Hello! Here is the list of my posts about D&D drow lore, organized thematically - it will be regularly updated. Feel free to take a look if you are interested in a particular character or topic, or if you are looking for inspirations for your fanfiction or artwork 🙂 I also have Ask Box open.
☕ Ko-fi - link for those who feel like leaving a tip. It is totally not obligatory, though - all my posts are free to read and everybody is equally welcome to send a question!
🕸️ BG3 Drow Lore:
🕷️ Character: Minthara
• Minthara's Social Station in Drow Society
• About Minthara's Past
• Minthara's Past: Age and Name Meaning
• Minthara's Past: Minthara's Mother
• Minthara's Past: Childhood
• Minthara's Past: Minthara's Lover from House Vandree (theories) new
• Minthara And Orin: Before and After Indoctrination
• Minthara's Time in the Cult new
• Minthara About Slayer
• Minthara's alurlssrin
• Minthara's ust-nor
• Minthara's Tattoo
• Nightwarden Title
• House Baenre Family Tree(s) new
🕷️ Character: Nere
• Nere's Social Station in Drow Society
🕷️ Character: Araj
• Araj's Past and Ambitions
• Araj and Her Army
🕷️ Character: Dhourn
• Dhourn's Social Station and Past
🕷️ Character: Kar'niss
• Kar'niss' Past: Szarkai Theory
• Kar'niss' Past: Eilistraean Theory
• How to Feed Your Drider
🕷️ Cult of Lolth:
• Prayer to Lolth
• Sacrifices and Adjuration to Lolth
• Order of Soul Spiders
🕷️ Cult of Eilistraee:
• Prayer to Eilistraee
🕷️ Other:
• Eliette / Phase Spider Matriarch
🕸️ Drow Culture - Part 1:
(Part 2 - about Drow Social Relationships and Drow Nature - can be found here)
🕷️ Language:
• Glossary from Drow of the Underdark (2e)
• Official and Unofficial D&D Drow Scripts
• Drow Names (sources)
• Common Drow Phrases / Sayings (and their translations)
• More Drow Phrases and their translations
• Drow Phrases from Icewind Dale 2 drow sound sets (and their translations)
• Drow Pronunciation
• Prayer to Lolth (translation)
• Prayer to Eilistraee (translation)
🕷️ Sign language and gestures:
• Sign of Dead Spider (quote)
🕷️ Drow spirituality:
• Lolthite and Eilistraean Clergy and Dogmas
• How Eilistraee Feels About Lolth
• Eilistraee and Corellon (and Seldarine in general)
• Followers of Other Gods in Lolth-sworn Drow Cities
• Eilistraeans in the Underdark
🕷️ Drow cultural values and worldview:
• Eilistraean vs. Lolth-sworn Drow Worldview
• Drow Culture And Menstruation
🕷️ Drow and surfacers / other races:
• Drow And Sunlight
• Drow as "Beautiful" People
• You worship what? (quote)
• Dangerous Drow Merchants - History of Nym
• Drow And Slavery
• Half-drow in Drow Communities
• Valas the Black Raven, half-drow from Rilauven
🕷️ Drow free time:
• About Menzoberranzan Festivals and nedeirra
• Drow Games: Sava And Charhylniss
🕷️ Drow appearance and fashion:
• Drow Fashion and Hairstyles - various information
• Drow Textile Markets
• Drow And Spider Silk: Part 1 , Part 2
• Drow Haute Couture - Matron's Robe
🕷️ Food and drink:
• Poisoned or Not?
🕸️ Driders & Co:
🕷️ Driders in drow culture:
• Driders of the House Melarn
• Sorn and Nadal, Drider Brothers: Part 1 , Part 2
🕷️ Habitat:
• Cavern of Driders (quote)
🕷️ Feeding habits:
• How to Feed Your Drider
🕷️Other spider-like creatures / transformed drow:
• Aracholoth
🕸️ Drow Lore in D&D History:
• Drow First Mentioned (D&D 1e)
• Drow and Concept of Evil Matriarchal Society - about possible inspirations
Hi there! I just saw that recent ask about reviewing and mentioning drow OCs, and I got intrigued about a subject I included in my OC's backstory that I'd love to hear from you about.
So I actually found your blog through my posts about Kazimir, my drow ranger. And probably one of the most interesting things I was able to include in his story is him being born between 1361DR and 1372DR. During which, according to the Daughter of the Drow book (which I haven't read I stumbled upon this lore on accident), Lolth declared a halt on drow sacrifices.
Kaz was a third born son and his mom was pissed that she had him right after having two elder sons, during a time she couldn't just kill him and be done. So she leaves him in a cave and forgets him. Long story short, he gets picked up by an adventuring party and raised on the surface.
I was curious if you had any thoughts about this weird peaceful period that Lolth instated but is never really talked about? What do you think would happen if it came out that he survived and word of him got out in Lolthite society?
Thank you, and no pressure to answer!!
Hello 😊 I absolutely love your idea for your OC's backstory! Lolth's peace was an interesting period in the history of Menzoberranzan - noble drow houses were forced to refrain from attacking each other and even customary sacrifices were halted, so that the city could recover from recent losses:
"...there is to be no more war in Menzoberranzan. The city must be restored. No priestess shall slay another, and all healthy drow children must be reared, even the males. Until Lloth directs otherwise, the Ruling Council will enforce these new laws." (E. Cunningham, Daughter of the Drow)
Still, all the Menzoberranyr drow knew that Lolth's peace was only temporary - and that it was going to be lifted at some point. Many were likely spending these years on preparations, carefully planning their future moves.
🕷️ Lolth's Peace and Third Sons' Fate - by Lolth's decree, until the end of peace it was forbidden to kill healthy drow children, and even third sons were to be reared.
I can imagine that some drow females were confused or even reluctant to accept this new law, though - and Kaz's mother could be among them.
Third sons were customarily promised to Lolth. This was an important sacrifice, one that was meant to confirm the female's loyalty and devotion to the Way of Lolth and to the goddess. Lolth's peace was temporarily changing the rules, but despite of that, some drow females were probably not exactly eager to keep their third sons.
🕷️ Still, I suppose that abandoning the third son (or any healthy drow child, really) during the Lolth's peace would count as acting against the goddess' wishes. Lolth's message was clear: healthy drow children were to be reared, so that the city could recover from losses.
I would not be surprised, then, if Kaz's mother lost Lolth's favour at some point because of her decision. Somehow, I doubt that Lolth would approve her "I am not killing him, but I am not keeping him either" attitude - not when the ultimate goal is to increase the city's population.
🕷️ The fact that Kaz survived might be perceived in Lolthite society as a sign that Lolth wanted him to survive. It might be also perceived as a proof that his mother was acting against Lolth's wishes when she decided to abandon him.
Should Kaz - for example - play later a role in the fall of his mother's house or in her demise, Lolthite drow would probably be like: "well, seems like abandoning her son during Lolth's peace backfired on her!"
They would not eagerly accept him in their society, for sure, since he was raised by surfacers.
Although I imagine that at least some of them might think that since his mother broke Lolth's law by abandoned him, he should be given an opportunity to prove himself and join Lolthite society (should he wish to go back to the roots, so to speak, for whatever reason).
Thank you so much!! This is so thorough and I am living for it 😭
The Church of Eilistraee had a pretty heavy hand in Kaz's upbringing on the surface. So that influence definitely shaped his views of Lolth and Menzoberranzan.
So if he defeats Phaeravine, his biological mother, he would likely not wish to join anything Lolthite regardless of if they give him a chance to prove himself. Definitely has a "I did this for me and my family on the surface, not for Lolth's favor," moment.
Worth noting that Phaeravine is not particularly popular among the other Matron Mothers, either. For the same types of shenanigans she pulled with Kaz to try and get her way. So at least it makes for hot gossip that she gets got by the son she tried to illegally kill 😅
All in all, I knew you'd definitely have the lore under your belt to interpret what that situation would look like! It honestly helps for the future of writing him so much.
No problem 😃 I really, really like the overall idea of intertwining Lolth's peace with the backstory of a drow male from Menzoberranzan who was born as a matron mother's third son.
In "normal" circumstances, such a character usually needs to be saved by an extraordinary twist of fate (like it was with Jarlaxle and Drizzt). Lolth's peace creates great opportunity to give the third son from Menzoberranzan a different, but no less interesting background.
I'm so sorry if this has already been asked, but do drow have birthday celebrations?
No need to be sorry, this is a really interesting question 😊 Drow have significantly longer lifespans than humans, so I imagine that they celebrate milestones rather than birthdays.
Noble Houses keep the birth records, but merely for practical reasons.
In case of young drow, sixteenth birthday is typically perceived as a milestone and celebrated as the official end of childhood and the first step towards adulthood. I mentioned it in this post about drow childhood and also shared some speculations in this post about Minthara's past.
Becoming old enough to start education in the Academy is also an important milestone - so twentieth or twenty-fifth birthday of a noble drow is likely also a popular occasion to celebrate.
Noble drow apparently receive birthday gifts, sometimes incredibly expensive ones - in Daughter of the Drow, it was mentioned that Liriel Baenre on her twenty-fifth birthday received her own house, which was in fact a miniature castle in Narbondellyn.
Great find! I just checked the details - it is from Relentless, from the dialogue between Dinin and Zaknafein.
Apparently, even high-ranking male drow from noble houses do not celebrate their birthdays because they are not considered important enough (at least not to females) 😔
In the same fragment, it is also implied that Zak remembers about Drizzt's birthday and in a way, this anniversary matters to him. He cannot really show it, though.
Hi there! I just saw that recent ask about reviewing and mentioning drow OCs, and I got intrigued about a subject I included in my OC's backstory that I'd love to hear from you about.
So I actually found your blog through my posts about Kazimir, my drow ranger. And probably one of the most interesting things I was able to include in his story is him being born between 1361DR and 1372DR. During which, according to the Daughter of the Drow book (which I haven't read I stumbled upon this lore on accident), Lolth declared a halt on drow sacrifices.
Kaz was a third born son and his mom was pissed that she had him right after having two elder sons, during a time she couldn't just kill him and be done. So she leaves him in a cave and forgets him. Long story short, he gets picked up by an adventuring party and raised on the surface.
I was curious if you had any thoughts about this weird peaceful period that Lolth instated but is never really talked about? What do you think would happen if it came out that he survived and word of him got out in Lolthite society?
Thank you, and no pressure to answer!!
Hello 😊 I absolutely love your idea for your OC's backstory! Lolth's peace was an interesting period in the history of Menzoberranzan - noble drow houses were forced to refrain from attacking each other and even customary sacrifices were halted, so that the city could recover from recent losses:
"...there is to be no more war in Menzoberranzan. The city must be restored. No priestess shall slay another, and all healthy drow children must be reared, even the males. Until Lloth directs otherwise, the Ruling Council will enforce these new laws." (E. Cunningham, Daughter of the Drow)
Still, all the Menzoberranyr drow knew that Lolth's peace was only temporary - and that it was going to be lifted at some point. Many were likely spending these years on preparations, carefully planning their future moves.
🕷️ Lolth's Peace and Third Sons' Fate - by Lolth's decree, until the end of peace it was forbidden to kill healthy drow children, and even third sons were to be reared.
I can imagine that some drow females were confused or even reluctant to accept this new law, though - and Kaz's mother could be among them.
Third sons were customarily promised to Lolth. This was an important sacrifice, one that was meant to confirm the female's loyalty and devotion to the Way of Lolth and to the goddess. Lolth's peace was temporarily changing the rules, but despite of that, some drow females were probably not exactly eager to keep their third sons.
🕷️ Still, I suppose that abandoning the third son (or any healthy drow child, really) during the Lolth's peace would count as acting against the goddess' wishes. Lolth's message was clear: healthy drow children were to be reared, so that the city could recover from losses.
I would not be surprised, then, if Kaz's mother lost Lolth's favour at some point because of her decision. Somehow, I doubt that Lolth would approve her "I am not killing him, but I am not keeping him either" attitude - not when the ultimate goal is to increase the city's population.
🕷️ The fact that Kaz survived might be perceived in Lolthite society as a sign that Lolth wanted him to survive. It might be also perceived as a proof that his mother was acting against Lolth's wishes when she decided to abandon him.
Should Kaz - for example - play later a role in the fall of his mother's house or in her demise, Lolthite drow would probably be like: "well, seems like abandoning her son during Lolth's peace backfired on her!"
They would not eagerly accept him in their society, for sure, since he was raised by surfacers.
Although I imagine that at least some of them might think that since his mother broke Lolth's law by abandoned him, he should be given an opportunity to prove himself and join Lolthite society (should he wish to go back to the roots, so to speak, for whatever reason).
I'm so sorry if this has already been asked, but do drow have birthday celebrations?
No need to be sorry, this is a really interesting question 😊 Drow have significantly longer lifespans than humans, so I imagine that they celebrate milestones rather than birthdays.
Noble Houses keep the birth records, but merely for practical reasons.
In case of young drow, sixteenth birthday is typically perceived as a milestone and celebrated as the official end of childhood and the first step towards adulthood. I mentioned it in this post about drow childhood and also shared some speculations in this post about Minthara's past.
Becoming old enough to start education in the Academy is also an important milestone - so twentieth or twenty-fifth birthday of a noble drow is likely also a popular occasion to celebrate.
Noble drow apparently receive birthday gifts, sometimes incredibly expensive ones - in Daughter of the Drow, it was mentioned that Liriel Baenre on her twenty-fifth birthday received her own house, which was in fact a miniature castle in Narbondellyn.
Hi! Hope you're having a lovely day. It's me again, and I had another question- you know that scene when you first meet Minthara and you see a vision of her and Orin? Do you know what's happening in that scene/where they are in Moonrise Towers, if they're in Moonrise Towers/any other theories? I was thinking it's a nighttime strategy meeting because Minthara's called "Nightwarden", then I thought, "Wait, but wasn't Orin only at Moonrise Towers for the feast?" and then "Wait, are they at the feast thing?" and then "No, because someone would be all bloody or panicked" so now I'm confused. Thanks! 😊 (You can just look up "Minthara shows a vision of Orin - New scene? - Baldur's Gate 3" if you'd like to double check it!)
Hello! I apologize for delayed reply, hopefully you will still find it useful 😅
In this vision, Minthara is in the same place where Tav meets her during the conversation - in her makeshift "office" in the ruined temple, in the Goblin Camp. The outline of shelves, the table with skull and candles, the wooden stool, everything looks the same.
So, I would say that at some point, Orin visited Minthara in the Goblin Camp.
It would certainly be possible for her to do it in disguise, without alerting anyone else about her presence. Maybe she wanted to personally check how Minthara is handling her new duties after arriving to the Goblin Camp. Maybe she was also giving her some new orders and discussing future plans with her - possibly Ravengard's kidnapping, or searching for the artifact.
I do not imagine that she would just casually drop by just because she was bored and missed Minthara's company, but... well, who knows - with Orin, anything is possible, really.
Something I found during my recent run: drow inscription in the Underdark, in a very dark corner that is very easy to miss.
I recognized these letters as the angular variant of Drow script - if you want to know more about it, I mentioned it in this post, along with some other scripts useful for drow writing language.
So... you can probably imagine my disappointment when I realized that the inscription makes no sense. I was able to decipher it, but it was not even resembling a proper word or a name. I was getting only some random letters: AACTB... Seriously?😔
My stubborn brain was refusing to give up, though. Drow script uses the same symbols for various letters, but turned upside down or mirrored. Maybe the inscription needs to be mirrored, or rotated...
And it worked😃After flipping the screenshot upside down, I got:
GEORGII
NOMEROVSKII
Apparently, Georgii Nomerovskii is a 3D Environment Artist and was among artists who worked on BG3. You can find some of his projects on Artstation.
Hello, long time no see! 🥲 I apologize for vanishing for such a long time without a warning, but a lot of things is currently happening in my life and I needed to sort them out.
Some time ago, I plunged headlong into a new career path and during last weeks, I was a ball of stress, panic and even more stress. Handling my first holiday rush as a crafter was both great and exhausting experience, then I needed to deal with my small business end of year checklist for the first time. I guess I am still adjusting and learning things along the way, and it is not easy.
I am going to be all right, though - I just need to recover a bit.
Currently I finally have some free time on my hands, so I am going to dust off my inbox first and then I'll try to finish some drafts I was working on earlier.
As always, thank you kindly for reading and visiting ❤️ I really missed this little corner of the internet.
Hello! How are you doing? I just thought about something. What about, as a concept, you'd review drow oc's from others (constructively) and mayhaps give some suggestions, what you like most about them and so on? That'd be a great showcase and I think that could turn out good as well, but people need to be open-minded and respectful of course.
Until then, good care!
Hello and thank you for an interesting idea! 🙂
Truth to be told, I never really thought about reviewing people's OCs - like, about writing fully-fledged OCs reviews. I would probably be a terrible reviewer. My personal preferences are heavily tilted towards well developed OCs that are neatly connected to drow / elven lore. I (unfortunately) tend to be a picky and hard-to-please reader when it comes to elven content in general.
I am all for creative freedom, though, since when it comes to D&D - or any other fictional universe, really - we are all playing in somebody else's sandbox. If someone wants to create a drow OC and use already existing lore only as a loose inspiration, disregarding or changing some pieces of it - not my cup of tea, probably, but hey, your imagination, your rules 😉 Have fun!
I am always open to questions about drow OCs. If someone is looking for ideas, suggestions or inspirations - or simply is not sure how to connect their OC to some specific aspects of drow lore - I am happy to help and share my thoughts. Such questions are like creative exercises to me, and I absolutely love them ❤️ And it is even more awesome when other people add their own thoughts and ideas in comments or reblogs.
In such posts, though, I am not a critic (or at least I do not mean to be one). I can offer some constructive criticism, of course, but only if the person openly asks for it.
Hello! It's me- again. I've asked quite a few questions, so if you're busy, just let me know; I don't want to overwhelm you, of course! But I do have another Minthara question- does she have the Absolute brand? Because I don't see it on her, like I see the House Baenre tattoo, yet equipment that affects you if you have the Absolute brand does work on her. So I'm a bit confused.
Good question 🤔 I do not remember Minthara having the Absolute's brand, or mentioning that she was branded. She is also not tagged as "Branded" in her character sheet.
I guess I always assumed that True Souls simply did not need to be branded... but now I am not so sure.
There is at least one tadpole'd cultist with visible brand - the flind boss. But maybe she was branded because otherwise, she would be impossible to control? There are moments when her tadpole seems to be struggling pretty hard.
Other True Souls do not display the Absolute's brand, at least I never saw it. I remember that Priestess Gut has things in her equipment that grant additional features to those who have the brand of the Absolute - but her brand (...if she even has it?) is never shown.
The drow economy consists of three separate yet inextricably intertwined systems of exchange, each of which is largely specific to a particular social and political caste.
Coins
When dealing with drow of a lower station, such as when a matriarch or priestess purchases goods from a vendor, the race makes use of coinage - just as do most surface dwellers. Gold, silver, and other precious metals have roughly the same buying power in drow communities as they do elsewhere, though the rate of exchange varies somewhat based on available metals, scarcity of resources, and the mood of the drow doing the shopping.
The drow rarely mint their own coins, preferring to make use of foreign monies brought in by outside traders or taken in raids on other races. On those rare occasions when they do mint coins, the results are exceptionally plain, either totally unadorned or stamped with the signs of Lolth and/or the house who produced them. The drow also use coins when trading with others, unless the foreigner has something of particular interest to sell.
Barter
Although one low-ranking drow might use coins to purchase goods or services from another low-ranking drow, the standard form of exchange between relative equals is a system of barter. A swordsmith might offer the neighboring baker a new blade in exchange for a few weeks’ worth of bread. A cleric might heal a wounded soldier, if the soldier in turn agrees to kill someone to whom the cleric owes a debt. A priestess might perform a marriage ceremony in exchange for several barrels of fine lichen wine and a potion of invisibility. At the upper levels of society, drow might trade slaves, individually or by the dozens, in exchange for exotic animals, valuable works of art, or access to a fertile mushroom farm.
Favors
The third practice, common only among the drow elite, is the exchange of favors. This system creates a web of debts and obligations that often stretches across the entirety of the house and church leadership, frequently binding drow to complete strangers by only one or two “steps.” A typical agreement of this sort might resemble the following: “If you ally with me to prevent the Matron of House Inlindl from gaining control of the northern trade route, I will owe you a great favor in exchange.”
The interesting thing about this system of boons is that drow actually prefer to pay off their debts as soon as possible. For a drow, having too many obligations hanging over one’s head is tantamount to political and social suicide. She cannot afford to directly challenge anyone to whom she owes a great favor, for fear of that favor being called in and ruining one of her ongoing schemes. Additionally, high-caste drow often trade favors to third parties, meaning that a matriarch might find herself suddenly obligated to someone with whom she would never willingly have cooperated, or even someone she doesn’t know.
One might imagine that the drow would simply ignore these commitments, but despite their selfish nature, very few actually do so. They know that if they refuse to acknowledge a legitimate debt, word will spread swiftly and nobody will deal with them in the future. They might even find the other houses turning against them, seeking to eliminate the threat to the system and the status quo.
Promise Tokens
Not even enlightened self-interest is always enough to keep the drow honest, so a wise dark elf making one of these deals often demands the exchange of promise tokens. These are small baubles or pendants, often made of silver, that are engraved with the symbol of the drow’s family or house. They are often also marked invisibly, such as with the arcane mark spell. If a drow refuses to honor a debt, the creditor might present the promise token as evidence of the arrangement when besmirching her name and seeking redress. Of course, it’s not impossible to fake a promise token, but their frequent usage does make reneging on a debt - or making one up - somewhat difficult.
The drow economy consists of three separate yet inextricably intertwined systems of exchange, each of which is largely specific to a particular social and political caste.
Coins
When dealing with drow of a lower station, such as when a matriarch or priestess purchases goods from a vendor, the race makes use of coinage - just as do most surface dwellers. Gold, silver, and other precious metals have roughly the same buying power in drow communities as they do elsewhere, though the rate of exchange varies somewhat based on available metals, scarcity of resources, and the mood of the drow doing the shopping.
The drow rarely mint their own coins, preferring to make use of foreign monies brought in by outside traders or taken in raids on other races. On those rare occasions when they do mint coins, the results are exceptionally plain, either totally unadorned or stamped with the signs of Lolth and/or the house who produced them. The drow also use coins when trading with others, unless the foreigner has something of particular interest to sell.
Barter
Although one low-ranking drow might use coins to purchase goods or services from another low-ranking drow, the standard form of exchange between relative equals is a system of barter. A swordsmith might offer the neighboring baker a new blade in exchange for a few weeks’ worth of bread. A cleric might heal a wounded soldier, if the soldier in turn agrees to kill someone to whom the cleric owes a debt. A priestess might perform a marriage ceremony in exchange for several barrels of fine lichen wine and a potion of invisibility. At the upper levels of society, drow might trade slaves, individually or by the dozens, in exchange for exotic animals, valuable works of art, or access to a fertile mushroom farm.
Favors
The third practice, common only among the drow elite, is the exchange of favors. This system creates a web of debts and obligations that often stretches across the entirety of the house and church leadership, frequently binding drow to complete strangers by only one or two “steps.” A typical agreement of this sort might resemble the following: “If you ally with me to prevent the Matron of House Inlindl from gaining control of the northern trade route, I will owe you a great favor in exchange.”
The interesting thing about this system of boons is that drow actually prefer to pay off their debts as soon as possible. For a drow, having too many obligations hanging over one’s head is tantamount to political and social suicide. She cannot afford to directly challenge anyone to whom she owes a great favor, for fear of that favor being called in and ruining one of her ongoing schemes. Additionally, high-caste drow often trade favors to third parties, meaning that a matriarch might find herself suddenly obligated to someone with whom she would never willingly have cooperated, or even someone she doesn’t know.
One might imagine that the drow would simply ignore these commitments, but despite their selfish nature, very few actually do so. They know that if they refuse to acknowledge a legitimate debt, word will spread swiftly and nobody will deal with them in the future. They might even find the other houses turning against them, seeking to eliminate the threat to the system and the status quo.
Promise Tokens
Not even enlightened self-interest is always enough to keep the drow honest, so a wise dark elf making one of these deals often demands the exchange of promise tokens. These are small baubles or pendants, often made of silver, that are engraved with the symbol of the drow’s family or house. They are often also marked invisibly, such as with the arcane mark spell. If a drow refuses to honor a debt, the creditor might present the promise token as evidence of the arrangement when besmirching her name and seeking redress. Of course, it’s not impossible to fake a promise token, but their frequent usage does make reneging on a debt - or making one up - somewhat difficult.
is it ever mentioned that drow have a specific type of currency? if they do, is it the same for every drow city?
As far as I know, the details of the Underdark currency, or maybe even currencies, are a bit of a mystery.
🕷️In games and sourcebooks, drow use standard gold pieces (gp). Drow items - or items in the Underdark in general - are always priced in gp. It makes things less complicated for the players, allowing them to avoid constantly dealing with exchange rates.
Deafult currency in the Realms is a bit more varied and consists of coins (and sometimes also trade bars) made of copper, silver, electrum, gold and platinum. After 1489 DR, standard exchange rates look like this:
Drow in sourcebooks and novels also use coins as an everyday currency, and it is probably safe to assume that they use similar exchange rates.
🕷️Various nations and city-states in Faerûn mint their own denominations that have their own names. It is probably also a thing in Underdark city-states.
I do not remember drow coins being described anywhere. I imagine, though, that Lolth-oriented cities mint coins and tokens with spider motifs, since they are widely associated with Underdark drow culture. In some city-states, coins may be also decorated with glyphs of ruling houses.
Maybe drow also use coins with center holes that can be tied together, or coin strings? It could also be a spidery inspiration - spiders often use threads to hang their "valuables" (food) in their webs.
Surface coins from various parts of the world are likely also very popular in large drow cities - they come mainly from raids, but they are also transported by merchants. The same goes for coins minted by other denizens of the Underdark.
🕷️I suppose that in the Underdark, many drow prefer to exchange goods rather than coins - especially those who live in small communities, away from trade routes, and struggle with obtaining necessary supplies. Barter is probably very popular among such drow.
Edit: In Drow of the Underdark for 3.5e, there is a short section about drow economy 🙂
Hi! I’m playing in a dnd game where the drow religions/cults are very relevant. I have seen mentions of Vhaeraun and his followers but I don’t think I’ve seen one in-depth. Could you tell us more about them?
Hello! Vhaeraun and his followers have long history in drow culture and society, and it is hard to compress it into one post - but here are some most important information:
• Vhaeraun is the second most popular deity among drow, and he is especially popular among males. He opposes the matriarchy of Lolth and teaches that drow males should be equal to females - although in practice, communities of his followers often lean towards patriarchy.
Priests and followers of Vhaeraun typically try to lessen the power of Lolth, and many of them work undercover in Lolthite cities, trying to disrupt plans of priestesses of Lolth and matron mothers. Typically, Vhaeraunans use intrigues, manipulations, trickery, treachery and thievery to achieve their goals.
Followers of Vhaeraun encourage disobedience among drow males who live in Lolthite societies. They aid oppressed or attacked males, and they sometimes even avenge cruelties committed against them. They also provide aid for drow thieves in need.
• Vhaeraun is a god of arrogance. According to his dogma, drow are superior over other races and they need to reclaim their rightful place in the world by force.
Followers of Vhaeraun call the surface world "the Night Above". They often work towards increasing drow numbers in surface lands, even establishing small communities there. They encourage contacts with other elves, but not with members of other, "lesser" races.
Vhaeraun teaches his followers to work together and not to fight against each other. It is not the "peace, love and unity" kind of message, though - Vhaeraun simply believes that inner fights weaken the entire drow society and prevent drow from achieving their goals.
Also, it should be noted that Vhaeraun is the most popular deity among drow who live on the surface - much more popular than Eilistraee!
• Church of Vhaeraun is loosely organized and consists mostly of drow and half-drow. Vhaeraun's clergy - collectively known as the Masked - is almost entirely male.
Most important activities and rituals connected to the cult of Vhaeraun occur during the night. In the Underdark, temples of Vhaeraun are located in deep caverns cloaked in multiple darkness spells, with ceilings studded with beljurils that resemble stars. On the surface, a temple of Vhaeraun can be created in a woodland cave sheltered from sunlight. Offerings are typically melted in black, bowl-shaped altars - drow often make offerings to Vhaeraun from wealth and weapons of their vanquished enemies.
Important celebrations devoted to Vhaeraun take place during Midwinter Night and (on the surface) during nights of the new moon.
Vhaeraun is often a very involved deity. Obviously no god is going to answer every prayer and it's up to the DM how much active attention a cleric can expect, but out of the drow pantheon Vhaeraun is probably the most likely to directly, unambiguously respond to his worshippers' requests. He likes to keep a personal eye on what they're up to, and he doesn't play the kind of mind games that Lolth does in regards to jerking followers around and getting them to psyche themselves out over whether their deity approves of something.
While Vhaeraun preaches taking the Night Above by force, he also fully supports and accepts efforts to gain economic and cultural dominance, even if they aren't overtly violent. Many Vhaeraunite communities have strong trade connections, and one of the accepted duties of Vhaeraunite clergy is that they should be working toward establishing, or actively involved in running, a self-sufficient enclave on the surface. Vhaeraun also actively encourages working with other elves, up to and including intermarrying with them - as long as the children are raised drow. Vhaeraunites typically accept half-drow as full members of the community, as long as the individual identifies as drow.
Modern depictions of Vhaeraun generally show him with bright red hair - but his original 2e lore specified that his hair and eyes both changed color with his moods! Red signifies anger, but he can also be blue for amusement, green in confusion or curiosity, or gold for triumph!
Great info! About Vhaeraun supporting intermarrying with surface elves, I remember that it was even mentioned in Daughter of the Drow.
One of side characters in the novel, drow wizard Nisstyre, established a surface settlement of Vhaeraunans and even kept there a small harem of surface elven women. They were moon elves and outcasts from elven communities. Nisstyre reflected that this was not ideal, since Vhaeraun teaches that males and females should be equal - but since the community nearly lacked drow females... well, from his perspective, it worked.
All the children in the settlement were half-drow (mostly half-drow, half-moon elves), but Vhaeraunans had no problem with this. They were perceiving interbreeding with other elves as a way to increase their numbers.
Alurlssrin is a drow term Minthara uses to describe the bond she shares with Tav - but what does it precisely mean?
🕷️ Alurlssrin In BG3 - alurlssrin appears in some specific Minthara’s lines, when the player character romances her. According to Narrator, it is …a word used rarely, describing the deepest bonds of trust and love.
When asked about it, Minthara says simply that alurlssrin means “love” and confesses that she never really expected to use it. In another line, she seems to be convinced that alurlssrin is the kind of bond that can be life-lasting.
When Tav tries to reciprocate, saying: I alurlssrin you too, Minthara – with a hint of amusement – explains that alurlssrin is a noun.
The alurl- part may suggest that this word means “the best” kind of an emotional bond, or something close to it (alurl – “best, foremost” in Drowic).
🕷️ Alurlssrin And Ssinssrigg - in R. A. Salvatore’s The Legacy, it is stated that …there is no word in the drow language for love. The closest word (...) is ssinssrigg, but that is a term better equated with physical lust or selfish greed.
Ssinssrigg is another term that appears in one of Minthara’s lines, when the player character romances her, but does not have her high approval. She says then: What we share is no more than ssinssrigg, a passion that burns fierce, but has no foundation.
But... since according to drow lore, there is no word for “true” love in Drowic – and the closest term is ssinssrigg - where did alurlssrin come from?
🕷️ Drow Words For Love - alurlssrin was first mentioned by Ed Greenwood in his post (TheEdVerse, Twitter, Jan. 2023) about Eilistraee and drow words for love:
Eilistraee knows all the drow words for love, and the elvish ones, too. The Drow words are: alurlssrin = unselfish, deep love, raggath = act of love (lovemaking), lurraggath = act of love (sacrificial or noble deed), ssinssrigg = passion, lust, greed, longing, love.
(Among elvish words for love, apparently also known to Eilistraee, there is nor = love, essence of passion. It also appears in one of Minthara's lines, when she calls her lover ust-nor - thank you to @vspin for messaging me about this!)
It seems, then, that alurlssrin is a drow word that is known to Eilistraee and most likely to her followers...
...but Lolth-sworn drow – or at least Menzoberranyr drow – do not know / use it. 🤔 So how is it possible that Minthara, a (former) paladin of Lolth from Menzoberranzan, is familiar with it?
🕷️ Alurlssrin In Minthara's Vocabulary
I have a feeling that alurlssrin appears in Minthara’s lines simply because a drow word for deep, true love was needed for the dialogue. Still, I tried to come up with some more lore-adequate explanations:
🕷️ Some Very Old Word – perhaps in Menzoberranzan, alurlssrin is a half-forgotten archaism that is no longer regularly used, but an educated (or bookwormish) drow can still stumble across it in centuries-old books and figure out its meaning.
🕷️ Language Of Heretics – as a paladin of Lolth, it is possible that Minthara came to contact with Eilistraeans – or with their culture – at some point. She might be even trained to recognize this particular kind of “heresy”, learning symbols and words popularly used among the followers of Eilistraee... alurlssrin included.
🕷️ Not So Unknown Anymore – language tends to change over time, and between the quote from The Legacy and the events of Baldur’s Gate 3, there is a gap of over 130 years. Maybe during this time, alurlssrin term became less unknown in Menzoberranzan? Although considering its connection to Eilistraee and her cult, this may be the least likely explanation.
Regardless of everything, the fact that Minthara calls the bond between her and Tav alurlssrin is certainly meaningful. Typically, many drow like her might not be exactly (or at all) familiar with a sheer concept of deep, unselfish, lasting love...
For more of my drow lore ramblings, feel free to check my pinned post 🕷️
Keeping in mind that, although Eilistraee is good-aligned, one of the things she represents is the hope of a life for dark elves outside the tyranny of Lolth. Minthara, as a paladin sworn to avenge those who betrayed Lolth, would have been familiar with Eilistraeean culture, and it's no surprise "alurlssrin" is known to her. Now that she's exiled from Menzoberranzan, though she's far from being an Eilistraeean herself, it can't be lost on her that drow in her situation often do turn to Eilistraee - and to her, perhaps the use of Eilistraeean vocabulary with a dark-elven Tav/Durge is a way of saying "from one outcast to another, I love you."
Me again! I have a few more questions about Minthara, if you have the time 😊
When exactly does the Absolute's control over her break? Because she's calling Ketheric "General Thorm", affected by Z'rell's mind magic, and generally seems to still be mind controlled until the player character finds her in the dungeon, so I'm a bit confused.
What made her abandon Lolth? I thought it was that Lolth didn't help her while she was being brainwashed/tortured, but that doesn't make sense to me; she's a drow after all, wouldn't she have been in other bad situations that Lolth didn't help with? And after a lifetime of indoctrination, it's surprising that she stops worshipping Lolth so suddenly. Because she's praying to her while she's being tortured, and then 2 seconds after that, she decides she doesn't worship her?
Do you think things would have been different for her if the Dark Urge had been the one she met rather than Orin?
And some drow culture questions!
In drow culture, is there absolutely ANYONE worthy of trust, or ANY genuine affection whatsoever? Specifically, in Menzoberranzan, that is.
What is the role of drow weapon masters?
What is life like at Arach-Tinilich? I've done some research on it, but nothing extensive.
Is there any access to Eilistraee-related stuff, outside of Eilistraee-worshipping places?
Hi 😊As for the moment when Minthara stops being controlled by the Absolute - the Absolute's control does not seem to work like an on-off switch, it can rather grow stronger or weaker, depending on circumstances.
🕷️In the scenes after raid, Minthara expresses confusion in some of her lines. She is still very much influenced by the Absolute, but the Prism silences its voice to some degree, allowing her to think more clearly. She reflects that "she does not know herself anymore" - as if after leaving the Underdark, she was dreaming "about somebody else's life".
In Moonrise, Minthara - after Tav's intervention in the prison - recognizes the Absolute as "this thing that speaks inside her" and as something that influences her mind. She seems confused about the true nature of the Absolute, but she pushes her confusion aside, since she is more focused on survival at the moment.
Only after the Prism connects to her, the Absolute's control finally breaks - "her mind reels, but is no longer clouded".
🕷️About Lolth - after being tortured, Minthara acknowledges that "there are no gods left to her", so I suppose that even if she called to Lolth during her torment, it was merely act of desperation.
But I also think that her turning away from both the Absolute and Lolth seems a bit abrupt.
From her perspective, she was deceived into abandoning Lolth and becoming True Soul. She knows that Lolth is not a forgiving goddess and she accepts that returning to her old life is no longer possible. She would be marked as a heretic and it is almost certain that nobody would be interested in listening to her explanations.
Still, I imagine that for a drow like Minthara, voluntarily abandoning Lolth (and old way of life) would be an incredibly hard decision to make. I would expect her to have at least some internal struggling before, maybe even contemplating at some point how to redeem herself in the eyes of Lolth and her House.
Being forced to make a new life for herself away from her city, without her House, without her goddess - it is no small deal. For a drow of her station, it is like being dropped onto another planet.
🕷️About Durge - I suspect that meeting Durge instead of Orin would be a much worse option for Minthara. I cannot really imagine Durge treating Minthara as a pet cultist - and even in such scenario, Durge would probably be much, much more cruel than Orin. Like, less into playing mind games, more into the kind of cruelty that ends with the subject's gruesome and painful death.
Ketheric would probably need to pry Minthara away from Durge's clutches very quickly if he wanted her to join his army alive.
About drow culture questions - they touch quite extensive topics and I need to catch my breath 😄I will answer them later in a separate post, if you do not mind.
Sorry to bother, are you aware if is there an official elven drow alphabet anywhere?
Hi! As far as I know, there is no official drow alphabet. In some sources, it was mentioned that drow simply use surface elven alphabet - Espruar.
In Drow of the Underdark for 2e, there are depicted some drow symbols - like sacred glyphs and symbols of noble houses - that could probably give us a general idea how "proper" drow alphabet might look like in terms of style, but that is all.
There are some non-canon drow scripts created by fans, though 🙂
