Vhaeraun
Vhaeraun, also known as the Masked Lord and the Masked God of Night, is the drow god of Thievery, Drow Males, and Evil Activity on the Surface World.
Vhaeraun resides in his deific domain Ellaniath on Carceri's layer of Colothys. It's said that no one can find it without his permission.
Vhaeraun's worshipers include assassins, male drow and half-drow, poisoners, shadowdancers, rogues, and thieves.
The church of Vhaeraun is loosely organized, mainly due to persecution from the priestesses of Lolth who rule over the majority of the drow race. Vhaeraun's clergy is almost entirely male, and they practice a passive opposition to Lolth. Aside from that, Vhaeraun strives to reclaim the surface world from which he was forced to flee.
Some priests of Vhaeraun advocate unity of the elven races in order to more easily dominate the surface world. Most, however, view this as heresy.
The Masked Lord, The Masked God of Night, The Night, The Masked Mage, The Lord of Shadow, Shadow Lord God of arrogance, thievery, thieves, drow males, territory, and evil activity on the surface world Lesser god Alignment: Chaotic Evil Domains: Chaos, Drow, Evil, Travel, Trickery Symbol: Black mask with blue glass lenses inset over eyes Vhaeraun (pronounced Vay-RAWN) is the god of thievery and the furthering of drow aims, interests, and power in the Night Above, as the surface world is known to the faithful. He is also the god of drow males opposed to the matriarchy of Lolth, teaching that males are as skilled and valuable as females, and thus passively opposing the teachings of Lolth's priesthood on this point. He believes that drow should work with the other elven races for common advancement and never associate or trade with duergar, svirfneblin, or other dwarven and gnome races (humans and halflings can be tolerated). Vhaeraun is vain, proud, sometimes haughty, bears grudges of legendary length, and never forgets slights or deceptions. Any underhanded means and treachery is acceptable to him if it furthers his aims or is done in his service, but if others so treat him or his people, it is a deep sin that cannot go unpunished. He actively involves himself in drow affairs and moderately often sends an avatar to assist the work of his priests if the proper rituals are performed and the need is genuine. Vhaeraun is the brother of Eilistraee and Vandria and the son of Araushnee, who was cast out and became Lolth, and Corellon Larethian. The Masked Lord was cast out of the Seldarine and banished from Arvandor, along with his mother and sister, when his complicity was revealed in Araushnee's plot to destroy Corellon. While he hates all of the Seldarine, Vhaeraun harbors a particular enmity for Sehanine Moonbow, who escaped the Masked Lord's prison at great cost to herself and unmasked the culpability of both Vhaeraun and Araushnee. Likewise, the Masked Lord nurtures an abiding hatred of Eilistraee. Vhaeraun reserves his greatest hatred for the Spider Queen who gave birth to him long ago. 'Course, as he's just a lesser god, Vhaeraun's afraid of the Spider Queen, and steers well clear of her machinations, at least openly. Instead, he tries to work against her in shadow, to undermine her in silence. Meanwhile, from his realm on Carceri (Lolth's faithful'd call it a hiding place), Vhaeraun looks to unite the other drow deities against her. Thus, his priests move quietly through drow cities and the surface lands, slowly gathering power for their deity's ends. Vhaerun is also the god of thievery and territory, and this is keenly demonstrated whenever a person stumbles into his realm. Ellaniath is forever unknown to any planewalker, because the god wipes the memory of the place from the minds of all who visit it. Some say that's his ultimate form of theft, stealing a person's very essence. Antagonistic Offspring: Vhaeraun is this towards both of his parents. His father Corellon practically cut him off after exiling him from the Seldarine and gave up on the idea of trying to turn his son to abandon his ways, even vowing to kill Vhaeraun if he ever tried to hurt his sister Eilistraee. On the other hand, his and Lolth's conflicting views on what drow society should be like has resulted in them becoming complete enemies, with Vhaeraun wanting to sway the drow to his cause of destroying Lolth, her supporters and beneficiaries, and her version of society. Despite this, Lolth still considers him her favorite child. Arch Nemesis Dad: Vhaeraun is opposed by his son Selvetarm, whose status as Lolth's servant puts him in conflict with his father. Vhaeraun has a very low opinion about Selvetarm's intelligence, but the submissive trait of his son is what angers him most. Back from the Dead: Restored to life alongside his sister, Eilistraee, after the event known as The Sundering (Questions for Ed Greenwood (2015)). Badass Cape: Vhaeraun wears a magical cloak. Those who look at it in darkness can see through it the stars, the moon, or whatever else is behind it even if Vhaeraun is obviously within the portion they are observing. Vhaeraun's cloak melts into nothingness if removed from him or if his avatar is slain. Its folds can harmlessly absorb seven spells of any level per day and also attracts both magic missiles and area-of-effect spells such as fireball, completely protecting the wearer (and nearby beings who would otherwise be harmed) as if the cloak were some sort of infinitely charged special brooch of shielding. Cain and Abel: Shares this dynamic with his younger twin sister Eilistraee, with him as the Cain to Eilistraee's Abel. After that, they decided to put aside their differences and work together against Lolth. Dual Wielding: Vhaeraun wields Nightshadow, a jet-black long sword of quickness that is invisible in darkness and Shadowflash, a silver short sword that can flash with an eerie light equal to a continual light at will. Defeat Means Friendship: After having been defeated by his sister Eilistraee, and after they both returned to life, he no longer considers her an enemy. Deity Identity Confusion: Among those nondrow aware of the activities of his followers in the surface world, the Masked Lord is often confused with the human god of thieves, Mask. Evil Redhead: Artwork sometimes depict him with red hair. Further materials say that his hair changes color depending on his mood. Vhaeraun's hair is usually depicted as red or white with red tips because he's usually supremely pissed off. Evil Twin: To Eilistraee. The Wizard Mordenkainen, from the world of Oerth, doesn't include this in his recount of the drow mythos. However, the Masked Lord and the Dark Dancer have the same father and the same mother. While both siblings want to end Lolth's tyranny and secure a better future for the drow, it's under vastly different contexts. The difference is that Eilistraee wants the drow to regain their place in nature by doing acts of good and freeing themselves from the shackles of evil. Vhaeraun, meanwhile, wants the drow to conquer all that they see as a way to stop Lolth at the source, as well as deserving more for their centuries of hardship. Evil Virtues: Vhaeraun advocates for equality between male and female drow and desires to weld them into a united people, rather than a squabbling gaggle of rival houses, clans, and aims. Jerk With A Heart Of Jerk: One would think somebody whose goal is to liberate a whole race from a crazy tyrannical goddess would have more redeeming qualities. But no, he's quite a bastard; for one, he wants to enslave every non-drow race and conquer anyone who opposes him. Still, he isn't as bad as Lolth. Kaleidoscope Hair: In previous editions of Forgotten Realms, the god Vhaeraun had this according to mood (gold for triumph, blue for amusement, red for anger, green for curiosity), accompanied by Kaleidoscope Eyes to match. A Lighter Shade of Black: Yes, he's an asshole. But unlike his mother, he's a pragmatic asshole who believes in cooperation instead of betrayal for its own sake and is a champion of gender equality. He's also fairly caring to his followers, by drow standards at least. Living Mood Ring: His eyes change color according to his mood. So does his hair. He gets a double dose of Red Eyes, Take Warning; while most drow have red eyes, his turn red when he's angry. Meaningful Name: His name is pronounced similarly to Faerûn, the main setting of D&D. His main goal is to unite all elves, especially the drow, and conquer the surface world. Moral Myopia: He gets outraged over crimes committed against him and his followers, but sees no problem with doing the same to other people. If Vhaeraun stabs you in the back, you had it coming in his mind. If you stab him in the back, he'll never stop hunting you for the "transgression" against him. Never Found the Body: When Vhaeraun attempted to murder Eilistraee in the Lady Penitent series, their battle was witnessed by neither the reader nor the viewpoint characters. In the second book one of the characters cites the fact that no one saw it to argue that Vhaeraun is still alive. By that point, however, Lolth shows to the reader his mangled corpse floating in the Astral Plane, even if it may only be her illusion. And then played straight by Ed Greenwood's personal version of what happened, in which he was actually in a Mystra-induced coma. Offing the Offspring: Tried to do this to Selvetarm, his son, during War of the Spider Queen, when the latter foiled his plans to off Lolth. It's unclear who won the fight. Pragmatic Villainy: Encourages cooperation amongst his followers and discourages the drow from engaging in the in-fighting they're known for. Vhaeraun does this on the grounds that excessive backstabbing weakens factions in a way that his followers simply cannot afford in the fight against Lolth. Vhaeraun considers his sister Eilistraee as weak, in that her message of peace is seen by Vhaeraun and his followers as not worth the trouble at best and ineffective at worst. That being said, Vhaeraun can be persuaded to work with his sister and her Sword Dancers if it means taking Lolth down a peg, since the siblings share that goal. He won't be happy about it, but if it means defeating their mother, the Masked Lord can stomach it. Rebellious Spirit: Does not play well with any kind of authority, especially his mother Lolth, whose current rule and matriarchy he wants to bring down. The Revolution Will Not Be Civilized: He and his followers might be somewhat better than Lolth. But that's not saying much. The Masked Lord still wants to conquer the surface world, raise an army of drow, and crush his enemies under his heel. What makes him A Lighter Shade of Black compared to Lolth is that Vhaeraun can at least sometimes be persuaded into Pragmatic Villainy, and he's said to treat his followers decently. Smug Snake: Vhaeraun stands for the dark elves' superiority over other races and for the primacy of individual drow over other drow. He is a god of arrogance, and thus he condones all acts of avarice, fair and foul alike. Those who take what they want from whom they wish, whether through stealth or bullying, pay homage to Vhaeraun. Stealth Expert: Due to lacking the strength to challenge Lolth directly, Vhaeraun uses stealth and works against her in shadow, undermining her in silence. Vhaeraun always passes without trace and can use all invisibility spells twice per day. Take a Third Option: Lolth is outright crazy. Eilistraee is good, but very demanding and not to everyone's taste. Enter Vhaeraun; outright crazy and demanding, but at least working towards a goal. Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Vhaeraun appears as a handsome male drow with a slim, graceful, and toned physique. The Unfettered: Does what needs to be done in order to achieve his goals. Or just to amuse himself, really. Has no problem with breaking a LOT of eggs to make his omlettes. Tongue Trauma: 5e's Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes notes that some drow communities preach that his tongue was removed by Lolth for daring to question her orders. Whether or not this is true is somewhat contentious, given that Vhaeraun can communicate telepathically. Villain Has a Point: Women make up less than one percent of his clergy, but it's still less gender-exclusive than his Chaotic Good sister's Lady Land. It's not surprising he has more appeal to the disgruntled male drow seeking escape from the Dark Dancer. Although this is minor case of Depending on the Writer, as some sources describe Eilistraee clergy as not so gender-exclusive, and in 5th edition (as of the 1490s DR), Eilistraee's clergy is open to both genders. Villain with Good Publicity: Invoked by him after returning in 5e; his new instructions for his followers is to act law-abiding and trustworthy (according to the standards of surface-dwelling races) in order to hide their more clandestine activities.
The Masked Lord, The Masked God of Night, The Night, The Masked Mage, The Lord of Shadow, Shadow Lord God of arrogance, thievery, thieves, drow males, territory, and evil activity on the surface world Lesser god Alignment: Chaotic Evil Domains: Chaos, Drow, Evil, Travel, Trickery Symbol: Black mask with blue glass lenses inset over eyes Vhaeraun (pronounced Vay-RAWN) is the god of thievery and the furthering of drow aims, interests, and power in the Night Above, as the surface world is known to the faithful. He is also the god of drow males opposed to the matriarchy of Lolth, teaching that males are as skilled and valuable as females, and thus passively opposing the teachings of Lolth's priesthood on this point. He believes that drow should work with the other elven races for common advancement and never associate or trade with duergar, svirfneblin, or other dwarven and gnome races (humans and halflings can be tolerated). Vhaeraun is vain, proud, sometimes haughty, bears grudges of legendary length, and never forgets slights or deceptions. Any underhanded means and treachery is acceptable to him if it furthers his aims or is done in his service, but if others so treat him or his people, it is a deep sin that cannot go unpunished. He actively involves himself in drow affairs and moderately often sends an avatar to assist the work of his priests if the proper rituals are performed and the need is genuine. Vhaeraun is the brother of Eilistraee and Vandria and the son of Araushnee, who was cast out and became Lolth, and Corellon Larethian. The Masked Lord was cast out of the Seldarine and banished from Arvandor, along with his mother and sister, when his complicity was revealed in Araushnee's plot to destroy Corellon. While he hates all of the Seldarine, Vhaeraun harbors a particular enmity for Sehanine Moonbow, who escaped the Masked Lord's prison at great cost to herself and unmasked the culpability of both Vhaeraun and Araushnee. Likewise, the Masked Lord nurtures an abiding hatred of Eilistraee. Vhaeraun reserves his greatest hatred for the Spider Queen who gave birth to him long ago. 'Course, as he's just a lesser god, Vhaeraun's afraid of the Spider Queen, and steers well clear of her machinations, at least openly. Instead, he tries to work against her in shadow, to undermine her in silence. Meanwhile, from his realm on Carceri (Lolth's faithful'd call it a hiding place), Vhaeraun looks to unite the other drow deities against her. Thus, his priests move quietly through drow cities and the surface lands, slowly gathering power for their deity's ends. Vhaerun is also the god of thievery and territory, and this is keenly demonstrated whenever a person stumbles into his realm. Ellaniath is forever unknown to any planewalker, because the god wipes the memory of the place from the minds of all who visit it. Some say that's his ultimate form of theft, stealing a person's very essence. Antagonistic Offspring: Vhaeraun is this towards both of his parents. His father Corellon practically cut him off after exiling him from the Seldarine and gave up on the idea of trying to turn his son to abandon his ways, even vowing to kill Vhaeraun if he ever tried to hurt his sister Eilistraee. On the other hand, his and Lolth's conflicting views on what drow society should be like has resulted in them becoming complete enemies, with Vhaeraun wanting to sway the drow to his cause of destroying Lolth, her supporters and beneficiaries, and her version of society. Despite this, Lolth still considers him her favorite child. Arch Nemesis Dad: Vhaeraun is opposed by his son Selvetarm, whose status as Lolth's servant puts him in conflict with his father. Vhaeraun has a very low opinion about Selvetarm's intelligence, but the submissive trait of his son is what angers him most. Back from the Dead: Restored to life alongside his sister, Eilistraee, after the event known as The Sundering (Questions for Ed Greenwood (2015)). Badass Cape: Vhaeraun wears a magical cloak. Those who look at it in darkness can see through it the stars, the moon, or whatever else is behind it even if Vhaeraun is obviously within the portion they are observing. Vhaeraun's cloak melts into nothingness if removed from him or if his avatar is slain. Its folds can harmlessly absorb seven spells of any level per day and also attracts both magic missiles and area-of-effect spells such as fireball, completely protecting the wearer (and nearby beings who would otherwise be harmed) as if the cloak were some sort of infinitely charged special brooch of shielding. Cain and Abel: Shares this dynamic with his younger twin sister Eilistraee, with him as the Cain to Eilistraee's Abel. After that, they decided to put aside their differences and work together against Lolth. Dual Wielding: Vhaeraun wields Nightshadow, a jet-black long sword of quickness that is invisible in darkness and Shadowflash, a silver short sword that can flash with an eerie light equal to a continual light at will. Defeat Means Friendship: After having been defeated by his sister Eilistraee, and after they both returned to life, he no longer considers her an enemy. Deity Identity Confusion: Among those nondrow aware of the activities of his followers in the surface world, the Masked Lord is often confused with the human god of thieves, Mask. Evil Redhead: Artwork sometimes depict him with red hair. Further materials say that his hair changes color depending on his mood. Vhaeraun's hair is usually depicted as red or white with red tips because he's usually supremely pissed off. Evil Twin: To Eilistraee. The Wizard Mordenkainen, from the world of Oerth, doesn't include this in his recount of the drow mythos. However, the Masked Lord and the Dark Dancer have the same father and the same mother. While both siblings want to end Lolth's tyranny and secure a better future for the drow, it's under vastly different contexts. The difference is that Eilistraee wants the drow to regain their place in nature by doing acts of good and freeing themselves from the shackles of evil. Vhaeraun, meanwhile, wants the drow to conquer all that they see as a way to stop Lolth at the source, as well as deserving more for their centuries of hardship. Evil Virtues: Vhaeraun advocates for equality between male and female drow and desires to weld them into a united people, rather than a squabbling gaggle of rival houses, clans, and aims. Jerk With A Heart Of Jerk: One would think somebody whose goal is to liberate a whole race from a crazy tyrannical goddess would have more redeeming qualities. But no, he's quite a bastard; for one, he wants to enslave every non-drow race and conquer anyone who opposes him. Still, he isn't as bad as Lolth. Kaleidoscope Hair: In previous editions of Forgotten Realms, the god Vhaeraun had this according to mood (gold for triumph, blue for amusement, red for anger, green for curiosity), accompanied by Kaleidoscope Eyes to match. A Lighter Shade of Black: Yes, he's an asshole. But unlike his mother, he's a pragmatic asshole who believes in cooperation instead of betrayal for its own sake and is a champion of gender equality. He's also fairly caring to his followers, by drow standards at least. Living Mood Ring: His eyes change color according to his mood. So does his hair. He gets a double dose of Red Eyes, Take Warning; while most drow have red eyes, his turn red when he's angry. Meaningful Name: His name is pronounced similarly to Faerûn, the main setting of D&D. His main goal is to unite all elves, especially the drow, and conquer the surface world. Moral Myopia: He gets outraged over crimes committed against him and his followers, but sees no problem with doing the same to other people. If Vhaeraun stabs you in the back, you had it coming in his mind. If you stab him in the back, he'll never stop hunting you for the "transgression" against him. Never Found the Body: When Vhaeraun attempted to murder Eilistraee in the Lady Penitent series, their battle was witnessed by neither the reader nor the viewpoint characters. In the second book one of the characters cites the fact that no one saw it to argue that Vhaeraun is still alive. By that point, however, Lolth shows to the reader his mangled corpse floating in the Astral Plane, even if it may only be her illusion. And then played straight by Ed Greenwood's personal version of what happened, in which he was actually in a Mystra-induced coma. Offing the Offspring: Tried to do this to Selvetarm, his son, during War of the Spider Queen, when the latter foiled his plans to off Lolth. It's unclear who won the fight. Pragmatic Villainy: Encourages cooperation amongst his followers and discourages the drow from engaging in the in-fighting they're known for. Vhaeraun does this on the grounds that excessive backstabbing weakens factions in a way that his followers simply cannot afford in the fight against Lolth. Vhaeraun considers his sister Eilistraee as weak, in that her message of peace is seen by Vhaeraun and his followers as not worth the trouble at best and ineffective at worst. That being said, Vhaeraun can be persuaded to work with his sister and her Sword Dancers if it means taking Lolth down a peg, since the siblings share that goal. He won't be happy about it, but if it means defeating their mother, the Masked Lord can stomach it. Rebellious Spirit: Does not play well with any kind of authority, especially his mother Lolth, whose current rule and matriarchy he wants to bring down. The Revolution Will Not Be Civilized: He and his followers might be somewhat better than Lolth. But that's not saying much. The Masked Lord still wants to conquer the surface world, raise an army of drow, and crush his enemies under his heel. What makes him A Lighter Shade of Black compared to Lolth is that Vhaeraun can at least sometimes be persuaded into Pragmatic Villainy, and he's said to treat his followers decently. Smug Snake: Vhaeraun stands for the dark elves' superiority over other races and for the primacy of individual drow over other drow. He is a god of arrogance, and thus he condones all acts of avarice, fair and foul alike. Those who take what they want from whom they wish, whether through stealth or bullying, pay homage to Vhaeraun. Stealth Expert: Due to lacking the strength to challenge Lolth directly, Vhaeraun uses stealth and works against her in shadow, undermining her in silence. Vhaeraun always passes without trace and can use all invisibility spells twice per day. Take a Third Option: Lolth is outright crazy. Eilistraee is good, but very demanding and not to everyone's taste. Enter Vhaeraun; outright crazy and demanding, but at least working towards a goal. Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Vhaeraun appears as a handsome male drow with a slim, graceful, and toned physique. The Unfettered: Does what needs to be done in order to achieve his goals. Or just to amuse himself, really. Has no problem with breaking a LOT of eggs to make his omlettes. Tongue Trauma: 5e's Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes notes that some drow communities preach that his tongue was removed by Lolth for daring to question her orders. Whether or not this is true is somewhat contentious, given that Vhaeraun can communicate telepathically. Villain Has a Point: Women make up less than one percent of his clergy, but it's still less gender-exclusive than his Chaotic Good sister's Lady Land. It's not surprising he has more appeal to the disgruntled male drow seeking escape from the Dark Dancer. Although this is minor case of Depending on the Writer, as some sources describe Eilistraee clergy as not so gender-exclusive, and in 5th edition (as of the 1490s DR), Eilistraee's clergy is open to both genders. Villain with Good Publicity: Invoked by him after returning in 5e; his new instructions for his followers is to act law-abiding and trustworthy (according to the standards of surface-dwelling races) in order to hide their more clandestine activities.
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