Drow
While much is said of the drow of Toril, the drow of Ghemjana are primarily made up of Aevendrow and Lorendrow, rather than the common Udadrow (or Lolth-sworn) that most know. As such, two distinct societies of drow formed on Ghemjana; the Starlight Drow and the Underdark Drow. The Starlight drow rejected Lolth and her ways and choose to live above the ground and under the stars. These Starlight Drow were very rare on others worlds, but on Ghemjana, found a strong foothold and a place to truly flourish. Sadly, most Starlight Drow are still viewed suspiciously by other races, as the Underdark Drow of Ghemjana are near identical to their Toril sisters.
Though their societies are very different, physically there is no difference between factions.
Basic Information
Ecology and Habitats
Starlight drow prefer rocky mountains and valleys that have a good view of the night sky. Outcroppings of rocks are preferred for homes and settlements, far from the light pollution that blocks the night sky.
Behaviour
Like all elves, drow require no sleep, instead entering a meditative trance while retaining full awareness of their surroundings. The trance lasts around four hours, and provides the same benefits as a member of any other race having a full period of rest.
However, while elves relive parts of their memories, including those of past lives, during their trances, drow normally experience nothing, save for the occasional dream (which they try to interpret by looking for signs). The fact that drow don't relive memories of past lives during their trances was viewed as an indication that, unlike the elves, their souls didn't reincarnate.
Additional Information
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Drow eyes are sensitive to light, possessing darkvison up to a range of 120 feet (37 meters).
Drow have excellent hearing, a trait developed by necessity given the paramount importance of foreseeing rock shifts, collapses, and other hazards in the Underdark. It is also the primary means by which they find water, by listening to the dripping sound it made. They have long, slender fingers and a keen tactile sense, to the point of being able to read subtle markings on stone as if they were Braille. On the other hand, drow have a human-like sense of smell, far less keen than in the other Underdark races and than their other senses.
In contrast to creatures such as dwarves or deep gnomes, who have a deep, intutive sense of stone and subterranean conditions, the drow race's specialty lays in the sculpting of stone, the cutting and shaping of rock into smooth-flowing forms. About 70% of drow have an intuitive understanding of how fortifications or waterworks are constructed, operated, circumvented, and controlled, an innate "feeling" that extends to works made by other races. They can recognize drowcraft items by holding them, and if given a piece of Underdark-metal, or a cut or worn gem, drow can typically identify it. Upon finding a vein, like dwarves or deep gnomes, they have a sense of its direction, richness, and dimensions.
Civilization and Culture
Major Organizations
The majority of all drow worship a group of divine entities they collectively referred to as the Dark Seldarine, a name intended to mock the original Seldarine. Though having a group name might suggest some sort of alliance, the Dark Seldarine are a pantheon only in name. The only thing that technically unites them all, outside of a few short-lived alliances, is that each is a deity revered by a fraction of the drow. With few exceptions, every entity within the Dark Seldarine demands absolute fealty from its adherents. The Way of Lolth, for example, makes clear that Lolth is the only true divine being, and to follow any other faith will bring down a series of awful punishments on the perpetrator, including death.
Unlike the elves, who often venerate one member of their pantheon above the others while still paying homage to each of their deities, the drow will choose one, sometimes two, gods or goddesses from their pantheon and ignore the rest. As a result, while deities like Bane, Cyric, and Shar have millions of worshipers but only 135,000, 250,000, and 100,000 dedicated church members respectively, the number of worshipers of a Dark Seladrine member is nearly equal to the size of their church.
The relationship between the drow and their gods is one of mutual exploitation (with the exception of the one good-aligned member, Eilistraee). Most are not worshiped out of any sense of true piety or devotion, but out of fear, respect, and/or personal ambition. Likewise, most drow gods are intimately involved in the lives of their followers, but not because they genuinely care about them; each demanded total, exclusive obedience, and do not care what happens to them outside of how it affects their personal power.
Major Faiths
There were two major faiths among the drow:
Church of Lolth
The church of Lolth is the primary underdark drow faith. Its goal is to strengthen Lolth and her authority by bringing all drow under the church's wing, while killing those who are in any way a challenge to the authority of the Spider Queen and her clergy.
Though religion plays a large part in underdark drow society, the caste system and other seemingly lawful aspects of the culture clash with Lolth's intent and directives as a chaotic evil goddess. As a result, much of the tension between the clergy of Lolth and more secular drow come from this very different perspective.
Church of Vhaeraun
The faith of Vhaeraun is the biggest among surface drow, and the second biggest overall among the whole race. Its goal is to re-elevate the Ilythiiri to the position of power they once held, in a society where equality between the sexes reigns. They intend to gain a foothold on the surface, crush Lolth's version of society, stop the infighting, and unify their people for dominion.
The Masked Lord is primarily worshiped by male drow, because of his goal of gender equality, and by those people who deal in the acquisition of wealth by illegal means, because as the god of thieves, he approves of greed. Vhaeraun is also a god of arrogance, and reinforced the race's sense of superiority.
Vhaeraun's faith is exempt from the ordinary rules regarding drow religion. Lolth's clergy consider the Vhaerun's to be a serious enemy, and the followers of the Masked Lord are outright called to be destroyed by Lolth's established order. Those suspected to be worshiping the god are to be apprehended and questioned with magic (this being a crime that actually needed proof before punishment) and those found guilty are immediately executed. There are also specialty priests of Vhaeraun called masked traitors, spies whom Lolth believes to be her clerics.
Minor Faiths
The drow as a whole hold to many different religions outside of those accepted by most of their society. It is believed that the "good drow" collectively worship Eilistraee, drow goddess of freedom, although in truth the more morally neutral of the "good drow" are split between the worship of Ghaunadaur, Selvetarm, Lolth, and Vhaeraun. Some drow living in Ghemjana also follow the gods of the Seldarine. This is quite common of Starlight Drow, unless they are followers of Eelistraee.
Church of Eilistraee
The church of Eilistraee, drow goddess of beauty, song, and freedom, strives to release the drow from Lolth's web and build a place for their people on the surface world. In the Underdark they try to reach their kin, while on the surface they offer help to the needy and nurture arts, working to build peaceful relationships with the other races.
Most drow aren't aware of Eilistraee, as the matron mothers suppressed all records about her, and what little information exists paints her as a surface elf deity aiming to drive the drow into extinction. Due to the nature of their goal, except when performing missions to bring other drow away from the Lolthite society, the faith is mainly active on the surface and has little presence in the Underdark.
Some followers of Eilistraee live within Lolthite settlements, either because they are trapped, in which case they look to escape with their families (presuming they have any), or because they are infiltrators helping the other drow escape. These drow are known as "Secret Moondancers", but no good drow has ever managed to create even minor change in an underdark drow city's policies or customs.
Church of Ghaunadaur
The church of Ghaunadaur believes that everybody capable of strength is allowed to wield power, an idea that actually devolves into an extreme form of "might makes right". The Ghaunadans' goal is to promote the faith of their deity and to ensure that he is fed with sacrifices, by killing followers of other deities and pillaging their temples.
Every drow used to be more or less aware of That Which Lurks, but after the Spellplague, knowledge about the Elder Eye was forgotten by the drow due to suppression from Lolth's clergy. Even so, worship of Ghaundadaur was widespread in the Underdark after the Second Sundering and mildly popular among Starlight Drow in more barbaric societies.
Church of Kiaransalee
The church of Kiaransalee is a fatalistic cult that concerns itself with vengeance and necromancy. They believe that, through loyal service to the Revenancer, they will be reborn as undead and live forever. Said service consists of killing and re-animating people, while at the same time avenging every slight. Given the cultural weight of taking revenge in drow society, Kiaransalee has significant appeal.
Kiaransalee is a rather unknown goddess, and most of those who know about her think her to be a delusional lich who saw herself as a deity.
Church of Selvetarm
The church of Selvetarm, god of drow warriors, consists mostly of guards and others who constantly hone their fighting skills and revel in battle. Due to its emphasis on individual battle prowess rather than strategy, adhering to this faith blocks a drow from obtaining high positions in the military. Calling out to the Spider That Waits is mostly done by lower-class drow.
Selvetarm isn't recognized as a god by most of his followers, who worship him as a powerful servant of Lolth (the only form of veneration of this deity that is accepted in the mainstream drow society). Venerating him as an individual deity isn't tolerated within Lolthite settlements.
History
The history of the drow is filled with confusion and uncertainties. Many fanatical drow tell lies and fabrications about their own history to serve the ends of the noble Houses and of the faiths. This is true for both surface drow and underdark drow.
At times, pieces of history were entirely deleted from the records. It happened to fallen noble Houses, as all information about them was erased, to deities, as the matron mothers tried to hide all records of Eilistraee's existence, and even to individual drow. For example, when a masked traitor, a specialty priest of Vhaeraun who served as a spy in Lolth's church, was found out, any information about the traitor was literally extinguished from historical records, as if that person never existed in the first place, and by four generations the fabrication was accepted as "fact".
View on historical heritage
The drow descended from the dark elves of Ilythiir, the first and one of the most powerful elven nations, and, in minor part, from the survivors of Miyeritar. One might imagine that the drow would constantly boast about this heritage, but the truth is that they don't appreciate being reminded of their origins, for it also reminds them of their deep fall from power. An exception was the church of Vhaeraun, whose goal was to elevate the Ilythiiri to their former glory.
On the other hand, the drow remembered their origins because their feud with the elves was based on history. They believed to have been punished by the Seldarine for their triumph in the Fourth Crown War, and used this as a justification for their entitlement to exact vengeance on the other elves and their gods.
Underdark
Drow are the most wide-spread and numerous among the Underdark races. They live in about forty city-state scattered around the Upperdark and Middledark, primarily in the latter. Drow are usually only sent in the Lowerdark as scouting parties, or as some kind of punishment for angering a matron.
Drow prefer to live in areas that fulfill certain criteria. As a result, most of their settlements are found under the Burning Sea, north and west of Nonny, from the underground of Emjarren to the one of Svilgard. Their sphere of influence, however, is much larger.
Surface
The term "surface drow" refers to all individuals who spend less than four consecutive days below the surface in their regular life. Surface drow have no love for bright light, and loud noises, and have a preference for darkness. Most surface drow were followers of Vhaeraun, not Lolth, and the vast majority of Eilistraee's followers were also on the surface. Among the surface populations, drow are not a huge problem like in the Underdark.
A number of them embrace a truly different morality than most of their brethren, either because born on the surface, or because of a decision to abandon the way of Lolth. Some of those who came to the surface from the Underdark had already formed a different morality before leaving, while others had used to live under the Lolthite dogma. Among the latter, certain individuals are haunted by their past deeds, sometimes to the point of being broken by the weight of their horrible actions (even becoming a danger due to their mental instability), while others are truly unapologetic about their behavior in the Underdark, and push all responsibility on the necessity of it.
Many drow on the surface are actually spies still loyal to Lolth, sent to infiltrate the enemy and gather information for their matrons. However, the more time a drow spends among its enemies, the higher the risk that drow will defect in some way. In some cases this is to undermine a rival house by perpetuating false information, while others begin sympathizing with their foes, even to the point of believing they are undeserving of the hate they receive and the violence their kin will inflict on them. Some find the enclaves of Starlight Drow and seek a peaceful life, one filled will calm and harmony, instead of violence and ruin.
That said, the majority of surface drow live as hermits or find employment in rather unsavory areas of expertise where their heritage is an actual advantage, like adventurer companies or assassins' guilds.
Historical Figures
Drizzt Do'Urden
Zaknafein Do'Urden
Jalynfein
Liriel Baenre
Jarlaxle
Qilue Veladorn
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Lifespan
750 years
Average Height
4'8" to 5'4"
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Coloration
Drow skin tones range from dark grey, jet-black, and obsidian, (with various shades of blue), the albino drow known as the Szarkai being an exception. Drow have white, black, or purple teeth, while their gums, tongues, and throats can be red, pink, or purple.
Drow eyes can be of any color, with bright red being the most common. Pale shades that appear nearly white of blue, lilac, pink, or silver are also frequent. Drow with green, brown, black, amber, or rose-hued eyes exist, but they are rare. Purple or blue eyes indicate surface elves and/or human ancestry. The color of a drow's eyes can also be indicative of their current mental or physical state; drow eyes redden when they were angry, and turn yellow when they are sick, poisoned, or under some negative magical influence.
Hair
Drow hair can be stark white, pale yellow and, more rarely, silver or copper in color. It thins and changes color with age, turning pale yellow for women, and silver or grey for men. Due to the Eilistraeen ritual of The Run, drow of other faiths will often say that silver hair was a sign of mental handicap.
Drow generally keep their hair long, and decorate it with pins and webbing made of precious metals. They are incapable of growing proper beards, but some males manage to grow long sideburns or even tufts of wispy hair on the cheek or chin. This is usually considered amusing in its vainness.
Geographic Distribution
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