Mintiper's Chapbook
Part 5: Myth Glaurach
by Eric L. Boyd

Mintiper Moonsilver is one of the legendary bards of the Forgotten Realms, and tales of his adventures have long been recounted around hearthfires across the North in musical, poetic, and narrative forms. Transcribed in Silverymoon's Vault of the Sages by the Keeper of the Vault, Mintiper's Chapbook is a compilation of the Lonely Harpist's ballads, poems, and tales. Selected pages of this chapbook have been annotated and passed into this chronicler's hands and shall be revealed here in a periodic column.

Myth Glaurach

No more do lovers pledge their troth,
Or gaze upon the stars.
No more do children sing and dance,
Or dream of lands afar.

(CHORUS)
For all about are bloody bones,
And shattered dreams now lost.
A sea of orcs sought only death,
Myth Glaurach was the cost.

No more do towers soar aloft,
Or cast their shadows deep.
No more are stones made into walls,
To form a sturdy keep.

(CHORUS)

No more do fields turn gold with grain,
Or wells yield water blue.
No more do tomes hold cherished lore,
Or teach old thoughts anew.

(CHORUS)

ballad entitled "The Horde’s Wake"
attributed to Mintiper Moonsilver
Year of the Arch (1353 DR)

Keeper’s Annotations

Despite being commonly attributed to the Lonely Harpist, The Horde’s Wake is actually the work of an Eaerlanni spellsinger who died in the Year of the Broken Branch (864 DR) and whose name is lost to history. Mintiper rediscovered the ballad and popularized it in recent years, accounting for the confusion over the correct attribution and its inclusion in this chapbook. (It should be noted that, in lieu of "Myth Glaurach," most bards substitute the name of another city or realm that has fallen to a horde of orcs and is better known to their audience when performing this ballad. Of course, this practice only contributes to Myth Glaurach’s continuing obscurity.)

The Journal of Ilygaard Stormhawk, Druid of the Tall Trees Circle, which now lies in the Vault of Sages in Silverymoon, speaks of Mintiper’s first performance of The Horde’s Wake in the Year of the Arch (1353 DR). According to Ilygaard’s account, Mintiper introduced the ballad to the assembled audience of druids by explaining that it had come to him in vision several years before while in the throes of a terrifying nightmare during a night spent amidst some ruins that lay to the east of Hellgate Keep. The Lonely Harpist and his companion, the slave girl Noura, had sought refuge in a small chamber beneath some creeper-covered rubble as they made their way westward from the Far Forest to Tall Trees, attempting to skirt the demons and ghoul packs of Hellgate Keep. Although Noura’s dreams while amidst the ruins were untroubled, Mintiper spent the night vividly reliving the death of an elven spellsinger whose city was being overrun by an orc horde. During the course of the nightmare, Mintiper somehow learned the elf’s centuries-old final ballad, The Horde’s Wake, composed during the sacking of Myth Glaurach as the spellsinger’s lifeblood slowly drained away. [1]

It is my belief that Mintiper learned of this ballad while communing with the spirit of a long-dead inhabitant of Myth Glaurach, perhaps by way of a heretofore unknown property of the mythal said to still cloak the city’s ruins. The wizardly mythal that envelops Myth Glaurach is perhaps the youngest and least well known of these living fields of magic to be found in the Realms. [2] As Myth Glaurach had neither a long nor particularly illustrious history ere its destruction, few tales of fabulous treasure or magic are linked with its name. [3] Nevertheless, this little known site is a place of great magical power, and its ruins have long been a convenient staging ground for adventurers daring to explore the nearby citadel-town of Hellgate Keep. [4]

Myth Glaurach’s mythal was raised in the Year of the Turning Leaf (590 DR) over the Eaerlanni city of Glaurachyndaar, known in that era as the City of Scrolls. [5] Elven and human wizards from Ascalhorn, Eaerlann, Evereska, Silverymoon, and Myth Drannor participated in the casting, employing a variant of Mythanthar’s create mythal spell based in part on the earlier work of Mythanthar. [6] Major participants in the raising of the mythal were Ecamane Truesilver, Khelben Arunsun, Tisharu Craulnober, and Tellshyll the Aged. [7] Myth Glaurach was intended to be the first of three allied cities wrapped in myth, but planned wizardly mythals over Ascalhorn and Silverymoon were never raised. [8]

Myth Glaurach was overrun by the Nethertusk Horde in the Year of the Broken Branch (864 DR), just eighteen years after its defenders easily repulsed the much larger Bloodfang Horde. For generations, military historians have debated the factors behind this tragedy, but most scholars agree that King Malraug of the Nether Peaks, a venerable orc of tremendous cunning, simply outwitted the overconfident commanders of Myth Glaurach’s military on his second attempt to overrun its defenses.

A surprising explanation for the fall of Myth Glaurach is revealed in the journal of an orc shaman from that era, a little-known volume entitled Life with Tusks found in the Herald’s Holdfast. According to that account, Myth Glaurach was warded against any being that had consumed the flesh of men, a rite of passage to become a warrior in most orc tribes of the region. After the decimation of the Bloodfang Horde, the one-eyed god of the orcs revealed the cause of their failure to his surviving shamans in the region. After they informed their liege of their collective vision, Malraug then banned an entire generation of orcs from consuming the flesh of their hated foes. The orcs’ patience was rewarded nearly two decades later, when the Myth Glaurach’s mythal provided no impediment to the Nethertusk Horde.

If this account can be believed, it might well explain why several adventuring bands have found sanctuary among the ruins of Myth Glaurach from the demons of Hellgate Keep and their packs of ravenous ghouls. [9] Other properties of Myth Glaurach’s mythal have been lost, forgotten, or corrupted by decay, although those that survive have permitted the inhabitants of Hellgate Keep and certain daring adventurers to work powerful incantations and to replenish magic they carry. [10]

Chronicler’s Footnotes

[2] There are believed to be four true wizardly mythals in Faerûn, including the one raised over the Imperial Mount of Shoonach in the Year of the Black Flame (229 DR), the one raised over Myth Drannor in the Year of Soaring Stars (261 DR), Myth Glaurach’s mythal, and one as yet unidentified.

[3] Although Myth Glaurach is largely forgotten except among the Fair Folk, its historical importance far exceeds that which the Keeper attributes to it, and the ruins of this ancient city still contain some of the greatest treasures of the elven realm of Eaerlann. Other treasures were plundered by the demons of Hellgate Keep and may yet lie within the ruins of neighboring Ascalhorn. In those few tales that do speak of the City of Scrolls, mention is made of Delimbiyra’s Shining Bow, the Dragontear Crown of Sharrven, and the Shattered Staff of Starsongs, none of which have ever been recovered.

[4] See Mintiper’s Chapbook #4: Crypt of the Black Hand and the module Hellgate Keep for further discussion of this fallen bastion of evil.

[5] Founded ere the rise of Netheril, Glaurachyndaar was a small city in eastern Eaerlann near the confluence of the River Aulantrar (Deepingstream) and the River Starsilver, well known for its school of elven wizardry. After the Fall of Netheril, the High Mages of Glaurachyndaar joined the ruling council of Ascalhorn in advocating the reeducation of Netheril’s surviving arcanists in the ways of elven magic. Over the course of the next eight centuries, the elven mages of Glaurachyndaar worked closely with the Netherese refugees who settled in Ascalhorn, making the City of Scrolls an ideal candidate to emulate the example of Myth Drannor.

[6] Mythanthar’s notes on mythal construction and his rudimentary notes on his create mythal spell were recorded in workbook known as Mythanthar’s Folio. During the raising of Myth Drannor’s mythal, thieves broke into Mythanthar’s ruined tower and stole his workbook, which has never been recovered. However, one of his collaborators, the Srinshee, kept a copy of Mythanthar’s notes and the sole complete copy of Mythanthar’s create mythal spell, but The Srinshee’s Specular vanished, along with its owner, in the Year of Stern Judgment (666 DR).

At least three wizards are known to have studied from The Srinshee’s Specular ere it disappeared: Elminster Aumar, the legendary Sage of Shadowdale, the Nameless Chosen, who later took the name of Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun the Elder, and Tisharu Craulnober, an Eaerlanni female moon elf of House Craulnober. (Tisharu was an elder sister of Elanjar Craulnober and great-aunt of Elaith Craulnober, as well as the last of her clan to dwell in Eaerlann.) The Craulibram contains the only known record of Lady Tisharu’s discoveries, said to advance the art of mythal construction beyond what Mythanthar achieved in one key aspect: Myth Glaurach’s mythal seems far more resistant than Myth Drannor’s mythal to the desecration of its natural environs and the proximity of lower planar creatures. These advances no doubt account for Myth Glaurach’s relative health despite the centuries-long presence of many demons in the Upvale region. The Craulibram vanished during the raising of Myth Glaurach’s mythal, just as Mythanthar’s Folio had several centuries before. It too has never been recovered, although persistent whispers suggest it is still hidden within the ruins of Myth Glaurach.

The only other known record of a wizard’s create mythal spell was penned by Qysar Shoon IV in the Year of Black Flame (229 DR). The Necroqysarus, as the necromancer’s twelve-volume set of spell librams is known, was never recovered, so the exact details of the only known true mythal to be created by a non-elven wizard have never been studied. However, a horrific legend survives from that era that suggests Shoon IV survived the casting, despite serving as the primary caster, by draining the life forces of the four secondary and the four tertiary casters instead of his own. The former group was composed of human courtiers the Necroqysar deceived into voluntarily collaborating in the raising of the mythal. The latter group consisted of four captive elven sorceresses, all of whom are said to still haunt the catacombs beneath the Imperial Mount as banshees.

[7] The mythal that envelops the ruined city of Myth Glaurach is a wizardly mythal that has lasted for over 700 years and should last for nearly 400 more, albeit in increasingly corrupted form. At the time of its creation, Myth Glaurach’s mythal was imbued with 5 major powers and 19 minor powers. Approximately 500 hit points were drained during the creation of Myth Glaurach’s mythal, so the mythal remained whole and healthy for over five centuries. In the past three centuries, the mythal has lost 1 major power and 7 minor powers. 2 of the remaining major powers have become corrupt, as have 7 of the minor powers.

As implied previously, the central caster of the variant of Mythanthar’s create mythal spell in this instance was Tisharu Craulnober. She imbued one major and one minor power into the mythal. Four secondary casters participated in the raising of Myth Glaurach’s mythal, including Aelynthi of the Eagles, a female moon elf of Eaerlanni ancestry and Clan Archmage of House Alenuath, Isinghar "Feyrune" Ironstar, a dwelf runecarver and archmage of Ammarindar, the Nameless Chosen (see above), and Tsaer "the Horned" Nyamtharsar, a male moon elf of Eaerlanni ancestry and Clan Archmage of House Nyamtharsar. Each added one major power to the mythal. Six tertiary casters also participated in the raising of Myth Glaurach’s mythal, including Caerthynna of the Swirling Stones, a female moon elf of Eaerlanni ancestry and noted creator of ioun stones, Durngrym, an itinerant human male incantatar, Ecamane Truesilver, a human male who later became the first High Mage of Silverymoon, Jaluster of Ascalhorn, a human male archmage whose orizon later survived the fall of Hellgate Keep, Nyaalsir the Stareye, a male moon elf of Eaerlanni ancestry, and Symrustar Auglamyr, a Cormanthan gold elf female and Chosen of Mystra. Each added three minor powers to the mythal. (The Keeper’s incomplete and somewhat incorrect list of participants reflects both the natural bias of scholars of the Vault of Sages towards major figures in Silverymoon’s history and the natural distortion of the historical record over time. As Khelben has taken great pains to keep his identity as the Nameless Chosen distinct from his current guise, the Keeper’s inclusion of him in the list of the creators of Myth Glaurach’s mythal is purely happenstance.)

[8] Although plans to create "Myth Ascal" were never realized, the fall of Ascalhorn in the Year of the Curse (882 DR) necessitated that something be done to contain the demons that seemed poised to conquer the North. On Midsummer’s day in the Year of the Fell Firebreak (886 DR), a number of Harpers and powerful wizards created a near-mythal around what had become known as Hellgate Keep, using knowledge gleaned from Mythanthar’s Folio (or rather, The Srinshee’s Specular) in conjunction with other sources of power hidden in Ascalhorn ere its fall by the elves. The primary power of this near-mythal trapped all greater or true demons within the walls of Hellgate Keep and prevented them from summoning others of their kind as reinforcements.

Similarly, no mythal was ever erected over Silverymoon, although many powerful wards have been woven around the Gem of the North since the Year of the Ominous Oracle (694 DR). The establishment of Luruar has led to a new spate of rumors that Alustriel seeks to raise a mythal over her realm’s capitol city, but for now plans for the creation of "Myth Lurue" are merely conjecture.

[9] As most demons, ghouls, orcs, and trolls have consumed the flesh of dwarves, elves, or humans, the first major power of Myth Glaurach’s mythal described below makes these ruins a reasonable safehold for adventuring bands active in the Upvale. However, this property of the mythal was discovered by the rulers of Hellgate Keep before its fall and is known to most of the surviving fiends. They developed the tactic of keeping one or more packs of newly created ghouls in reserve that had never consumed human or demihuman flesh. These packs were then used to drive opponents from the mythal’s confines, at which point the demons could destroy them at their leisure. In addition, a handful of cambion and alu-demon sorcerers based in Hellgate Keep voluntarily abstained the taste of human and demihuman flesh so that they could take advantage of the mythal’s augmentations of the Art.

[10] As presently constituted, the mythal that envelops Myth Glaurach has the following 4 major powers, 2 of which have been corrupted:

1) The mythal bars the entrance of any being that has knowingly and deliberately consumed elven, human, or dwarven flesh at any time in the past from above, below, or at ground level. The mythal acts as an effective magical barrier as solid as a mountain of stone against their entry. Anyone doing so for the first time within the city’s confines or anyone who manages to enter by unknown means suffers an automatic 1d8 hit points of damage as the mythal crackles around them and then randomly teleports more than five hundred miles from the High Forest.

In addition, the mythal has a calming effect on creatures of Animal or Semi intelligence (i.e. Intelligence scores in the range of 1 to 4). Animals will not attack other creatures while within the mythal’s confines, no matter how hungry, unless attacked or specifically trained to do so and ordered by their masters. This property of the mythal ensured the safety of the numerous animal companions, familiars, and other pets that made Myth Glaurach home.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted.

2) At one time, the mythal wrapped all spellcasters in a mantle of up to three spells of their choosing. As the spellcaster entered the mythal, up to three spells of his choosing would be drawn from memory to form the mantle, although they could be subsequently rememorized if desired and no spell slots were consumed in the process. The spells contained within the mantle could then be triggered by silent act of will with a casting time of 1 once per twenty-four hour period for as long as the spellcaster remained within the mythal.

This power of the mythal no longer functions as originally intended and has become corrupted. Now, any spellcaster entering the mythal loses three spells from memory and the effects of those spells are visited upon the caster and possibly his immediate environs. (If less than three spells are currently memorized, than all memorized spells will be lost.) For example, touch spells act as if the spellcaster was the intended target. Spells with general areas of effect are unleashed centered on the caster. A spell such as magic jar (a 5^th level wizard spell) places the spellcaster’s life force in a gem somewhere within the mythal. The exact effect of any random spell unleashed in this process is left up to the DM to adjudicate.

3) While within the confines of the mythal, a spellcaster need not rememorize wizard spells. Wizard spells return to memory exactly twenty-four hours after being cast, if the spell was cast or otherwise lost while the spellcaster was within the mythal’s confines and if the spellcaster has not exited the mythal since casting the spell. Of course a spellcaster can rememorize wizard spells if desired and must do so in order to change a spell in the roster of memorized spells. Priest spells, magic items, and innate spell-like abilities are unaffected by this power of the mythal.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted.

4) At one time, Myth Glaurach’s mythal enhanced the elven ability to enter the reverie. (The reverie is a state akin to dreaming experienced only by elves, as described in the Complete Book of Elves, p. 34.) If desired, any full-blooded elf entering the reverie while within the mythal’s confines could voluntarily control which memories rise to the fore to be vividly relived. Many Teu’Tel’Quessir used this property of the mythal in the twilight of their lives to aid in the recording of their past experiences, a practice that greatly enhanced the fabled libraries of Myth Glaurach.

This power of the mythal no longer functions as originally intended and has become corrupted. Now, any being with even a trace of elven ancestry is wracked by horrific nightmares if they enter the reverie or go to sleep while within the mythal’s confines. Most such nightmares revolve around the destruction of Myth Glaurach, as the dreamer relives the horrors experienced by of one of the elves slain during the sacking of the city. Upon waking from such nightmares, a being affected by this power of the mythal is automatically affected by a fear spell (as the 4^th level wizard spell) with no saving throw allowed. There is a 10% chance per night however, that while experiencing the nightmarish visions, a being of elven ancestry will glean some tidbit of ancient lore regarding the city at the time it was sacked, as adjudicated by the DM.

As presently constituted, the mythal that envelops Myth Glaurach has the following 12 minor powers, 7 of which have been corrupted and many of which require an understanding of one of the mythal’s secret properties to employ.

1) At one time, any unmounted gemstone within Myth Glaurach’s mythal could be placed in orbit around a being’s head, and, by doing so, a being could draw on the innate, latent magical properties inherent in most, if not all, kinds of gemstones in a manner akin to employing an ioun stone.

This power no longer functions as originally intended, as the mythal’s decay has corrupted this power into a dangerous magical effect. Any gemstone within the boundaries of the mythal has a 1% cumulative chance per day of randomly unleashing an innate, latent magical property. (Once unleashed, the chance of a spell eruption for any particular gem begins again at 0%.) For example, if a ravenar (a type of tourmaline) is caught within a spell effect within the mythal’s confines, there is a chance it will ‘drink’ the spell effect and erupt with three 6d6 lightning bolts in random directions. See Volo’s Guide to All Things Magical, pp. 34-54, for a compendium of the innate magical properties associated with different varieties of gems. The exact effect of the mythal on each type of gemstone is left up to the DM to determine. At the DM’s option, gems fashioned into magic items, such as a gem of insight, a jewel of flawlessness, or the gems of a helm of brilliance, are immune to this corrupted power of the mythal.

2) Any being that knows the secret can use the mythal to provide a metamagical boost to a single spell, innate ability, spell-like effect created within the mythal. This boost in effectiveness is equivalent in effect to one of the following spells (or their reverses), as determined by the being unleashing the base effect: augmentation II, dilation II, extension III, or far reaching III. For example, a wizard casting a fireball or triggering a wand of fire might use this power of the mythal to add a point of damage to each die (i.e. augmentation II), extend the area of effect by 50% (i.e. dilation II), double the duration (i.e. extension III), or extend the range by 150% (i.e. far reaching III). It is not possible by means of this power to affect a spell, innate ability, or spell-like effect cast or triggered by another being, nor is it possible to boost the power of a magical effect if it is of too high a level to be affected by the above-mentioned metamagic spells.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted.

3) At will, any being that knows the secret can direct the mythal to recharge a magical item with charges in a fashion identical to that of Myth Drannor’s mythal.

See Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 146, for further details on this power of the mythal, which, to date, remains uncorrupted.

4) At one time, any being knowing the secret within Myth Glaurach’s mythal could adjust the effective ambient temperature and humidity they experienced as desired.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that the ruins now randomly experience wild swings of temperature and humidity independent of the weather outside the mythal’s confines. Thus while Myth Glaurach’s environment may, by chance, match the outside world, it is just as likely to be dry and freezing within on a rainy summer day in the outside world as it is to match the sweltering environment of a southern jungle on a bitterly cold and snowy day in the outside world.

5) At one time, any female cat impregnated within Myth Glaurach’s mythal had a 10% chance of giving birth to a litter of elven cats.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that any feline slain within its confines will arise as a free-willed crypt cat, and several dozen undead felines (most of the "normal" variety) now stalk the ruins, attacking all living things they encounter. See the Monstrous Compendium Annual: Volume 2, p. 26, for details on crypt cats.

6) At one time, anyone capable of casting wizard spells could read magical writings as if under the effects of a read magic spell while within the mythal’s confines.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that all magical and nonmagical writings are cloaked with a confuse languages spell (as the reverse of the 1^st level wizard spell comprehend languages) for as long as they remain within the mythal’s confines. This effect can be temporarily negated by means of a comprehend languages spell or similar spell or spell-like effect. However, there is a 25% chance that any writing made readable by such means erupts with all of the effects of an explosive runes spell (as the 3^rd level wizard spell) when read.

7) Any being that knows the secret can use the mythal to seal a wholly enclosed structure within against scrying and teleportation. By means of this power, all manner of magical or psionic divination into an enclosed space can be blocked. Similarly, all manner of magical or psionic transportation into an enclosed space can be blocked. If any means of entering a structure exists, whether it be an open window, an open door, or a hole of any size in the wall of an otherwise enclosed structure, this power of the mythal will not function. An aperture is considered sealed if any form of material wholly blocks it, whether it is a wooden door, a glass window, a piece of cloth, or a magically created wall of iron. Gases and force fields do not constitute sealing an opening, so a wall of force or a wall of fire would not suffice to block and aperture. Examples of closed structures might range from a sealed subterranean chamber, to a cloth tent with the flaps tied shut, to Daern’s instant fortress.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted. However, the ruined city retains few wholly enclosed structures, making this power far less useful than it once was.

8) Any being that knows the secret can use the mythal to project image (as the 6^th level wizard spell) at will. Only one projected image can be maintained at any given time, and a projected image can range anywhere within boundaries of the mythal as long as it remains within sight of its creator.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted.

9) At one time, anyone who knew the secret could cause the mythal to provide appropriate musical accompaniment to any lyrics sung or any tune played on a musical instrument.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that all music created within the mythal is shadowed by a discordant echo. (Music created outside the mythal’s confines but within hearing distance of those within the mythal is unaffected.) The resulting cacophony steadily increases in volume for as long as the music continues until it entirely drowns out the original composition. Even after the music stops, the discordant echoes persist for 3d10 rounds, gradually tapering off in volume. As the music appears to emanate from the location within the mythal where the music was played, it triples the chance of attracting wandering monsters. (The base chance of attracting wandering monsters is left to the DM to determine as appropriate for the campaign.)

In addition, this corrupted power disrupts all magic with a musical component unleashed within the mythal’s confines. Spells that employ music as a material component, including spellsongs, a rare form of magic employed almost exclusively by a handful of elves, function as if within a wild magic zone if cast while within the mythal’s confines. Likewise, the spell-like effects of enchanted musical instruments are also affected as if within a wild magic zone if employed within the mythal’s confines.

10) At one time, anyone who knew the secret could cause the mythal to cloak them with the effects of an ironguard spell (as the 5^th level wizard spell) at will.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that metal weapons employed within the mythal’s confines are unaffected by magical adjustments to Armor Class. For example, a cloak of protection or bracers of defense provide no protection against metal weapons, and magical armor and shields are considered nonmagical for purposes of determining Armor Class against attacks with metal weapons. Weapons that include both metal and nonmetal components are similarly unhindered by magical protections if the metal component of the weapon inflicts the actual damage.

11) Any spellcaster capable of casting wizard spells and who knows the secret can use the mythal to cast legend lore (as the 6^th level wizard spell) at most once per twenty-four hour period. In cases where a legend lore spell takes more than twenty-four hours to cast, only one legend lore spell can be in progress at any give time.

To date, this power of the mythal remains uncorrupted.

12) At one time, anyone who knew the secret could cause the mythal to fashion a shimmering swordlike plane of force (equivalent to the effect of a Mordenkainen’s sword, a 7^th level wizard spell, but with unlimited duration as long as concentration was maintained) at will.

This power no longer functions as originally intended. The mythal’s decay has corrupted this power so that if any spell from the wizard school of force is cast within the mythal’s confines, it will automatically fail. Instead, a Mordenkainen’s sword will appear and immediately attack the caster. The shimmering swordlike plane of force will continue its attack for as long as the caster remains within the confines of the mythal or until a successful dispel magic (treat as if it were cast by a 18^th level caster) is used to destroy it.

The school of force, originally defined in Player’s Option: Spells & Magic, includes such spells as armor, gauntlet, magic missile, shield, Tenser’s floating disc, battering ram, Belsham’s mace, decastave, flying fist, forcewave, lance of disruption, levitate, Quimby’s enchanting gourmet, skyhook, whirling blade, invisible mail, manyjaws, Caligarde’s claw, elude blow, Geirdorn’s grappling grasp, Othnal’s spectral dagger, Otiluke’s resilient sphere, whisper blade, sighing chain, suspension, telekinesis, Thultaun’s thrust, wall of force, gauntlet of teeth, repulsion, forcecage, Mordenkainen’s sword, Otiluke’s telekinetic sphere, and spell engine. For a listing of additional spells, heavily revised from the list in Player’s Option: Spells & Magic, see the Wizard’s Spell Compendium: Volume Four, p. 1117.

References

Introduction

• General references to Mintiper Moonsilver are cited in the first column of "Mintiper’s Chapbook."

Myth Glaurach

• Myth Glaurach is first discussed in Ruins of Myth Drannor: Campaign Guide, p. 22, wherein it is noted that it stood in the Sword Coast Northlands, in the upper reaches of the Delimbiyr Vale, near present-day Hellgate Keep. That passage notes that the city was entirely destroyed by orc hordes long ago, and that all that remains is creeper-covered rubble and a few underground chambers and sewer tunnels, now home to monsters. The mythal remains in force over these ruins, however, and is used by certain daring adventurers and by the evil inhabitants of Hellgate Keep to work powerful incanations and to replenish magic they carry. This Eaerlanni city is described as newly wrapped in a wizard mythal (one of four such wizard mythals in the Realms as of 650 DR) in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 148, suggesting that Myth Glaurach’s mythal was raised closer to 650 DR than 261 DR (when Myth Drannor’s mythal was created).
• Spellsingers and spellsongs are discussed in the Complete Bard’s Handbook, pp. 56-58, and throughout the novel Elfsong.
• Mintiper’s trek up the western edge of Anauroch, through the Far Forest, and across the Upvale as well as his five year long residence among the druids of Tall Trees in the company of Noura are discussed in Dragon #187, p. 50, and Code of the Harpers, pp. 65-68.
• The River Aulantrar (Deepingstream) and River Starsilver are discussed in Volo’s Guide to the North, p. 189. They compose the western two rivers of the three that are collectively known as the Talons.
• The existence of four wizardly mythals enveloping the Imperial Mount of Shoonach, Myth Drannor, Myth Glaurach, and one other unknown site is noted in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 148. Although the exact date of the raising of the mythal over the Imperial Mount of Shoonach has not been heretofore defined, a close reading of Empires of the Shining Sea, pp. 26, 43, suggests that it had to occur between 227 DR and 236 DR. The raising of Myth Drannor’s mythal is date in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 37.
• The River Delimbiyr is also known as the River Shining, as noted in The North: The Wilderness, p. 63, but the origin of this name is not explained.
• The elven realm of Sharrven, which claimed the southern reaches of the High Forest, is discussed in Dragon #228, p. 34, Cormanthyr: Empire of the Elves, pp. 32-34, and the novel Elminster: Making of a Mage. The former reference also makes note of the fact that the elves of Sharrven mastered magic to take on dragonshape and that the Magelords of Athalantar hunted many dragons in the region as a result.
• Starsongs are discussed in the novel In Sylvan Shadows, pp. 85, 114-116, 185-186, 212-224, 246, 249-252.
• Khelben Arunsun was known as the Nameless Chosen from 464 DR to 714 DR, as noted in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 40, and Fall of Myth Drannor, pp. 27-28.
• House Craulnober was all but destroyed circa 740 DR, leaving only two survivors: Elanjar Craulnober and his infant grandson, Elaith Craulnober, as noted in Evermeet: Island of Elves (hardcover), p. 385. This date can be computed by noting that Zoar Moonflower arrived on Evermeet in 715 DR (see Evermeet: Island of Elves (hardcover), p. 293), and that Craulnober Keep was sacked by invaders from the Underdark 25 years later (see Evermeet: Island of Elves (hardcover), p. 387). As Myth Glaurach’s mythal was raised in 590 DR before the near-destruction of House Craulnober, Tisharu Craulnober’s existence up until that time does not contradict any existing Realmslore.
• Telshyll the Aged is identified as the first wizard to settle in Silverymoon in 539 DR in The North: Cities, p. 47.
• Mythanthar’s Folio is discussed in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 143, Fall of Myth Drannor, p. 60, and Hellgate Keep, p. 5. Qysar Shoon IV is discussed in Empires of the Shining Sea, pp. 26, 43.
• The rules governing the creation and corruption of wizardly mythals are detailed in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, pp. 139-142.
• House Alenuath is identified as a moon elf house in Elves of Evermeet, pp. 39, 101. (One erroneous reference refers to them as a gold elf family.)
• Clan Ironstar of the shield dwarves is discussed in FR11 – Dwarves Deep, pp. 13, 53-54, 58, and Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, pp. 34, 37. Ironstar dwarves are noted in FR11 – Dwarves Deep, p. 13, as having been closely allied with elves after the fall of their realm in 207 DR.
  Dwarf-elf crossbreeds, known as "dwelf" in the singular and "dwelves" in the plural, are noted as having been common in the days of Eaerlann in FR11 – Dwarves Deep, p. 6.
• Durngrym was an adventuring incantatar active some 700 years before 1358 DR as noted in Dragon #90, p. 8.
• Ecamane Truesilver arrived in the Savage North intent on redeeming the ill deeds of the Netherese arcanists in the Year of Dragons Dawning (588 DR), as noted in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 41. His full history is chronicled in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, pp. 41-42, Fall of Myth Drannor, p. 8, and The North: Cities, pp. 46-48.
• Jaluster of Ascalhorn is discussed in Mintiper’s Chapbook #4: Crypt of the Black Hand and Page from the Mages, p. 63.
• Nyaalsir the Stareye is identified as an important mage active in the Upvale region in 882 DR in Hellgate Keep, p. 5.
• Symrustar Auglamyr is an important character in Elminster in Myth Drannor and is detailed in Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, pp. 113, 122, and Fall of Myth Drannor, pp. 25, 26, 27, 31-32, 54, 63. She was born in –97 DR, died in 261 DR, was reborn as a Chosen of Mystra in 261 DR, and died in 713 DR during the Weeping War.
  It is noted in Fall of Myth Drannor, pp. 21, 26, that the first time she met both Elminster and Khelben at the same time was in 712 DR, but meeting Khelben in 590 DR does not contradict this fact.
  Symrustar Auglamyr is made a tertiary caster, because she was not of sufficient level (20^th, according to Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 140) in 590 DR to be a secondary caster. Despite being a 24^th level mage when she died in 713 DR, according to Fall of Myth Drannor, p. 63, she was only a 12^th level mage (and 8^th level priest of Mystra) as of 650 DR, according to Cormanthyr: Empire of Elves, p. 122, and thus could not have been a 20^th level archmage in 590 DR. (Although she created a 9^th level spell in 348 DR, as noted in Fall of Myth Drannor, p. 54, this is easily explained as being the work of Mystra speaking through her lips, a common enough occurrence for the Chosen of Mystra.)
• The creation and power of the near-mythal that envelops Hellgate Keep is discussed in Hellgate Keep, p. 5. The wards that envelop Silverymoon are discussed in The North: Cities, pp. 45-46, 48, and Dragon Annual #1, p. 60.

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