INTEREST CHECK: City of the Drow (reboot) 3.5 DnD [14/?? spots filled]

[Zaer Darkwail]

Krayz started the original thread in here; https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=118750.0

We do still seek one more matron mother and more drows to play in and out of the houses. But the thing is the many pages long thread with rules and rulings spread out and so the charsheet links to Mythweaver/Plothooks kind of intimidates those who may want to join so I reboot the recruit thread where in first page I paste all info so far collected. But before the rulings and stuff let's introduce the setting where game is going to happen. The game focuses entirely on drows and their daily lives in sandbox setting (meaning game focus on city itself and it's surroundings).


Erelhei-Cinlu

History

Vault of the Drow

House Eilservs was long the most powerful of Erelhei-Cinlu's noble houses, and long believed that the city should be ruled by a single queen of their house. When the other noble houses allied against the Eilservs to prevent this from happening, the Eilservs renounced the worship of the demon queen Lolth, turning instead to an Elder Elemental God. They then attempted to establish a puppet kingdom in the surface world dedicated to the worship of their new deity, hoping this would bring them enough power that their claims to supreme power in the Vault could no longer be denied. This scheme was thwarted by a band of adventurers.

The same adventuring party,with numerous allies, then entered the Vault itself and assaulted the Eilservs estates and the Great Fane of Lolth itself. In the aftermath the Eilservs were ruined, their wealth and power shattered, and vengeful priestesses of Lolth turned on them to exile what remained. Many fled to the lesser drow city of Angrimm, which was subsequently overrun by the vampire spawns by a female drow vampire countess known as De'lilyth.

The Priestess Wars

Back in the city, the remaining noble houses squabbled for dominance. The Tormtor and Kilsek houses were the chief claimants, and the Tormtor elected to reject Lolth and embrace the worship of Kiaransalee to challenge the Kilsek's claim that their long devotion to Lolth had earned them the right to supremacy. The houses of Everhate and Aleval allied with the Tormtor, as did a group of extraplanar githyanki. With the Kilsek faction was aligned the houses of Despana, Noquar, Godeep, as well as the illithids who naturally opposed their githyanki enemies (most likely these were the illithids of nearby Dra-Mur-Shou).

As chaos and savage battles overtook the Vault, hundreds of drow died, as did hundreds of their mercenaries. Conflict lasted two centuries.

The war was finally ended after Eclavdra abased herself before Lolth and underwent a horrible punishment to prove herself. Surviving unmarred, she made a pact with her goddess whose nature remains obscure, but evidently involved seducing and betraying the demon lord Graz'zt. In reward, Lolth intervened personally to end the war. Though turning her concentration to this conflict cost the Demon Queen of Spiders her two

promising holdings in the surface, the war was ended definitively. House Eilserv was reinstated in power and House Kilsek was banished, replaced with House Archwinter who took over ghetto of the dead by House Eilserv blessing after arise of the rather unique case of matron mother who had single night slaugthered all siblings and own mother since she was send to be sacrificed by Lolth. Leaving no doubt that Lolth had been enraged wrong judgement call by former matron mother of Archwinter.

Most recently, House Lice-Drilloth has risen to power by exterminating the last of House Everhate by using army of spiders and handful driders. Also, House Shi'quos was displaced (destroyed) by the up-and-coming House d'Szeossen by using rather nefarious means, such as assassination and extortion, along with leveling accusations of treason.

The drow of Erelhei-Cinlu have gained a certain perspective from these tumultuous events, replacing overt military schemes with more subtle scheming, at least for the time being.





Geography

Erelhei-Cinlu lies in a huge cavern, over six miles long and nearly as wide, beneath the Hellfurnaces known as the Vault (also known as the Vault of the Drow). A huge chunk of turnkeoite on the ceiling of the Vault gives the appearance of an alien moon, whilst much smaller deposits of other exotic minerals give one the impression of an starry night sky.

Major bodies of water within the Vault include the Pitchy Flow, the Weeping Spring that flows north and west into it, and the Mere of Glooms in the midst of the Weeping Spring.

Much of the Vault is filled with forests of lichens, crystalline growths, and fungi. Merchant estates are scattered south of the city, as are fortresses for the male and female orders of warriors. The city itself is built on the southern bank of the Pitchy Flow in the northern corner of the Vault. A single structure, the Flying Bridge, connects Erelhei-Cinlu with the other side of the Pitchy Flow. Across the river is a plateau containing the estates of the noble houses, and a tunnel leading to the Great Fane of Lolth.

The city of Erelhei-Cinlu is surrounded by a 30-foot-tall wall of seamless polished basalt, interrupted by 40-foot square towers at regular intervals. On the shores of the river, the wall is 50 feet high and without towers; the river wall is the exclusive domain of female soldiers.

The buildings of Erelhei-Cinlu are alien and strangely disturbing to human eyes, its streets narrow and crooked.

Population

Erelhei-Cinlu boasts a population of some 27,000 souls. 40% of these are drow, 15% are troglodytes, 12% are bugbears, 10% are surface dwellers and undead, 4% are mind flayers, 4% are trolls, 4% are yugoloths, 3% are kuo-toans, 3% are demons, 1% are svirfneblin, 1% are orcs, and 1% are githyanki or githzerai.

Religion

The principal religion of Erelhei-Cinlu is the worship of Lolth, the Spider Queen. Other deities worshiped by the drow of Erelhei-Cinlu include Kiaransali, and Zinzerena. The priesthood of Kiaransali is dominant in the Ghetto of Chattels, though always under the supervision of Lolth's priestesses. The Great Fane of Lolth is located in a separate cavern; worshipers must leave the city and cross the Pitchy Flow and the nobles' estates to reach it. In the Ghetto of Foreigners, along the Street of Lies, the drow permit the temples of deities worshiped by other races, including Nerull, Boccob, Ralishaz, Incabulos, Erythnul, Beltar, Raxivort, Vecna, and Tharizdun, though the temple of Tharizdun is more of a museum than an active place of worship. After the resurrection of Orcus, one of his temples is said to be found here as well.

Languages

The drow speak their own dialects of the Elven language mixed with Undercommon, the common tongue of the Underdark. Drow often use Elven and Undercommon interchangeably, creating an effective pidgin language at times. Other races who come to the Vault of the Drow, including duergar, illithids, humans, and others, have their own languages but Undercommon serves as the lingua franca for trade.

Transportation

A road leading from nearby tunnels and caverns opens from a fissure in the Vault's southern wall, leading past a fortress called the Black Tower a mile north before reaching the city proper. All non-citizens must stop at the Tower to be inspected; they are given green silk cloaks to indicate that they have been cleared. Foreigners without these cloaks are normally killed or enslaved by the drow in short order.

Cast

House of d'Szeossen
Lird'yl d'Szeossen (matron mother)
Elvas'thrae (house mage, no blood ties to matron)
Ilmlim (matron's one favored consorts and rake champion of the house)

Dirzyl Shi'quos (secret drow slave)

Female Elf, Drow Bard 8 Ranger 2 Rogue 2 (Elf, Drow +2)
NE Medium Humanoid
Init +9; Senses Darkvision (120 feet); Listen +7, Spot +9
Languages Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Drow Sign Language, Elven, Undercommon
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AC 15, touch 15, flat-footed 10
. . (+5 Dex)
hp 77 (2d8+10d6+12)
; Spell Resistance (23)
Fort +6, Ref +17, Will +8
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Speed 30ft.
Melee weapon +3 Rapier +17/+12 (1d6+3) and
. . Dagger of Venom +13 (1d4+1) and
. . Masterwork Whip +15/+10 (1d3) and
. . Unarmed Strike +14/+9 (1d3)
Ranged weapon +1 Crossbow, Hand +15/+10 (1d4+1)
Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Base Atk +9/+4; Grp +9
Atk Options Sneak Attack +1d6
Combat Gear +1 Crossbow, Hand, +3 Rapier, +4 Mithral Chain Shirt, Bolts, Crossbow, Dagger of Venom, Masterwork Whip, Unarmed Strike
Ranger Spells Prepared (CL 2, +9 melee touch, +14 ranged touch):
Bard Spells Known (CL 8, +9 melee touch, +14 ranged touch):
3 (DC 18, 2/day) - Charm Monster, Dispel Magic, Remove Curse
2 (DC 17, 4/day) - Alter Self, Cure Moderate Wounds, Invisibility, Sound Burst
1 (DC 16, 5/day) - Charm Person, Cure Light Wounds, Expeditious Retreat, Silent Image
0 (DC 15, 3/day) - Daze, Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Open/Close, Read Magic
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Abilities Str 11 Dex 20 Con 12 Int 16 Wis 14 Cha 20
SQ +2 to saves vs Enchantments, +2 to saves vs spells & spell-like effects, Bardic Knowledge (+11), Bardic Music: Countersong, Bardic Music: Fascinate, Bardic Music: Inspire Competence, Bardic Music: Inspire Courage +2, Bardic Music: Suggestion, Circlet of Persuasion, Dodge, Favored Enemy: Humanoids (Elf) (+2 bonus) (Ex), Racial Skill Bonuses, Track, Trapfinding, Two-Weapon Combat, Two-weapon Defense, Wild Empathy (Ex)
Feats Armor Proficiency (Light), Armor Proficiency (Light), Armor Proficiency (Light), Bard Weapon Proficiencies, Dodge, Drow Weapon Proficiencies, Improved Initiative, Martial Weapon Proficiency - All, Rogue Weapon Proficiencies, Shield Proficiency, Shield Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency - All, Simple Weapon Proficiency - All, Simple Weapon Proficiency - All, Stealthy, Track, Two-weapon Defense, Two-weapon Fighting, Weapon Finesse
Skills Appraise +8, Balance +11, Bluff +17, Climb +2, Concentration +4, Diplomacy +21, Disguise +14, Escape Artist +10, Gather Information +18, Handle Animal +11, Heal +5, Hide +15, Intimidate +15, Jump +4, Knowledge: Dungeoneering +6, Knowledge: Local +11, Knowledge: Nobility & Royalty +6, Knowledge: Religion +6, Listen +7, Move Silently +15, Perform: Dance +17, Prof: Masseuse +5, Ride +8, Search +10, Sense Motive +8, Sleight of Hand +10, Spellcraft +6, Spot +9, Survival +5, Tumble +10
Possessions (all confiscated by matron mother)combat gear plus Circlet of Persuasion, Entertainer's Outfit (Free), Gloves of Dexterity, +4, Handy Haversack (1 @ 11.52 lbs), Ioun Stone, Pink and Green, Lesser Ring of Silent Spells, Money, Periapt of Health, Ring of Mind Shielding, Slippers of Spider Climbing
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+2 to saves vs Enchantments +2 save bonus vs Enchantments.
+2 to saves vs spells & spell-like effects +2 racial bonus to Spells and Spell-Like effects.
Bardic Knowledge (+11) Make a special Bardic Knowledge check to find out information.
Bardic Music: Countersong Counter magical effects that depend on sound.
Bardic Music: Fascinate One or more creatures becomes fascinated with you.
Bardic Music: Inspire Competence +2 competence bonus for one ally on a skill check.
Bardic Music: Inspire Courage +2 Morale bonus on some saving throws, attack and damage rolls.
Bardic Music: Suggestion Make a Suggestion to one Fascinated creature.
Circlet of Persuasion +3 competence bonus to CHA-based checks (skills already included).
Darkvision (120 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white vision only).
Dodge +1 to AC vs attacks from one opponent.
Evasion (Ex) Take no damage on a successful Reflex save.
Favored Enemy: Humanoids (Elf) (+2 bonus) (Ex)
Light Blindness Blinded for 1 round, then dazzled by bright sunlight or the daylight spell
Racial Skill Bonuses +2 to Listen, Search, Spot. If within 5' of secret door, free Search check.
Sneak Attack +1d6 Deal extra damage when your target is flat-footed or flanked by you.
Spell Resistance (23) You have Spell Resistance.
Track You can track opponents.
Trapfinding You can find and disarm traps with a DC > 20.
Two-Weapon Combat Lvl 2: 2-Weapon Ft. Lvl 6: Imp. 2-Weapon Ft. Lvl 11: Grt. 2-Weapon Ft.
Two-weapon Defense +1 to AC while wielding 2 weapons. +2 when doing so defensively.
Wild Empathy (Ex) Improve the atttitude of an animal, as if using Diplomacy.

House of Lice-Drilloth
Phardril Lice-Drilloth (matron mother)
Orbb'dalharil Lice-Drilloth (matron's daugther)
Shan'sail (ambittious low-born drow rogue)

House of Archwinter
Abduxuel Archwinter (matron mother)
Istrath (adopted first daugther, arachnomancer sorceress)
Micarmur'ss Archwinter (house weaponmaster/champion)
Antimony (a broken former slave, now house mage)

Unaligned
Vlosinerak'tharan (growing famous giggolo)
Dinirahc (a feral outcaste)
Xaleroth VanKeril (a famous weapon/armor smith, local arena champion)

Rules and Rulings

Starting level: 14, so 12 class levels for drow characthers, including matron mothers.
Starting gold: 150,000
Stats: 32 point buy
Classes/Feats/Allowed Sources: I got wide selection of books so ask what you want use (feats, PrC's and so on). Recommended to have Drows of the Underdark book.
HP: Full in first level and each pairless levels (1, 3, 5 etc). Rest levels you get 75% of your HD as HP. Below is the formula for each HD;
d4=3
d6=4.5
d8=6.5
d10=7.5
d12=8.5

To make it easy to count round down the fractions and after all counting add +3 to your HP total to get the fractions.

Pictures: Here is nice link given by player for drow pic collection (females on top of the page and males at bottom of the page); http://s749.photobucket.com/albums/xx134/ulthakptah/Drows/?start=all

Matron Mothers
Any female drow who has 6 divine CL to able cast third level divine spells is able to become matron mother (expect few npc cases from Erelhei-Cinlu sourcebook). Unlike other chars matron mothers gain following benefits;

Bonus feats (for free)
-Landlord feat from Stronghold Builder's Guide. It gives them 200,000 additional gold to build up their houses (and double up to 50,000gp any own starting gold invested to stronghold). I can assist on the building matter if you lack the book.
-Special house ruled leadership for matron mothers in below;

Feat: Drow Matron

Drow Matron
Prerequisites: Drow female, able to cast 3rd level divine spells, GM's permission
Benefits: the character is the Matron of a drow noble House. She is the leader of a family of powerful drow nobles, and has a considerable following of commoners beneath her. This feat works almost identically to Leadership, only with adaptations suitable for a drow matron. Firstly, for the purposes of this feat, the character's Leadership score gains a +5 modifier. Secondly, there are no penalties to one's leadership score for Aloofness, Cruelty, Causing the Death of Followers, or having a Familiar, Animal Companion, etc (note that killing cohorts still brings penalties). Thirdly, all of the numbers on the table for Followers are multiplied by 10, but with stipulations on the Followers selected.

1st and 2nd level: These followers are required to be slaves of the following species; orcs, goblinoids, or other suitable species. They are not willing followers, and thus there are special penalties; they must be locked up unless under the eye of a follower of 3rd level or higher, or else they will flee and be lost until replaced.

3rd level and up: These followers must be drow (see Exception below), whether they are warriors, mages, or lesser priestesses. The highest two levels of followers must be devoted to the Matron's family, in the form of daughters, sons, nephews, nieces, brothers, sisters, etc.

Exception: Up to one plus Charisma modifier followers may instead be chosen from a likely retainer taken on by a drow Matron (GM's judgement), so long as its effective level fits within the total followers available (Note: these special followers can be chosen from the top two levels, despite those normally being reserved for family).

The Matron's cohort must be a male drow, who serves as her patron, unless a PC patron is chosen, in which case the cohort simply fills a role as a high-level follower.

House Businesses
The way how I measure how each house gains income is this; each matron of the house chooses 1 major source of income and chooses two secondary ones. No other house can share the major source of other house (that house holds monopoly in said business). But they can share secondary sources of income (meaning can select same secondary businesses). The way how it is handled is found in DMG II pg180; business management.

It means I tailor make if need be, a business which has one major skill related to it with two secondary skills (which mostly give bonus to business check). You take 10 with major skill and you must get 25 to get no loss of a income. If you go over that you gain profit. Now the list in DMG II is quite small and meaning just one business. But when drow house runs a business they run multiple shops, taverns and factories. So their income goes following; their major income has 1,000% bigger numbers and secondary have 100% bigger numbers.

The exact profit depends is the selected business high, medium or low in risk chances. Example if you take low risk chance business as major business, the DMG II shows that each point over 25 in the business roll you gain as 10gp each point. But as house major business you gain 10,000gp instead per point past 25. The business roll is done once per month and also you get business related event rolled by the GM (high risk business gets two event rolls). If your check goes under 25, you loose that said amount of coin from the house (there are bad consequences if your unable to pay the fine).

If some matron mother does not have DMG II I can explain it more thorough fashion in a PM where I can explain all factors which improve and reduce the business roll. However know that if you select example weapon industry as major business, having high ranks in craft:weaponcrafting would be major skill and so having high as possible rank/modifier in said skill helps.

[Karasu]

I'd be willing to ply a drow, but you knwo Shys are my best soo. if I can do that I'll see about rolling up a character

[Zaer Darkwail]

Glad your interested :). Check cast list to see some our present players and check do you want join house or not. Damn, I forgot mention the house infos besides the history :P.

Anyways I feel matron mothers should do their own house advertisement and infos than I ;).

[Snake]

Hey Zaer, just how many chars can we have though? *curious* might be good to know too for everyone.

[Zaer Darkwail]

Well, I set the max for 10 chars, one for each player.

Also said there is one more spot for matron mother so we got 2 matron mothers now and two houses.

[Snake]

Gotcha.

[Zaer Darkwail]

Hmmm, or wait. Perhaps 12 is good max as then it covers another matron mother with 2 PC's and one more neutral or extra house member to one the houses.

[Snake]

Haha well shoot it's something to do.

[esclavage]

I just wanted to give a SUPER big thanks to Zaer for prettifying our interest thread.   ;D. And I wanted to feel out when we might be considering starting the group game so everyone has a general time frame in mind so we can get off to a jump start.

[Zaer Darkwail]

I give generous of two weeks time complete houses and charsheets from this post. Also my school period changes after next week so I am in new schelude (not sure what I get but I get free time after the school as there is lots of pressure going on this and next week).

[Snake]

School sucks doesn't it Zaer? But necessary evil....kind of like those sexy drow matrons ^.~

[Zaer Darkwail]

Only reason why drow males have failed overtake drow matrons for most cities; they are far too sexy for males to think straight to plot seriously :P. Cities which fall fail either in beauty of the matrons or matrons failing show their goods once every while to single male to keep their attention where it should be.

[Snake]

Or a slew of Gay Males. XD scary thought there aint it? *chuckle*

[Karasu]

*drools* oooh gay drow males... so hot <3

[Snake]

They wouldn't survive. remember some  high priestesses and matrons can read their minds pretty accurately.

[Karasu]

haha still hot tho. XD

[Snake]

Ugh. I guess to each their own *looks a little green* pardon me *is heard getting sick in teh adjacent bathroom*

[PaleEnchantress]

*drools* oooh gay drow males... so hot <3

Leave it to us to work this one up ^_^.

[Karasu]

oh god ya! <3 *so goes to work up a male Drow*

[PaleEnchantress]

Zaer, I'm hoping you will approve my character. I sent you a reminded of who im talking about. I ADORE Erelhei-Cinlu even more then Menzoberranzan. If I do get in id like to be the house that rules the ghetto of the dead. Currently thats listed as House Eilservs. That house is very important to the plot so it would make more sense to move them up in rank then to replace them. Alternatly I wouldn't mind replacing house Vae in their ghetto either.

[Karasu]

If he's approved I'm totally playing his First boy and/or consort ^^

[Zaer Darkwail]

I approved his unique male matron mother concept, so we got now third matron mother. But as note it's with condittion that in open public appearance his gender is either hard to determine or appears physically female as well. But matron mothers of other houses know that she was born male but showed overwhelming amount of Lolth's favor when he was meant to be sacrificed to Lolth through shoving him through a gate spell.

But instead she/he got the famous matron mother's snake whip and hit a head priestess with it, slayed her and anyone who stood between she/him and from hers/his house. Once returned home she/he took control of the house and killed all rest siblings as well. Also any divinations which ask does he have Lolth's favour or did Lolth choose him to be matron mother shows positive answer.

Considering the fact that in the world you can easily transport soul to body which may be opposite to one which you were born in the church and other matron mothers do not defy Lolth's decision with clause that this matron mother's born physically as male is considered a birth defect.

[Zaer Darkwail]

If he's approved I'm totally playing his First boy and/or consort ^^

All the work I did to create your female char already :P. Could you not be his firstborn daugther instead?

[PeacethatPowerbrings]

I might be interested, perhaps with a sorceress type character.

[Karasu]

All the work I did to create your female char already :P. Could you not be his firstborn daugther instead?

oh don't fret Zaer. I'd be playing two charaacters insted of just the one XD