#spellplague

[merrilynoblepriest]

Ah, the conversations we could have between Gale and Shadowheart, the conflict, if only the Spellplague was mentioned.

Like what do you mean they have no beef. Shar plotted to kill Mystra, and the plot backfired so gloriously, that a literal magicide took place, and whole regions were wiped out by the Spellplague, why don't we talk about that

[yeetmeoutthewindowdaddy]

**Makes the cat summoning noise for Galemancers**

Inspired by this post [alt].

Mystra was dead (mostly-- check out the Spellplague, it was a mess) until ~10 years before the events of BG3.

In a mobile game (an arguably canon source) Gale is stated to be 35.

Which means that there were 25 years where Gale was living without her direct influence. **side eyes Elminster**

Tav is not his first mortal lover. His hand was a popular one at the annual Blackstaff ball. He's got that autistic rizz and a charming smile. He was (and is) a powerful wizard. He had enough gold to be able to buy a full tavern a round of drinks without batting an eye. He was (and is) a certifiable catch.

But, he wouldn't have has time for a serious relationship, he's got to focus on contemplating the minutia of death cult politics, sorry wrong character his wizardly studies. He would've been a very horny young man, who was very appealing, amongst other very horny young people.

All of this to say: Gale was probably a play boy. Note that I don't think he would have led anyone on with false pretenses, he would have been straight up in how he was 'only seeking to share pleasures of the flesh for a night or two.'

I imagine that even though he was honest about only wanting a FWB relationship, at most-- he probably broke quite a few hearts. And Gale is a sweetheart who definitely felt bad about it.

And now for some angst!

Mystra came back right as Gale hit the age where his brain was about to finish developing.

Which means she revealed herself to him right as his brain increased his (already high) empathy. (I am not a science person) His brain would've also tempered his high libido around this time.

(35 year old Gale is horny, I can't imagine how much horny-er he was as a young man. RIP that pussy ayy!)

Gale already felt guilty about unintentionally breaking a lot of hearts.

He already worshipped Mystra.

The weave, the thing she controls/ is, was his sole focus.

Mystra is a jealous goddess.

Cue Mystra using Gale's play boy days as yet another way to emotionally manipulate him to ensure that he never has eyes for anyone else (and never uses his powers to kill/usurp her).

[tynithia]

Ellandra with Gaius Dekarios and his son Griffin - circa 1390 DR (art by the fabulous @fedemexyart) I adore Gale Dekarios and thought it would be fun to write his family's origins and lore. Below is my growing collection of Dekarios Family stories. Here is my Dekarios Family Collection: The Promise - Gale only knew the Dekarios family’s history through old journals and family lore. But as a kid, his favorite journals were those written by his great-grandfather Gaius, a powerful war mage and member of the mysterious Arcane Brotherhood. Gale would stay up late, lost in his great-grandfather’s poetic words about the Weave, his epic battles, and adventures. But his favorite part of the journals were stories about the love of Gaius’s life, a beautiful sun elf named Ellandra. When he discovered that his former traveling companion was the same elf from his great-grandfather’s journal, he told her wanted to know everything. (Ongoing original fic! 18 chapters! - Starting Circa 1380 DR)

Krakens - Ellandra and Gaius Dekarios attempt to cure his five year old son’s fear of deep water. (One Shot - Circa 1381 DR)

Julia - Ellandra arrives at the Dekarios family’s summer estate for the annual vacation, but can barely get settled before getting interrogated by her granddaughter Morena. (One Shot - Post-Game - Circa 1497 DR) Sunday Brunch - It was Sunday summer afternoon in Waterdeep and Ellandra’s turn to host the Dekarios family brunch, but as usual Gale takes over the cooking duties. (One Shot - Post-Game - Circa 1497 DR) Until Today Ellandra notices Gale is lost in his own thoughts. She had seen this long stare before and knew it well. She decides instead of leaving him alone, she would help him through the dark, by listening and making him laugh. (One Shot - Act 1 - Circa 1492 DR)

[belfryart]

My revenant boi

[theladyregret]

You know I feel like the Spellplague missed something. Like I remember one book saying that elves enter Reverie instead of sleep because they don’t really sleep, their souls travel the weave while the body rests. (I think it was Evermeet but I can’t remember exactly)

So…if the Spellplague was caused by the weave unraveling, literally falling apart…shouldn’t this have had a big impact on elves just in general?

Like…on a much more horrific note entering Reverie has the chance of an elf’s soul becoming displaced which…terrible hah

On a less horrible note…elves just suddenly can’t enter reverie at all.

So like…everything already going on in The Ghost King but now Drizzt can’t sleep.

[hellastrangedice]

Spellplague - the Spellplague was calamity was caused by the death of Mystra, the goddess of Magic. The goddesses death tore the Weave apart and unleashed the raw magic contained within it, causing massive destruction. The Storm of Blue Fire spread rapidly.

Thousands of spellcasters were either destroyed or went insane due to the collapse of the Weave and shadow weave after Mystra's death. Those who survived lost their ability to use arcane magic.

The Weave was resurrected when Midnight took on the mantle of Mystra and magic became what it was before the Spellplague, though some areas with lingering effects from it remained.

Will be available in the shop update on August 20th @ 3pm EST

Next Shop Update 8/20 @ 3pm Eastern Standard Time

[we-are-a-dragon]

Marijn (playing Godric): I ask, "So why is part of your face all fiery?"

Hamish (playing Thaddeus): Oh my god, Godric, you can't just ask people why they're fiery.

Rach (playing Ashiok): I say, "Partly because I like it."

Marijn: "You can choose to look like that?" Godric is impressed.

Rach: "I grew up in a drow cult with... some very extreme beliefs."

Adam (playing Billie): "Was it a fun cult?"

Rach: "No."

Tati (playing Seraph): When have we ever encountered a fun cult?

Adam: The goat cult?

Hamish: That wasn't fun.

Tati: I say, "We kind of have a thing for shutting down cults."

Rach: "Me too. I've been going around dealing with them. Anyway, most of my family was wiped out by a magical illness."

Hamish: Oh, you have a spellscar?

Rach: Yes! There wasn't a spellplague in the canon of this world but Lyra let me have one and said there was a small localized plague.

Hamish: Cool!

Rach: I say, "I learned to control the fire and harness it. It's no longer a curse for me."

Marijn: "That's really cool."

[ask-fantasy-sanders-sides]

Wait a minute, Logan, you said the "spellplage" was /in roman's lifetime??/ Like, that huge event where the weave caught on fire and Sune's plane of existence burned down around her?? that was RECENT? Can you be a bit more specific about what happened during the Spellplague?! (I mean, that sounds pretty /important!/)

(Logan nods,)

Logan: ...Yes? The Spellplague was fairly recent. So was the Time of Troubles, if that’s what you consider “recent;” It was only two years after Remy was born, and nine before Roman and his brother.

Roman: --Woah, how do you know what year I was born??

Logan: Do not interrupt my story. --The Spellplague was a cataclysmic event caused by the murder of Mystra, aka Midnight. Shar, the goddess of the Underdark, convinced Cyric, the god of Lies, to use his roguish skill to sneak into Mystra’s home and kill her. Shar intended to replace Mystra and take control of the Weave through the Shadow Weave she had recently created, but this failed, and both systems were completely destroyed...

Logan: The collision and destruction of the two planes of Magic somehow caused a vacuum in the space between the Material plane and the Far Realm, which allowed the Far Realm’s energy to bleed into the Material Plane at an alarming rate. The violent combination of the three energies created a phenomenon called The Storm of Blue Fire. These flames appeared across all the planes in existence, and even got so out of hand that Yggdrasil -- the giant tree-like structure of the Godplanes, basically their “Earth” -- was burned down, and all of the different cities, realms, and spheres of the Gods were cast into the astral sea.

Logan: On the Godplanes, it was utter chaos. Hundreds of Deities and Thousands of souls were destroyed while entire worlds ripped apart, collided, and spun out of control. Sune, Lathander, and Tyr eventually joined together to judge Cyric for his crime, and banish him to a prison in Pandemonium, but nothing could be done to stop the fire. The various planes re-settled into the new Wheel cosmology in ten years, but many of the Gods are still severely weakened from the entire ordeal, and most of those who died or disappeared have never resurrected.

(Roman nods,)

Roman: My mother’s home, Brightwater, was completely destroyed. She was only able to save a few hundred souls in her care -- Mama’s being one of them, thank goodness! -- but the rest had already burned away... She was able to recreate Brightwater in Ysguard, but she’s never fully recovered from all she’s lost... 

Logan: ...And, things weren’t fairing much better on the Material Plane. All of the magic in the realms -- magic items, magic users, active spells, any presence of magic -- started rupturing, looking like they had exploded into blue flame and lightning. For ten years, Arcane magic was too unreliable to attempt, and almost every wizard, sorcerer, and other non-religious castor was killed by the fire. Those who touched it and somehow survived usually went mad, unleashing uncontrollable bouts of magic on unsuspecting towns and people. 

Logan: By 1395, -- one hundred years ago, if you are keeping track -- Arcane magic had finally, safely stabilized again. But, the damage had already been done: Most of the living arcane castors had been killed, with many of the few who remained having fallen to madness. No new sorcerers had been born in the ten years while the Weave was destroyed, and becoming an arcane castor by choice was seen as dangerous, heretical, and sometimes even life-threatening. The use of arcane magic had even become illegal in many cities, and having a child who showed an aptitude for it was ‘bad luck,’ if not a death sentence. Many places still hold these beliefs even today... And then, there were the Spellscarred. 

Logan: Those who came into contact with the Blue Flame but were not destroyed by it -- including unlucky mundane people who had simply walked into a Wild Magic burst, and arcane castors who consciously attempted magic -- were left with scars, often in the form of blue electric burns. People with these burns, or “spell scars,” were shunned at best, and hunted down at worst.

(Roman pipes up at this, and gives Virgil a shocked look. Virgil pales and turns away from him, clutching his left arm...)

(...Roman doesn’t say anything.)

Logan: These scars often accompanied the Blue Flame’s madness, so the presence of them was interpreted as a deadly threat. --This notion is ridiculous, seeing that they are both symptoms of the same injury and do not always dictate the presence of the other, but... People will be suspicious, I suppose.