Eilistraee
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| Eilistraee | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Alignment | Chaotic Good | |
| Divine Rank | Lesser Goddess | |
| Pantheon | Dark Seldarine, Faerûn | |
| Portfolio | Beauty, Dance, Song, Freedom, Moonlight, Swordwork, the Hunt | |
| Domains | 3E: Chaos, Charm, Drow, Elf, Good, Moon, Portal 5E: Life, Light, Nature |
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| Home Plane | Great Wheel: Svartalfheim (Ysgard) World Tree: Arvandor; she also detains a small domain inThe Demonweb Pits (Abyss) |
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| Worshippers | mostly, but not exclusively: surface drow, goodly drow, elves, bards, hunters | |
| Favoured Weapon | Moonsword (bastard sword) | |
Eilistraee is the daughter of Corellon Larethian and Araushnee. Exclusively belonging to the Forgotten Realms setting, she is the only good drow goddess, and her domains include: beauty, dance, song, moonlight, hunt, swordwork and, as of 5e D&D, freedom. The Dark Maiden, as she is called, has the main goal of freeing the drow from Lolth's cruelty and tyranny, helping them retake their future and forge their own path on the surface after centuries of living blind to the world. She also strives to promote peace among all races, and to reunite the drow with their elven brothers and sisters. Therefore, she is the patroness of all dark elves who long for a life free from the strife imposed on them by Lolth, but also of artists (especially dancers and musicians), crafters, and hunters. She looks favorably on outcasts as well, encouraging her followers to offer them shelter. Even though focused on drow, Eilistraee firmly believes in the possibility of redemption for individuals from all races, and gladly welcomes anyone willing to walk a path that revels in life and its celebration. As a result, she is mostly followed by drow, but has worshippers among various races.
Personality
Due to her choice of sharing the fate of her people, Eilistraee went through many hardships and much pain and loss in her life, but she learned to turn the scars of her battles into flowers, and her pain into empathy and compassion. Despite all her wounds, she never stopped seeing and healing the beauty in all things and souls, including what was broken or corrupted; she never stopped loving, dreaming, and smiling to life. The Dark Maiden can still find hope, and the strength to create and nurture, even in the darkest place, and she works to bring her warmth to those trapped in the cold of their night--especially her people. She knows far too well that the world isn't all bright and happy, but the possibility for joy exists even at the height of suffering, and she wants all to see and find it.
Her past made Eilistraee a generally melancholic goddess, but also kind-hearted, gentle, and caring. She knows what it is to suffer, so she cherishes and cares about all beings for what they are (including the scars of the battles that every individual faces) and shows compassion and mercy to all who need them--even the darkest souls--because no one deserves to be alone in their pain, and even those who have fallen to cruelty can still hold good within them. She finds joy in helping people in need in various practical ways, even those who are not her followers or drow, if they act for good.
That said, the Dark Maiden is also free like the wind, a lover of life and nature, with an impish, playful streak and a wild side to her personality (which often leads her to act in protection of her followers when they are harmed). Her suffering taught her to find her happiness in the small things, and in bringing happiness to other people. An act of kindness towards a stranger, learning a new song, or the splendor of a sunrise will be enough to make her smile. She loves all arts and forms of creativity (especially dance and song), and delights not only in performing herself, but also in filling artists with bursts of inspiration. She strives to nurture and keep alive the spark that exists in all people, and art and compassion are the most powerful forces to defeat fear and resignation, and to spread joy. For that reason, she teaches to celebrate life in its fullness, as to bring passion and a sense of wonder to everyone, and make the world a better place for all.
Attitude towards the drow
Having shared the path and struggles of the drow, and having chosen to be one of them, Eilistraee is convinced that those who are still trapped in Lolth's web aren't monsters as many believe, but the result of lifelong abuse and neglect from those who should have loved them the most (as even maternal or paternal love are considered taboo and weakness under Lolth). She knows their pain, sees the part of them that was silenced by hatred and strife, their hidden beauty, and strives to nurture it. The Dark Maiden works to "redeem" the drow by showing them all that they've been missing on in life due to Lolth's oppression, and by taking the role of a nurturing mother. While they were taught that love and affection are weakness, Eilistraee loves them as they are--including vulnerabilities and wounds--and shows them the strength in caring for each other. While they were taught that an individual has no value except for the power and favor from Lolth that they detain, Eilistraee shows them that they matter as people. Lolth's society is governed by rigid roles and rules, and every drow is forced to constantly wear a mask and enegage in the perennial strife. Eilistraee, on the other hand, teaches them the freedom of expressing themselves, of casting off their chains, and experience that full, vivid joy that too many are denied. With her focus on beauty and freedom, Eilistraee lures the drow out of their prison (and, weirdly, comfort zone, due to Lolth's indoctrination), to embark on a journey to see and marvel at what life actually is, to open their eyes and make them understand that a different existence is not only possible, but that it leads to actual happiness and liberation.
The Dark Maiden is there in all the important parts of this journey; while she can't guarantee safety, she tends to her "children" in various practical ways, nurturing, protecting and teaching them about the surface world that is their forgotten home. For example, she often scares off aggressors, sends visions warning of danger, or leads a stag within the reach of a hungry drow. She provides dancing beams of moonlight that move about guiding those who are lost in the dark and leading them to safety, or to lighten childbirths. She is also known to often appear when her children need confort and her visible support in difficult moments (or to welcome a new drow to "join her dance"). It usually happens through her own moonlight, or as a protecting, shadowy, tall female dark elf that dances with the drow.
Even then, Eilistraee tries to leave the drow free to choose; she is subtle and delicate when offering her help, and careful to never impose herself or to forcefully intervene in people's choices. She wishes for her children to find their own path, and to see with their own eyes what life has to offer.
Appearance
Eilistraee appears as a drow woman of glowing beauty, usually unclad, surrounded by ankle-long silvery hair that dances around her body. She is tall and lithe (even 9 feet/2,7 meters tall in her avatar form), with long, graceful legs and glossy skin of the color of the night sky. Her face is suffesed by soft and warm grace, with delicate features and dark lips that are quick to curve into a(n often impish) smile. Her eyes—larger than in most drow, of a silvery color with shifting hints of blue—are deeply expressive, as if they were the painting of the goddess' soul. Her voice carries a sweet musicality within itself, he sound of a beautiful song, or of a mother's lullaby.
Those who gaze upon the Dark Dancer are caught by the deepest emotions: to quote her description in a novel, they often feel to have found "the answer to that question which every soul felt, but no words could frame". Suffering and sadness dissolve, and even the most hopeless night turns into a moment of beauty and solace. However, a feeling of loss—even desolation—can take them upon her leaving, perhaps one of the reasons why she rarely joins the celebrations of her followers.
Eilistraee's nudity is considered by many a bad example of fanservice; while it's likely true that her appearance was determined by that among the other things, there are also reasons for it.
History
When, during Eilistraee's youth, a host of evil deities assaulted Arvandor (her home), Araushnee's treachery almost made her slay her own father, Corellon, by cursing one of her arrows, meant to save him, mid-flight. Even though she was judged as innocent, Eilistraee chose to share her mother's exile, because she had foreseen that the drow would need her warmth and guidance in the dark times that were to come, and she couldn't provide that from the luxury of Arvandor, but only by being by their side in their struggle. Feeling guilty, she also swore to never use the bow again, and started sword-dancing instead. Corellon was pained to see his child go, but at the same time he was proud of her choice.
After her exile, the Dark Maiden followed the elven people--including the dark elves that she had chosen to watch over--to Toril. There, alone, she fought Vhaeraun's (her brother) and Ghaunadaur's corruption of the drow in southern Faerun and their militarist ways, but in the end she wasn't powerful enough to prevent their rise, and became hunted by them alongside her followers. Eilistraee and her people would found a flourishing center of arts and magic in Miyeritar, rivaling the splendor of the greatest elven kingdoms, but it wouldn't last. During the Crown Wars, a conflict started by the power plays of the sun elves of Aryvandaar and fueled by the ruthlessness of the dark elves of Ilythiir, her efforts couldn't contain the so called Dark Disaster, a magical cataclysm unleashed by the sun elves, which caused the death of the majority of her people in Miyeritar, leading her to lose everything she had worked for, and bringing her to a near powerless state.
Eilistraee found a precious friend in the demigod Selvetarm, her nephew and son of Vhaeraun and Zandilar the Dancer, who had walked away from his parents, neither good nor evil. Eilistraee took care of him; she raised him by teaching her ways and the two grew close to each others. Selvetarm admired his aunt and wished to gain, in turn, her admiration; the Dark Maiden hoped that Selvetarm could reunite the drow with the elves and the Seldarine. However, Lolth would later trick him into slaying her rival Zanassu, a demon lord of spider, with the promies that such a feat would neat him Eilistraee's admiration. Predicatably, it didn't go like that; Selvetarm was corrupted by the demon, becoming a raging berserker and Lolth's pawn, stripping the Dark Maiden of her friend and protegé.
As the Crown Wars raged on, Lolth and Ghaunadaur kept corrupting the dark elves by tempting their rulers, warriors and nobles with demonic influence, until the Seldarine and the elven court cursed and exiled all of them (including the surviving Eilistraee's followers, or those who were otherwise innocent) in the event that became known as "Corellon's Descent". Once again, Eilistraee chose to share the path of her people, but in her powerless state she could not rival Lolth as deity of the dark elves, and the Spider Queen led them in the Underdark. After this event, Lolth's and Ghaunadaur's efforts to exterminate the followers of the other drow gods brought Eilistraee and her people to a virtual collapse, and her relationship with her father and the Seldarine became strained, if still friendly, due to the deep schism caused by their choice to curse and punish the entirety of the drow. Since after the Descent, when Lolth wrapped her web around the drow, Eilistraee has tried her best to recover from that blow and be a mother goddess to her people, to offer them a new life and lead them to flourish once again. She is alone in this battle, however, an underdog who faces forces much greater than her (most of the Dark Seldarine), and too often the results of her efforts and of those of her followers have been swept away like ashes in the wind. Multiple times the Dark Maiden and her followers managed to rebuild and gain some prominence, and many times they fell; despite all this, Eilistraee kept starting over and never stopped fighting for her people. In the 1300s DR, all the sacrifices were rewarded with substantial gainings and progresses in her cause.
Eventually, the Dark Maiden chose to put her own life at risk in a battle to free the drow from Lolth once and for all. She was left alone to face the deities of the Dark Seldarine one by one, as neither Corellon nor the Seldarine did anything to help her. Her father only intervened when one of her wizard followers performed a ritual that removed Corellon's curse from a small number of drow of pure Miyeritari descent and a narrow portion of her followers (a few hundreds of the few thousands followers Eilistraee has as a Lesser Goddess), changing their appearance into dusky skinned elves. Corellon decided that the transformed drow were worthy of entering his portion of Arvandor, and allowed their souls in--even though they had already access to Eilistraee's realm in Arvandor. In the end, the Dark Maiden was defeated and (apparently) killed--even though, as suggested by Ed Greenwood, thanks to the help of Mystra, the hit that took her down only made her lose her divinity, forcing her to lay low and recover for a century or so. Either way, it lasted only for about 100 years, until the Second Sundering (circa 1480s DR/5e D&D), when Eilistraee returned to her people. Both the goddess and her followers are currently still drow, as most of them weren't changed by the above-mentioned spell, nor has changing their skin ever been Eilistraee's goal, or on her to-do list (if anything, it contradicts her choice of being one of them). Note that the transformed drow were completely ignored and, as of 5e, have been retconned by Wizards of the Coast for all practical purposes.
Worshippers
The followers of Eilistraee mostly consist of surface drow, and of those drow who hope to escape the Underdark and Lolth's evil, taking back their place in the surface world. However, in line with her ideals, Eilistraee welcomes beings of all races who share the desire of seeing all races living in harmony, without pointless discrimination or wars, and who work towards that goal.
Eilistraee's clergy is mainly, but not exclusively, composed of elven or drow women (usually skilled dancers, musicians and diplomats), whose duty is to make sure that the drow communities entrusted to them thrive in the surface world and establish friendly relationship with other races. They are protectors, healers, and teachers--of survival skills as well as arts--and take care of the physical and emotional well-being of their people. Most Eilistraeen communities form around shrines or temples, and are led by the clergy. Therefore, they are often a goodly matriarchy--one where men are valued and treated with affection and respect, unlike the Lolthite matriarchy. When in positions of leadership, men often take the role of advisors and decision makers in certain areas of expertise; lay men and lay women have the same roles: gatherers, hunters, workers, scouts, etc... For a time, in order to become clerics, male drow had to spend some time as women through a ritual known as Changedance. The reason provided by Ed Greenwood, her creator, was that, due to the goddess nature, "[...]one could not truly feel the Divine Dance of Eilistraee PROPERLY except as a female[...]". This is no longer needed in the current time, as of 5e/post-Second Sundering, and male clerics (and therefore possibly leaders) are becoming more numerous.
Despite trying to embrace the teachings of their goddess, and despite actually working for good, the followers of Eilistraee are varied: while it's easier for a drow born on the surface, away from the cruelty of Lolth, to put the tenets of the faith in practice, converts have a much harder time. They come from a place where paranoia is the norm, and where every smile hides a threat. Furthermore, on the surface, many people still react aggressively to seeing a drow. In short, they are essentially re-learning to live with the help of Eilistraee and her communities, but the surface world is not exactly a friendly place to them. For those reasons, former Lolthites can be very jumpy, distrusting, and in some occasions even outright murderous (fearing that someone who found the location of a community could alert their people and then come to kill the drow). New converts can also still display the sexism common among the Lolthites.
That said, the followers of Eilistraee have managed, through their work and diplomacy, to integrate with other races in certain areas of Faerun (like Cormanthor/Elventree, Raven's Bluff--to an extent--, Silverymoon and, recently, as of 5e, the city of Waterdeep itself), so the number of places where they can find a home is increasing.
Daily Doings
The priest(esse)s of Eilistraee encourage the drow to return to the surface, and reach to them whether they are fugitives, raiders, or inhabitants of the Underdark. They show that a different kind of life, far from Lolth, is possible, and assist the drow in making this choice by giving them aid, food, acceptance, and safe places to live. They even lead missions underground (or infiltrate within Lolthite settlements) with that purpose in mind, and must bring at least one drow away from Lolth per month.
As the Dark Maiden's teachings require, her clerics actively work to promote harmony between drow and other races, so that their people could be accepted and live in peace. This includes lending their swords to fight against evil, helping others, and providing food and healing to assist people of any race in need. Often, the Eilistraeens travel to bring joy and nurture beauty wherever they go through their arts, kindness and performance, or by trying out recipes new and old to delight those met along the way. They strive to spark passion into people, so that no moment is lost to the grayness of bore and melancholy.
The church also acts through envoys, diplomats and emissaries living near (or sometimes within) other races' settlements. They usually approach individuals who are more likely to accept a drow presence in their settlement and work to gain their alliance by explaining their cause and offering something beneficial in exchange for sponsorship (it could be their art, magic, exotic goods, or help). They then use this sponsorship as a basis to integrate within the community (For example, they did this with the old Myth Drannor--under Coronal Tannivh--Elventree, Raven's Bluff, and--lately--Waterdeep).
Besides their work towards their main goal, the faithful of Eilistraee are known to nurture beauty, practice music and arts, and spread kindness, joy, and hope whenever possible. The clerics have to be skilled at playing (and repairing) at least one instrument; to be adequate singers; to be fit, graceful dancers; and to teach their art to others. They constantly gather and share songs and musical knowledge, and acquire training in the use of the sword when they can.
Finally, the church of Eilistraee, especially near the Promenade of the Dark Maiden, is known for their efforts against slavers of all kinds, actively fighting organizations dedicated to the practice and offering shelter to slaves. Freedom is one of the most important values to them, so it makes sense that they'd strive to hunt those who want to see other people in chains.
Rituals
The worshippers of Eilistraee practice many rituals, but the iconic form of worship is a nude dance (usualyl solitary, but sometimes in group) in a moonlit glade (or, lacking that, using any source of light--often a candle), in which they let out all the emotions of the day in a wordless message for the goddess to listen. Some say that this created as fanservice, but it can also have a fitting function. The life in a Lolthite society is based on constructs, falsehood, deceit; conflict is constant and trust and spontaneity are taboos. A nude dance in which the drow let out all their emotions is the act of laying down the mask and feeling free to just be themselves and embrace life. Furthermore, in a society of perpetual conflict, where trust is taboo, vulnerability must be hidden. To be free to dance in the nude with others (or while invoking a goddess) is to be free to show one own's vulnerability—it means that vulnerability is sometimes acceptable, forming a bond of trust, and being accepted as a whole. All of this is surely helpful to "heal" a drow who escapes the abuse of Lolth and her society.
Despite their iconic ritual, unlike many seem to believe, the followers of Eilistraee are not nudists. They wear the most practical garb for a given occasion and armor in battle.
Song and music have important roles among the Eilistraeens; not only arts and celebration are tools to show the drow a different kind of life, they're a powerful mean of self-expression, and mark the rhythm of the daily life in their communities. Music is also the conduit of the iconic form of Eilistraeen magic, known as Spellsong. Be it solitary or in group, this song can produce magical effects of various kinds (mostly healing and protective magic, including raising the dead). A particular kind of Spellsong is the Moonsong, a sweet melody reminiscent of the sound of the wind, capable of conjuring a soft curtain of moonlight. The casters can dance within it to enter in tune with Eilistraee's magic and hear the songs of distant lands--the music that surrounds a given place (or the people who live there) when it's lit by the moon. Once the song of the place chosen as the destination, or of its people, is heard, the caster follows it to be transported there along beams of moonlight. The Moonsong can be celebrated as a chorus, a melody that constantly changes around a main tune led by a senior priest(ess). The magic of the chorus creates beams of moonlight, whose intensity grows with the emotion of the singers. If such radiance meets with real moonlight, any creature or item that the priest(esse)s are touching or carrying while singing can be transported along a path of moonlight to any place where the moon is shining. These two spells are often used by the clerics of Eilistraee to travel for their missions.
Dance holds the same importance as music, as well as a similar role. Unlike music, however, the art of dance is used by an order of priest(esse)s of Eilistraee (the Sword Dancers, the most numerous one) to craft a unique combat style resembling that of their goddess. It focuses on mobility and on evading attacks and spells, rather than on offense, and combines grace and acrobatic skills with the mastery of the blade. Another defining trait is the use of the Dancing Swords, blades that can fight on their own and that the specialized clerics of Eilistraee have learned to use defensively (by letting them dance around their body to deflect attacks when their elusive movements aren't enough).
Another unique ritual is the Run, celebrated at least once per year. The participants use particular boiled leaves and berries to make their hair silvery, and those who aren't drow use natural pigments to paint their bodies black. They then venture on a journey through the surface world, relying on their music, kindness, and skills with the sword to not be hunted and killed for being drow. The goal is to go where they are strangers, reaching communities of elves and other races to bring them food, beauty, and help of various kinds--not to preach their faith, but simply out of the good of their heart and to show (together with their day-to-day activities) that the drow could be rightful non-evil inhabitants of Faerûn. Clerics also use this time to learn and/or teach new songs, music, recipes, and sword techniques. The Run usually lasts a month or a month and a half, but it can go on for as long as a season or even a year, depending on the situation.
Followers who don't die in battle and reach death of old age, are blessed by Eilistraee with the ritual of the Last Dance. When their moment is nearing, Eilistraee's faithful hear the goddess singing to them by night, calling them to her. When the song feels right, they simply dance unclad under the moonlit sky. The goddess comes and dances with her follower, and as the aged worshipper dances, they gradually gains the strength and energy of youth, looking younger and younger. Their hair glows with the same radiance as the Dark Maiden's, and they slowly fade away as the dance goes on. In the end, only a silvery radiance can be seen and two voices, the goddess and her faithful, are heard, raised together in a melancholic, tender song.
Vandria Gilmadrith
| Vandria Gilmadrith | ||
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| Alignment | Lawful Neutral | |
| Divine Rank | Intermediate Goddess | |
| Pantheon | Seldarine | |
| Portfolio | War, Justice, Vigilance, Decision, Grief | |
| Domains | 3E: Law, Protection, War 5E: Grave, War |
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| Home Plane | Arvandor | |
| Worshippers | Lawful Elves | |
| Favoured Weapon | Longbow | |
Meanwhile back in "Core" D&D, in something similar to a "What if?" Scenario, we have Vandria. Who is also the daughter of Corellon and Araushnee. Though in this case the story does not have his daughter shoot him through the heart with a cursed arrow.
So we get to see what the daughter would have turned out like if she was raised by Corellon instead, and bizarrely she turns out unlike any other Elven god in the Pantheon: Vandria is LAWFUL, but not only that but an entire rank category higher than Eilistraee too.
Vandria Gilmadrith is the goddess of guardians in Elven communities. Her servants participate strongly with the town militias, and they have strongholds hidden all over the place. They also act as arbitrators as diplomats because they are likely to be the most even handed amongst elves.
