Hello everybody Jorphdan here the PH is silent.
Let’s talk about the Drow.
They’re popular, they’re evil, scheming, and malicious.
These dark elves did not always live below the surface of Faerun.
They were more or less exiled there.
The Drow are a subrace of Elves.
Much like Wood elves or High Elves.
The Drow have dark grey to obsidian colored skin, with white or yellow hair.
But are often depicted with a dark purple skin in art with white hair.
There are two stories involving how the Drow came to be, and how they came to live in the
Underdark.
The Drow once lived on the surface and were a specific tribe of elves known as the Ilythiiri.
They fought other elves on the surface in the Crown Wars.
It was during the Fourth Crown War that the Ilythiiri high mages “called stones from
the sky” and “caused the earth to boil and trees to scream.”
They destroyed the realm of Shantel Othrier creating refugees from that doomed kingdom.
The remaining elven kingdoms could not abide the Ilythiiri destroying anymore kingdoms
so they banded together.
They made a decision to cast out the Ilythiiri from Corellon’s favor.
Performing a powerful ritual the high mages and clerics of the Seldarine (the good pantheon
of elvish deities that followed Corellon), joined together.
This ritual changed the Ilythiiri, transformed by Corellon’s magic, altering their bodies
to match the corruption of their souls.
The ritual altered, unintentionally, every dark elf.
The corrupted dark elves were then driven underground where they were exiled.
The elvish word “dhaerow,” which means traitor, was also corrupted and became the
word drow.
This event was known as the Decent.
This was the forgotten realms story of the Drow, but there is a larger mythos that was
written in Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes.
To start this story we need to explain Corellon, who is the main deity of the elves.
Corellon fought the orc deity Gruumsh, and Corellon was wounded.
From his blood emerged the first elves, which Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes calls primal
elves.
They were more or less gods these primal elves and Corellon begin conversing with them; appreciating
their ideas.
However one of these primal elves did not wish to live in Corellon’s shadow her name
was Araushnee but later became Lolth.
Corellon at this time could change his physical form, as all the primal elves could.
Lolth changed that, convincing the primal elves to give up their freedom, their ever-shifting
ways, and take static forms.
Which resemble the elves we know today.
The primal elves now saw Corellon as their father, and Lolth as their mother; the primal
elf that shaped their future as now static creatures.
Lolth attacked Corellon but was thwarted, in an act of anger Corellon sent all the primal
elves to live in the feywild and the prime material plane.
It appears from the readings some of the primal elves remained deities, those closest to Corellon
and Lolth while the rest became the first generation of elves.
Lolth was cast out to the Abyss and took the dark elves and manipulated them for her own
agenda.
Lolth’s worshipers gradually transformed into the drow: cruel, predatory, and wicked.
As punishment the elves were now mortal and would never fully be able to return to Corellon’s
embrace and enjoy eternal life with him.
From Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes it says “The so-called descent of the drow isn’t
one moment in history, but the result of conflict between goldy powers in an era that has become
myth to mortals.
My investigations indicate it occured in different worlds of the Material Plane at different
times.
I have even discovered one world, Krynn, where it has yet to come to pass.”
So perhaps the two stories are one in the same, with the first being specific to the
Forgotten Realms.
The Drow are particularly strong in the Moonsea, north and west of the Iltkazar range.
Beneath Calimshan all the way up to Icewind Dale.
They are powerful and few races challenge the dark elves’ subterranean mastery.
The Drow worship Lolth, mainly, or I should say are most well known for worshiping Lolth.
There are other evil deities the Drow worship, such as Ghaunadaur and Vhaeraun.
Mostly defiant males worship these deities.If a city follows the Way of Lolth then the dark
elven population follows certain rules and political structures.
There are Noble houses that form a ruling council led by the premier high priestess
of the first house.
Each house is ruled by a high priestess who has the title of Matron Mother.
Drow society with the Way of Lolth is matriarchal, and males serve lesser roles.
Within these houses is a constant, intense, treacherous and deadly competition to raise
the status of said house.
Or to defend the position of your house that it currently has.
Drow society has rules and punishments for traitors, so any attacks or political intrigue
must be done in secret.
The Drow rule is “If it cannot be proven, then it did not happen.”
The balance of power can shift easily, weakness is never tolerated within Drow society, and
the Dark elves are always watching their back.
Trusting no-one for even your own daughter would betray you to become the next Matron
Mother.
Drow life is hard this way, it’s lonely, angry, and full of struggle.
This is how Lolth likes it, the constant chaos.
Lolth has crafted a society that is essentially structured chaos, with her subjects being
constantly on alert.
Might makes right in drow society, laws are there to punish the stupid that get caught.
Under all circumstances the priestess of Lolth will hand out judgement and punishments.
Often turning males into Driders (half spider half drow creatures), which is considered
a fate worse than death.
Life can be slightly different outside of a city of Lolth, but the treachery remains
within most drow societies.
Drow cities are similar to surface cities in that they are laid out horizontally, have
buildings and consist of districts.
There are farming areas within the city where cow like creatures of the underdark called
Rothe are kept, along with Fungi fields.
Children are born into darkness, they receive no warmth kindness or compassion.
It is believed this hardens a Drow and prepares them for the life of treachery.
Love is considered a weakness that can be used against you.
Drow rarely form lasting friendships.
From birth Drow are taught they are superior to all other races.
Those races that lack the strength to defend themselves shall be subjugated into slaves.
It is this mentality that keep the Drow working together to defeat other races or to protect
Drow society.
Despite the infighting between houses the Drow will always look at each other as better
than the rest.
And that’s it for today.
I realize there’s so much more to talk about on the Drow, maybe I’ll go into more detail
on Lolth and other Drow deities next week.
Thanks for watching, special thanks to my patrons on patreon who keep this channel going!
I’ll see you all in the next video.