving fields of warriors in the exact state in which they died. The largest collection of fully preserved corpses can be found at the Field of Ruins, the site of a massive battle between Thrane, Breland, Cyre and Darguun that was in progress when the Mourning occured. Every single soldier exactly as he was the day he died almost four years ago.
Despite the dangers of the Mournlands, or perhaps because of it, expeditions are often sent to explore the ruins of Cyre by a wide variety of groups. The dangers of the area have, until now, kept most treasure-seekers out, ensuring that there's a wealth of goods, both magical and mundane, to be had for those able to find them. And survive the trip home.
Q. Regarding the Twelve, are these the same 12 mages that fought against the abberant dragonmarks? How long ago was that and do they actually live in stormreach? Could Turbine be having trouble figuring out how to mesh the area of the Twelve and established Eberron history?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The Twelve is an arcane college of sorts funded and developed by the twelve Dragonmarked houses. Shecky is correct in that the number twelve in "The Twelve" refers to the number of the houses. However, CrazySamaritan is correct in that the title itself is refering to a seperate institution and not the Houses themselves.
The Twelve wasn't actually around during the War of the Mark. It was, rather, formed immediately following the end of the war. The Twelve isn't twelve actual people, but rather a whole bunch of different mages. (Different mages now than would have been around at the time of the Twelve's founding.)
Members of the Twelve in Stormreach will have various reasons for being there. For some, being sent to Stormreach is likely a punishment, since it's very much away from the cosmopolitan areas of Eberron. Others might be there on research missions. Xen'drik is one of Eberron's main sources of Siberys shards, and House Tharashk in particular sponsors a large number of expeditions into the interior of the continent in an effort to harvest these. Additionally, the Giants of the Age of Giants were extremely skilled in arcane magics, so many members of the Twelve might be in Stormreach in order to seek out artifacts from that Age.
I feel it necessary to point out, that while the Twelve did assist in developing the first Airships, House Cannith is not actual producing them. The secrets of elemental binding are a crucial element in many of the modern wonders but most notably elemental-bound vessels such as the Lightning Rail, Airships and Wind Galleons. And those secrets are jealously guarded by the Gnomes of Zilargo. The great drydocks at Trolanport and Korranberg are responsible for the majority of the Airships produced today, and most of the rest are produced by smaller workshops elsewhere in the Gnomish nation.
Additionally, the Twelve should be thought of more as an independent R&D department for the Houses, than as a tightly controlled arm of them. They take some direction from the Barons, but for the most part they do their own work to advance their magical knowledge and find practical uses for it, which are then shared equally with all the Houses. This however can't stop the rumors of this House diverting funds for secret projects or that House attempting to conceal some incredible new discovery.
Q. What sort of powers can an aberrant dragonmark give its possesor? Do they give a sort of "multi-class" Dragonmark power, I.E. If an aberrant dragonmarked had lineage from House Jorasco and House Cannith, can the aberrant marked heal and repair both, just to a lesser degree?
A. (Mystic Theurge) While the Abberant marks do often result from inter-bloodline breeding among the Houses, their effects are always very different. The dragonmarked half-halfling in your example would not gain powers from his mark like those you describe. Most often Abberant marks give wild and dangerous powers, what we would likely consider "combat" spells, such as burning hands or color spray.
The only modern day Abberant marks are roughly on the same scale of power as the Least Dragonmarks among the pure blooded Houses, though history shows that more powerful marks were once present. Halas ir'Tarkanan and the Lady of Plagues likely had marks of similar power to Greater or even Siberys marks.
On that note, there are some who consider there to be three levels of marks which mimic the three Progenitor Dragons. The most powerful of the Pure Marks are known as Siberys marks. The would then consider the rest of the Pure Marks to be "Eberron" marks and Abberant marks to be "Khyber" marks. This theory has some slight flaws in that, as we've discussed, there are multiple levels of power within the Abberant Marks as well, and if all Abberant Marks are "Khyber" marks, what would the significantly-more-powerful Marks of Tarkanan and the Lady of Plagues be considered?
Q. Who/What were the 7 Daelkyr generals? Specifically, what races were they, what sort of classes, and the like?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The Daelkyr are a race unto themselves. They are powerful outsiders from Xoriat, the plane of madness. In terms of power, the weakest of the Daelkyr would be roughly on par with twentieth level characters.
Present day scholars know the names of a few of the more powerful Daelkyr who were present in Eberron during the Daelkyr/Dhakaani wars.
Orlassk was known as the Master of Stone and is credited with creating many of the present day creatures with petrification powers, such as Medusas or Basilisks. Though the Medusas of Droaam deny this is their origin, it is known that they fought on the side of the Daelkyr in the battle for Orlassk's citadel, Cazhaak Draal.
Belashyrra was known as the Lord of Eyes and is said to have created the Beholders to be living artillery during the war. It is rumored that his citadel contained a room covered in eyes that allowed him to see through the eyes of any living creature.
Even the weakest daelkyr is a force to be reckoned with, its mere presence bringing madness with it, and its touch corruption. The more powerful ones such as Belashyrra or Orlassk were nigh unstoppable. Orlassk is said to have been able to turn legions of goblinoids to stone on a whim.
Q. How did Eberron come into existance? What is the "story of Genesis" for Eberron?
A. (Mystic Theurge) The most commonly accepted creation myth is the legend of the Progenitor Dragons and the Age of Fiends.
According to this legend, the world was originally three all-powerful dragons, Siberys, Eberron and Khyber, that co-existed peacfully for some indeterminate length of time (though that likely doesn't matter at all when you're a progenitor wyrm). It is said that, as they flew through the cosmos, Khyber ate all the stars, consuming them faster than Siberys could place them in the sky. As the two waged this race, it is said Eberron sang and created the first life.
Finally, Siberys tired of attempting to outrun Khyber and turned on him in hopes of stopping him from devouring everything she created. And the two fought a cosmos-shaking battle. In the end, Siberys was defeated, and Khyber shattered her into a million pieces.
Now thirsty for blood, Khyber turned to attack Eberron, but she was too fast for him. As he lunged she dodged aside and enfolded him in her coils. No matter how much Khyber struggled, Eberron just kept wrapping him tighter until he was completely enveloped.
After their long struggle, Eberron and Khyber slumbered, their bodies hardening into the earth. The fragments of Siberys body encircled the pair, becoming the Ring of Siberys. Thus the dragons got their names, Khyber the Dragon Below, Siberys the Dragon Above and Eberron the Dragon Between.
Drops of Siberys' blood fell to earth and became the first of the Dragons, who lived in peace for a long Age. Deep below the surface, Khyber's blood festered and seeped from between Eberrons coils, spawning the first of the Fiends: Rakshasas, Night Hags and other terrible creatures. Slowly, these Fiends found ways to escape their underground prisons, finding their ways through cracks and crevices in Eberron's surface. It wasn't long before they began to threaten the peace of the Dragons.
In an echo of the ancient battle between the Progenitor Wyrms, the Fiends quickly triumphed over the Dragons. The Dragons were driven back, and retreated to Argonessen, while the Fiends divided the rest of the lands among themselves, and this was known as the Age of Demons.
For millions of years, the Fiends ruled Eberron, driving the Dragons back to Argonessen any time they attempted to venture forth, until the Dragons finally discovered The Prophecy. It was through the prophecy that they discovered their greatest allies, the Couatl.
Like the Dragons and the Fiends, the Couatl were spawned from the Progenitor Wyrms. During Eberron's primordial song, they had sprung into life, adding their rythyms to the music. Like the Dragons, they had long since been driven into hiding by the Fiends, but once they joined forces with the Dragons the two races discovered they had enough power to challenge the ruling Fiends.
War rages for eons, as the Couatl and the Dragons clashed with the Fiends all across the face of Eberron, until the Couatl would make the ultimate sacrifice. Only bonds of pure spirit could bind the Fiends in Khyber and so the greatest of the Couatl gave up their physical forms to trap the Fiends once more.
Weakened from their long battle, most of the Dragons retreated back to Argonessen, leaving the rest of Eberron a mostly barren wasteland. But a wasteland ready for new life.
Q. Who or what created the various races?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Unlike many other settings, there are no racial pantheons, meaning individual races' creation myths share much of the same general story as the one above. Some individual races have their own myths on their own creations, though they vary based on religion. Followers of the Sovereign Host often believe that Onatar, God of the Forge, created the Dwarves, while the trickster god The Traveller created the Changelings.
Other, less religious folk might say that the Changelings were instead the product of ages of interbreeding between Doppelgangers and Humans.
One of the nice things about Eberron, in my opinion, is that much of the religion and myth is uncertain. Other settings say "For sure, this is exactly how this race was created and exactly where they came from." Eberron doesn't do that. Much like the debatable nature of the Gods, the origins of most races is simply a matter of opinion or faith.
Q. I have noticed there are drow scorpions and scorrow. What's the difference?
A. (Mystic Theurge) I suspect this is an artificial difference. Scorrow didn't actually have the name "scorrow" until Secrets of Xen'drik came out in July. Since a drider-like scorpion/drow hybrid is an obvious choice, DDO implemented them before they had a real name, simply calling them "Drow Scorpions."
I suspect you'll find that from now on, they're all called Scorrow.
Q. As it doesn't seem that all of the Rakshasa were sealed away in Khyber (since we are to fight them in the Demon Sands), does this mean, too, that the Couatl all aren't gone from Eberron? If so, where do the Couatl reside, and are they as interested in the prophecies as the Dragons?
A. (Thanatos) The raksasha rajahs were sealed away. The difference between a regular raksasha and a rajah is like the difference between just "a demon" and the likes of Orcus, Demogorgon, Baphomet, and so on.
It's likely that there are still some couatls around, but they are very reclusive. The ones that sacrificed themselves to bind the rajahs were likely more powerful than the monster manual version.
The Silver Flame is a combination of the souls of a couatl, the paladin it was guiding named Tira Miron, and the escaping rajah that they fought. Tira's sword had a Khyber dragonshard in it's pommel, so that probably had something to do with them all being bound in the silver flames. The Flamers believe that good and faithful souls join the flame upon death, instead of fading away in Dolurrh.
Some say that the demon in the flame can speak to corrupt the unwary, and that the overzealous purges, inquisitions, and crusades are fueled by such counsel that sounds just and holy, but ends up spreading evil and destruction of it's own. Of course, you shouldn't mention that to a Flamer, as they consider it heresy.
Q. My party and I were on our way to the ruins of Threnal and I was surprised to see so many giants gathered outside the western gates of the city. Why are they out there? Is it safe? Aren't we at war with the giants?
A. The resident giants of the Tents of Rusheme are some of the more peaceful giants in Xen'drik. They've come to the city for trade, knowing that adventurers like us make some of the best customers for lost artifacts and information. The Stormreach Guard leaves them alone for the most part, meaning that the giants of Rusheme police themselves, so make sure you keep a civil tongue as you pass through.
Q. As we sailed to Xen'drik aboard The Stormrider, I couldn't help but notice that Captain d'Lyrandar kept talking to a sort of fish-man. He was covered in scales and had a dangerous look about him. Who, or what, was he?
A. The sahuagin of Shargon's Teeth, north of Stormreach in the Thunder Sea, are a dangerous lot. Divided up into tribes, they war amongst themselves and occasionally raid ships sailing over their realms.
Many ships seeking passage from Khorvaire to Stormreach hire sahuagin guides. Though this can't guarantee safe passage, if the ship passes into another tribe's territory for instance, a guide can generally get a ship through safely.
The sahuagin are only one of the many dangers on the Thunder Sea, not the least of which are the vicious storms which give the sea its name. The sahuagin worship the Devourer as Mistress of the Waves and have been known to give ships up to particularly bad storms, claiming it to be the will of the Devourer and therefore unavoidable.
Giant octopi, huge sharks and the occasional free roaming elemental can also pose significant threat to an unprepared vessel. House Lyrandar's Wind Galleons can outrun the former two, though the elementals of the Thunder Sea can take particular offense at such vessels, given their use of bound elementals for propulsion.
Q. I was just outside of the House Phiarlan enclave, examining a ring of standing stones when an image suddenly appear in the sky over the stones. It was a strange ziggaurat surrounded by jungle. Does that mean something? Why would that happen?
A. There are twelve rings of stones like the one you found throughout Stormreach, and as of yet no one's been able to determine their true function. Known as a Circle of Visions, the ring will project an image approximately once a month. They vary in scope from the simple to the bizarre. Some sages speculate that they might simply be works of public art, left over from Stormreach's time as a city of Giants. Others wonder if the images aren't the continuation of some communique or prophecy left over from that time period.
Q. Last week, several of my friends and I began an expedition into the Jungles to search for a missing drow. Though we knew where we were headed, it took us almost three weeks to arrive. Once we had completed our mission, the return trip to Stormreach took a mere three days. What's going on?
A. You've experienced what's become known as the Traveler's Curse. The Curse seems to twist both our perceptions of time and space, as well as perhaps actually bending both. Trips into the interior may take more or less time on any given day. Two parties could both leave Stormreach headed for the same destination and one party might arrive long before the other. Or you might leave on an expedition, feel as though a short time has passed, but, upon returning to Stormreach, find that it has been months.
Most sages agree that this is a remnant of the magical energies that caused the great cataclysm, but the first human's to reach Xen'drik attributed it to the mischevious Traveler, giving the effect its name.
The Curse seems to most greatly effect explorers who are from other continents. Thus, having a native guide can help to prevent its effects. Likewise, it is said that having a good sense of your destination will help keep your trip stable.
Some suggest that, in fact, it's need which helps speed a person to their destination, or keep them from it. Alask d'Jorasco, proprietor of the Last Chance, often claims that the Traveler's Curse brings those most in need of his services right to his door.
Q. Could you tell us about some of the holidays in Eberron? What are they? How are they celebrated?
A. Holidays in Eberron can be divided into two categories, Holy Days and Secular Festivals. Obviously Holy Days will vary from religion to religion, while Secular Festivals can be very dependent on a number of other factors, such as race or location.
Holy Days of the Sovereign Host
Aureon's Crown is a celebration of knowledge and wisdom in honor of the God of Law and Knowledge. Generally, elders among the community gather together with younger folk to share tales, stories and other wisdom. For many, especially among the academic communities, Aureon's Crown has become a secular holiday, which requires no particular devotion to Aureon or the Host to celebrate.
Boldrei's Feast is a time to honor community and strengthen the bonds between neighbor and friend. Generally taking the form of a true feast, celebration of Boldrei's Feast can range from a simple, but abundant meal in smaller communities, to lavish parties thrown by nobles in larger cities such as Sharn. Boldrei's Feast is also traditionally the time to hold elections and announce government appointments, for Boldrei represents all those forces with make a community work together.
Brightblade is the Holy Day of Dol Dorn. During Brightblade, prizefights, wrestling matches and other contests of skill at arms are held in honor the God of Battle.
The Hunt honors Balinor to celebrate his aspect as Lord of Horn and Hunt. To celebrate how Balinor protects the faithful from marauding bests, The Hunt generally consists of a wild beast being set loose, usually under controlled circumstances. Then, for a small donation to Balinor's clergy, anyone who wishes can participate in tracking the beast down. Generally there is a prize for the hunter who can return with the beast's head.
Sun's Blessing is a Holy Day of Dol Arrah, Goddess of Honor and Light. It is traditionally a day of peace, a day on which enemies can set aside their conflicts, and their arms.
Holy Days of the Dark Six
Long Shadows is a time of darkness and danger. According to legend, The Shadow was spawned from Aureon's own shadow, when he casts the first spell. Long Shadows is a time when the power of dark magics is at its peak, and most law abiding citizens stay indoors at night, huddled away from the darkness.
Wildnight is a celebration of passion and raw impilse. The Fury, Goddess of unbridled emotion, is the patron of all things uninhibited. When the sun sets on Wildnight, and often for several nights before, emotions boil forth. Reserved folk tend to stay away from public places, but many see Wildnight as an excuse to unleash their inner passions. The streets are filled with revelry and other more lurid events. Fights break out, lusts are fulfilled and crimes of passion abound.
Holy Days of the Silver Flame
The Ascension is the most holy of days, for followers of the Flame. In honor of the sacrifice of Tira Miron, who gave her life to give voice to the Flame, members of the Church gather to reaffirm their faith in the Flame and give thanks for the light it brings to their lives. In addition, it is a day to give back to the community, sacrificing of yourself in memory of Tira Miron.
Fathen's Fall is a holy day which memorializes one of the great heroes of the Silver Crusade (The Church's name for the Lycanthropic Purge). Fathen was a great inquisitor in Sharn, and as a result the festival is more prevelant there than elsewhere, and Fathen's Fall is a day of rememberance. It marks the day he was killed by a pack of wererats who tore him limb from limb.
The Silver Flame, more than most other religions has a slew of minor holidays and rites throughout the year including the new year Rebirth Eve, a memorial for the year's deat Bright Souls' Day, a celebration of Tira Miron's birth known as Tirasday, a celebration of nature's bounty known as Promisetide, and several more.
Holy Days of the Blood of Vol
Revelations Day is a day of self-examination for the followers of the Blood of Vol. It is a time to look back on the past year and determine what spiritual progress one has made.
Secular Festivals
The Day of Mourning was something no one could have been prepared for, and members of the Five Nations continue to mark the day as a time of grief and passing. Often people gather together to tell stories of the dead, or remembrances of the Last War. For former citizens of Cyre, the Day of Mourning is an even more poignant day, for it marks the day on which they lost their homes. Every Cyran knows exactly where he was on the Day of Mourning, and why he didn't die with the rest of his nation. Some are tales of narrow escapes, soldiers who had just marched across the border, while others are almost regretful tales of years spent away from home.
Crystalfall is a Sharn specific holiday which marks the most devastating tragedy to occur in the city during the Last Way. In the early years of the way, some magical attack severed the enchantments holding one of the cities oldest floating towers aloft. The Glass Tower plummeted to the ground killing nearly everyone inside it and many in the districts below. Since then, artists and sculptors fashion replicas of the tower in miniature and fling them into the Dagger River. Some find this offensive, but for most of the participants it's a way to memorialize what was lost.
Brightfest is a unique holiday that occurs in the Shifter communities. It is a celebration of the end of winter and preparation for the hard work to come. It is often accompanied by revels that go late into the night as well as athletic competitions.
The Reachrace is a week-long athletic competition held by Shifter communities, which culminates in a day-long marathon. Communities vary in exactly how they hold these competitions, but generally the week begins with tests of strength and agility and ends with tests of endurance.
The Days of Remembrance and the Void of Taratai are Kalashtar holidays. Sixty-seven quori spirits reached Eberron to form the Kalashtar race and each spirit has a five day period each year during which it is honored. A given kalashtar celebrates the Days of Remembrance which are appropriate to his spiritual lineage.
The Void of Taratai is the period which was once the Days of Remembrance for the spirit Taratai, leader of the quori who escaped to become the kalashtar. However, the lineage of Taratai has been completely eradicated, and the Void is a time for all kalashtar to reflect on the exodus from Dal Quor and to ensure that another line is never lost.
Q. I'm interested in naming my character something Eberron appropriate. Could you help me out with some suggestions?
A. (Mystic Theurge) Why of course I could. First I'll address a few naming conventions and then move on to some specific suggestions for various races.
The d' Prefix: The d' prefix on a last name is reserved for members of a Dragonmarked House. There's some internal debate about who exactly uses the d' prefix. Certain sources suggest that the d' prefix can be added to any surname if one is a member of a House. Others (which I find more reliable, being that they're the setting's creator) suggest that the d' prefix is reserved for members of a Dragonmarked House who actually have dragonmarks, and are always added to the House name. Either way, the d' prefix definitely means you're connected in some way to one of the Houses.
The ir' Prefix: You may have noticed that all of the current Khorvaire Monarchs are named Something ir'Wynarn. The ir' prefix is indicative of royalty or nobility. The ir'Wynarns are the royal line of Galifar and other ir' families tend to be offshoots of that line. Some other well known families are the ir'Tarkanans, though that line is somewhat less reputable due to their connection to Aberrant dragonmarks, and the ir'Tains, one of the most influential families in Sharn. In general, if you'd like to play a character with a noble background, such as a younger son exploring the wilds of Xen'drik, you can add ir' to pretty much any last name you want. This is mainly a human practice, though the tradition has extended to the Dwarven lands of the Mror Holds (and the gnomish nation of Zilargo) as well.
Human Names: As usual, Human names run the gamut. There's no real pattern here, just use something creative and fantasy sounding.
Elf Names: All the Elves place a great importance on their ancestry and many are often named after influential ancestors. The Valenar Elves in particular choose a Patron ancestor and are often attempt to emulate them, sometimes including taking the same name. Example Valenar names include
The elves of Aerenal often belong to adoptive families known as Lines. The Line of Jhaelian produces some of the nations most powerful clerics. Other Lines include Melideth, Mendyrian and Tolaen. The current Sibling Kings are of the Line of Mendyrian. The Line is not the same as your family surname, since the Lines are made up of a number of different families, though there is a noble house which gives each line its name.
Aerenal and Valenar names tend to use the same patterns. Vowel sounds tend to predominate, with fewer consonants. Common names include Belareth, Tezaera, Syraen, Aeren, Allais, Dailan, Kylaer, Maellas, Thalaen, Vylae, Fianan, Kaelan, Lia, Niath, Shearan, Tairil, Thail, Vaelas, Vaelin, Xael (elven names don't tend to distinguish between male and female).
Khorvaire Elves, those who no longer consider themselves part of the Aerenal or Valenar nations, tend to use the same conventions as well, though their names are often shorter and have some distinction between male and female names, though there is some overlap. Example male names include Aesha, Daellin, Marrath or Tellian. Some female example names are Innae, Paela, Phaeani, Sailla or X'ennia.
Dwarf Names: Most Dwarves hail from the Mror Holds in northeastern Khorvaire. The Holds were originally made up of thirteen clans. The clans are Mroranon, Doldarun, Droranath, Kolkarun, Laranak, Londurak, Narathun, Noldrun, Soldorak, Soranath, Toldorath and Todrannon. House Kundarak, makes up the last clan, though in the present day most Kundarak dwarves associate themselves more with the dragonmarked community than with their nation. Most dwarves use their clan name as their surname, though obviously each clan is made up of a number of individual families.
Dwarven first names tend to use heavy consonants and be several syllables long. Some example dwarven names are (male) Bruennan, Durunnam, Greddark, Kellark, Tuaranak, (female) Annaka, Gerthin, Karkanna, Menna, and Zranakarak.
Halfling Names: Halflings fall into one of two groups. Those native to the Talenta Plains who come from the old tribal traditions of the halflings and those who have moved beyond their tribal origins to live in the cities of Khorvaire. Most Khorvaire Halflings use the same conventions as the rest of the five nations, though a few do still use the old Talenta names. Most Talenta halflings use a single name, though when among people who are not members of their tribe, they may use their tribe's name as a surname. Within a given tribe, two halflings seldom share a name, in order to avoid confusion, however when they do, they are often given someother appellation based on mannerisms, personality or physical appearance to distinguish them from each other. Example names include (male) Gagi, Kabelund, Lanudo, Mabu, Rathan, Toebo, (female) Dovi, Hebblu, Mebsa, Shenta, Studa, and Tatha.
Warforged Names: Warforged names make no distinction between male and female warforged. In fact most warforged were not born with names, or even given names at creation. Warforged names are often not so much names as words (nouns, verbs or adjectives) that describe the warforged in some way. Bulwark, for instance, is the famous warforged protector of King Boranel. Other examples might be names like Pierce, Aegis or Barricade. Some warforged names are nothing more than nicknames given to them by their comrades-in-arms, and as such can vary significantly.
Drow Names: Drow have personal and family names, though they are very secretive with their family names. Among the drow it's considered an insult to inquire about a family name and conversly sharing your family name with someone is considered a sign of friendship and trust. Most drow still use naming conventions that date back to the giant empire, including multi-syllable names with hard consonants and glottal stops (represented by the apostrophe). Some example Drow names include Ek'ann, Kaxxar, Xen'kar, (male) Curra, Kas'asar, Xen'va, (female) Gen'thac, Torkak, Xar'cha (family).