The Tome Of Drow Lore.pdf - RoseRed

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higher regard than any other qualities. Children are trained
with the blade almost from birth and the bond between a
warrior and his sword is considered a sacred thing. Indeed,
often the most valued and treasured possessions a family
has are the swords passed from one generation to the next.
The culture of the Draz’Kuri drow is held together by
an intricate web of obligation and social standing, the
complexities of which are completely bewildering to
outsiders. Though they are no kinder to their offspring
than are other drow, turning them out to make their own
way in the world at an early age, the concept of family is
far more important to the Draz’Kuri than it is in other dark
elf societies. Allegiance to one’s elders is expected, as is
allegiance and obedience to those of higher social standing.
Such allegiance is by no means assured, even in this lawful
drow society, but it is far more common than not.
Religion
Of the entire drow pantheon, only three gods are worshipped
by the Draz’Kuri: Nazrakoth, Olyet’Naru and Thraud.
Between them, these three gods encompass all that is of
import to the drow of House Draz’Kuri.
In House Draz’Kuri, personal adherence to the tenets of
the gods is considered more important than any other form
of worship. A drow who keeps order as the centre of his
life, who does all that he puts his mind to well and who
is a deadly foe on the battlefield is considered as devout
as any cleric in other drow societies, as he has taken the
lessons of the three gods and incorporated them all into
his own life. This cultural notion can make life difficult
for those who actually devote themselves to the gods as
priests, as any failure to completely live up to the ideals
of his chosen god can result in the rest of the Draz’Kuri
openly doubting his faith. In the most extreme cases, this
can lead to the sacrifice of the priest on the altar of his own
god, offered as an apology to the deity and a prayer that he
will not withdraw his strength from the people because of
the failures of the individual.
House Features:
� Automatic proficiency with the longsword, and the
Weapon Focus (longsword) feat. All Draz’Kuri drow
are taught the use of the blade from the time they are
old enough to hold it. Even characters without a +1
base attack bonus gain this feat for free at 1 st level.
� -2 penalty to Disguise, Hide and Forgery skill checks.
These abilities are considered unworthy in the culture
of the Draz’Kuri.
House Skills: Knowledge (history), Tumble
Favoured Class: Fighter
Predominant Alignment: Lawful evil
Predominant Religion: Thraud
House Gaundroth
The youngest of the Houses of the drow and likely the
smallest as well, House Gaundroth is nonetheless an
organisation of tremendous power. They are the most
prolific producers of wizards and sorcerers among all the
Houses of the drow and it is said that magic comes as easily
to them as does breathing.
Background
House Gaundroth has only existed as a separate entity
for a little more than a millennia, when the forebears of
the House split away from House Narrishtah in a bloody,
rancorous schism.
For untold years, the balance of power in the city of
Drak’kamuth had been tilted toward the drow of House
Arras’zur, the House which seemed most favoured by the
Dark Mother. Dissatisfaction with this situation grew and
festered in House Narrishtah, but recalling the purging
of the unfaithful by the spiders of the Dark Mother, they
suffered it in silence. House Narrishtah was hardly without
power of its own, but some of the rulers of the House were
unsatisfied.
A drow named Tathria Gaundroth rose to prominence in
House Narrishtah, a wizard of surpassing power, thought to
be among the strongest the House had ever produced. Her
desire in earlier life had been to serve as a priestess of the
Dark Mother, a goal which was denied her. Anger at this
denial festered within her and she began, in her heart, to
despise the priestesses of the Dark Mother. She saw them,
and the entire culture built by the two Houses, as becoming
irrevocably decadent, more concerned with foolish acts of
cruelty than with any manner of actual accomplishment.
Through her research into the works of other wizards,
she also learned of the goddess Ydrillia, She of the Veil,
and did what no drow of either House Arras’zur or House
Narrishtah had done in thousands of years; she turned from
the Dark Mother to worship another deity.
It was a mark of Tathria’s power that she managed to
conceal her betrayal of the Dark Mother for so long, but as
she recruited others of her House to the worship of Ydrillia,
the priestesses of the Dark Mother began to hear rumours
that drow were abandoning their church. The confrontation
came swiftly, pitting Tathria and her followers against
the priestesses of the Dark Mother, the entirety of House
Arras’zur and a good portion of the strength of House
Narrishtah, who did not dare go against the orders of the
priestesses.