#legend of Drizzt archmage

[princefleabitten]

I read the bully the ancient man into committing atrocities diary! (Legend of Drizzt: Archmage)

[haaaaaaaaaaaave-you-met-ted]

Legend of Drizzt - Archmage Cover Art by Choe Heonhwa (KILART)

[kai-ice]

Zeerith… stfu, you sleep with your family members…

[voidknightart]

Gromph and Kimmuriel

(Tell me this isn’t their dynamic in Archmage and beyond)

[kimmurielscryingmirror]

"My dear Kimmuriel"

Baenre men are clearly obsessed with him <3

Close-ups under the line:

[defnotjarlaxle]

Gromph found a drow wizard he tolerates? Hmm, curious~

[theladyregret]

Finished rereading Archmage last night and I couldn’t help but giggle a bit at one part where Catti is sitting by Drizzt’s side while he was still unconscious, recovering from having his chest split open, and everyone worrying that he might not be able to fully recover enough to fight as he used to.

Once she’s reassured that he will at least survive she’s thinking about how she would enjoy teaching him magic if his injury prevented him from returning to bladework, and mentally enjoying the idea of him bumbling through spells the same way she’d first struggled with sword fighting as her student…

And man would she have been disappointed if that actually had happened because according to Homeland he had no problem picking up basic cantrips pretty fast and in fact already knew several by the time he left Sorcere.

I just have this mental image of him just…going through the basics no problem after brief reminders and Catti “instantly got addicted to magic after using a wand to explode things once” Battlehammer being all,

“Wait, you already know these? You’ve been able to do this the whole time and you…just…don’t??! Why??”

And him just making a face like he’d encountered a bad texture, “…eh.”

[defnotjarlaxle]

HAH! YES! These two!! I love 'em.

@defnotjarlaxle JAJAJAJA i started charon's claw and met Ravel and-

Gromph and him have very big teacher's pet and tenured professor who's wayy too old to fight the shenanigans energy

[artemis-entreri]

Hey y'all! As some of you have noticed, I'm not really in the fandom anymore, so I might as well make it official with this post. There wasn't anything that caused it, I just became more interested in other things. I made a Redbubble with some of my Artemis Entreri/Jarlaxle/Jartemis art that you can buy as merch, which includes the above images as well as some others:

You can find my other art in this tag: My LoD Art

If you like my art enough to follow me into other franchises, here's a link to all of my art accounts.

I'm still happy to try to help with Forgotten Realms and Legend of Drizzt questions, but I will no longer be keeping up to date about either, so you'll mostly be tapping into my knowledge about past stuff. In LoD's case, it seems that the book series has come to an end, as there doesn't appear to be any contracts for new trilogies presently, but who knows if that'll change in the future. For FR, your best bet is to get information from the sources directly, as that was what I'd use to stay updated. I recommend these places for asking questions:

Forgotten Realms Wiki: Hands down the best resource for anything Forgotten Realms related. Comprehensive and thorough, it is maintained by a small dedicated group of fans, and it's so good that official FR creatives reference it.

Candlekeep Forum: While the layout is certainly retro, it continues to contain the most knowledgeable and passionate Realms afficionados.

Greenwood's Grotto Discord Server: This is Ed Greenwood, the creator of the Forgotten Realms', official Discord server. It is curated by a passionate group of Greenwood fans and produces FR content regularly featuring the archmage himself.

Forgotten Realms Discord Server: Smaller and less active than Greenwood's Grotto, but less likely that your question will get scrolled past without anyone noticing it.

Forgotten Realms Reddit: I've not used this particular sub much myself, but the large member base means that it's probably a good resource for crowdsourcing answers.

I still have a lot of WIPs of both fics and art in this fandom that I may finish up and post later, it's hard to say. I guess we'll just have to see!

[mintharabaenrelore]

hello! i have a dark urge i ship with minthara who's a drow wizard and i'm leaning towards him initially being from menzoberranzan so i've been trying to find more info on the magic school in menzoberranzan (sorcerere?) can you recommend any specific lore/anyone who knows more? the wiki is sadly pretty sparse on details

Sorcere is fascinating. The Forgotten Realms wiki is a great place to start the research process, but as you said, it's rather sparse.

For general drow lore, I would always recommend the wonderful @lunastrophe, but for specific information about Sorcere...

The "War of the Spider Queen" Book 1, "Dissolution" by Richard Lee Bryers centers around (among others) Pharaun Mizzrym, who is a Master of Sorcere. Gromph, the Archmage of Menzoberranzan, shows up as well. It's been a while since I last read it, but it may have some information about Sorcere. "Daughter of the Drow" has the protaganist Liriel Baenre, daughter of Gromph, and although she ends up going to Arach-Tinilith, there might be some info there.

"Menzoberranzan: City of Intrigue" is a D&D book centered around Menzoberranzan. Pages 56-57 are about Tier Breche, and Page 62-63 are about Sorcere.

I took a look at the references for the Forgotten Realms wiki and "Rite of Blood" by Elaine Cunnigham is cited, as well as books in the "War of the Spider Queen" series.

A few other books that may be helpful are: "Out of the Abyss" and "A Reader's Guide to R.A. Salvatore's the Legend of Drizzt." Sadly, I haven't managed to get my hands on either of those, so I can't be sure.

Here's some specific lore quoted directly from "Menzoberranzan: City of Intrigue":

"Each of the schools has different styles of teaching. Sorcere relies on a mentor structure." "The sculpted stalagmite tower of Sorcere rises near the western wall of Tier Breche. The lower floors are lecture halls, laboratories, and libraries. Higher in the tower are the sanctums of the masters of Sorcere. The rooms and passages of the tower are often veiled, distorted, hidden, or altered by the wizards. Drow (mostly males) who show a talent or inclination for magic are identified at a young age and groomed for Sorcere. At the age of twenty, would-be wizards begin a five-year apprenticeship with an older wizard to learn the basics of spellcraft. At twenty-five, they begin a course of study in Sorcere that lasts thirty years. The last year of their training is spent in Melee-Magthere and Arach-Tinilith, learning the ways of those institutions and the proper place of males in Menzoberranyr society- under the heels of the priestesses of Lolth. Sorcere is supervised by the matron mistresses of Arach-Tinilith to ensure that the wizards do not defy the rule of Lolth. The masters of Sorcere have orders to watch their students closely, and most realize that they too are being watched by the mistresses of Arach-Tinilith. The masters of Sorcere are a mysterious, reclusive group of wizards with an awesome reputation. They have few ranks and titles, but many differences in influence, from positions such as teaching masters at the Academy to the student aspirants (house wizards-in-training) to the mighty mage lords. The mage lords are the most powerful male mages active in the city. They are tough, twisted survivors who have risen to approach human archmages in ability, while overcoming far greater obstacles. The Archmage is the head of Sorcere and the only one of its masters with a high public profile. His role is to advise and serve the Ruling Council. He also keeps time in the city by casting the spells that light up Narbondel (page 81). The Archmage is almost always a wizard of House Baenre, who uses its influence to place on of its own in the high seat."

In this book, there are descriptions of House Wizard and Master of Sorcere, which you may find useful:

HOUSE WIZARD "You have trained at Sorcere and obtained the most powerful position available to a male noble- house wizard. Within your house, you hold the highest station a male drow can hope to achieve. The other males look upon you with envy, and the priestesses must treat you with a modicum of respect. You are responsible for all arcane matters in your house. You create enchanted wards, craft magic items, and tutor the younger drow in the ways of the arcane. These chores fill your days since the matron mother always wants mor magic items, more powerful wards, and more wizard apprentices. You walk a fine line for survival. Do poorly, and your matron mother will deem you expendable. Do too well, and the matron mother will consider you an ambitious threat. Matron mothers prefer house wizards to be their own sons to ensure loyalty and to ensure control over the sometimes stubbornly independent house wizards. Being a house wizard comes with many risks, because you will always be embroiled in the politics of the city. Rival houses will strike at you first, since your presence on the battlefield can change the course of a fight. Even away from the battlefield, your magic can shape the power of your house. For these reasons, you have to be constantly alert for assassination attempts." "Characteristics: Jealous, resourceful, hateful prerequisites: Drow (one of either gender can become a wizard in Menzoberranzan, but almost all house wizards are male); graduate of Sorcere"

MASTER OF SORCERE "After decades of study, you have finally reached the rank of master of Sorcere. You are one of the most powerful arcane casters in the city. The magical might you wield can devastate scores of enemies. Your ingenuity and magic talent make possible many of the luxuries found among the drow. As a master, you have students and set duties within Sorcere, but beyond these interactions, you are likely a recluse, dwelling in the spell-guarded tower of Sorcere. You have orders from your matron mother to watch your students and fellow wizards for weaknesses that can be exploited. You would be a fool to assume that you are not also being watched. You have developed the habit of concealing what you're really doing from other wizards and from the scrying spells of the matron mother. You are nominally under the authority of the mistresses of Arach-Tinilith, but your command of magic and your position in Sorcere has finally put you beyond the direct reach of the priestesses. However, the other masters present a broad spectrum of eccentric and nasty personalities , and Sorcere has its own intrigues, cabals, and betrayals." "Characteristics: Cold, devious, calculating. Prerequisites: Drow (one of either gender can become a wizard in Menzoberranzan, but almost all masters of Sorcere are male); graduate of Sorcere"

Some Forgotten Realms articles to check out if you'd like:

Menzoberranzan

Sorcere

Tier Breche

Drow

Gromph Baenre

Pharaun Mizzrym

If all else fails, you could try to contact an EXPERT-expert, i.e. R.A. Salvatore or Ed Greenwood.

I hope this helps! 🕷️

[princefleabitten]

Masterpost: Legend of Drizzt Sum-Up Sketches

(Links to Still missing books will be added later)

The Dark Elf Trilogy

Homeland

Exile

Sojourn

The Icewind Dale Trilogy

The Crystal Shard

Streams of Silver

The Halfling’s Gem

The Legacy of the Drow Quartet

The Legacy

Starless Night

Siege of Darkness

Passage to Dawn

Paths of Darkness Trilogy

The Silent Blade

The Spine of the World (Bonus)

Sea of Swords

The Sellswords Trilogy

The Servant of the Shard

Promise of the Witch King

Road of the Patriarch

The Hunter’s Blade Trilogy

The Thousand Orcs

The Lone Drow

The Two Swords

The Transition Trilogy

The Orc King

The Pirate King

The Ghost King

The Neverwinter Quartet

Gauntlgrym

Neverwinter

Charon’s Claw

The Last Threshhold

Companion Codex +

The Companions

Night of the Hunter

Rise of the King

Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf

Homecoming Trilogy

Archmage

Maestro

Hero

Generation Trilogy

Timeless

Boundless

Relentless

The Way of the Drow Trilogy

Starlight Enclave

Glacier’s Edge

Lolth’s Warrior

[mnemo-li]

Okay, now that my Baldur’s Gate 3 obsession has somewhat calmed down, my attention has come back to Lolth’s Warrior again. Here are some thoughts, specifically regarding my darling Gromph Baenre:

(As an aside though… does anyone have an active or semi-active Legend of Drizzt Discord server they recommend? I saw the one on Reddit but I haven’t joined that yet either 🥺)

[MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW]

I really don’t like the alignment system in DnD ngl, but it does feel good to have Salvatore pretty much confirm that our dearest Archmage is no longer evil. Like, look at this

He explained—again, surprising Catti-brie, as she hadn’t often gotten such discourse from Gromph: “My robes of the Hosttower are gray, reflecting my state of mind and my way of looking at the world. Such items as these are not simple implements. They are extensions of the being wearing them, an amplification of the wizard’s heart and soul. You are more . . . generous than I. Your robes would be of white cloth, not gray. My garment would be of little use to you.” Catti-brie had heard of such things, so she accepted the explanation without question—until she realized the color of the robes now worn by Gromph. “Were I a being intent on evil, what color would be appropriate, then? Gray?” “Black,” said Gromph. “Like the robe you’re now wearing. The robe you assure me reflects no ill intent.” Gromph shrugged as if it did not matter. “This robe will no longer attune to me. It is, to me, just a robe.”

He can no longer attune to his old robes because he is no longer of an evil alignment. That really is an in-your-face proof of how far he has come as a character. And the symbolism of him choosing to wear the old robe whilst exploding himself to kill the avatar of Lolth— that’s like, him symbolically killing his past self too, moving on from who he once was. It’s beautiful.

My other friend whom I was discussing this with said he was surprised Gromph actually would sacrifice himself, that perhaps this was just some mind trick or illusion. I, on the other hand, was surprised Gromph didn’t become a lich but instead chose to clone himself. In hindsight, it makes sense though. Being a lich is a special kind of evil, and Gromph has fought enough liches in his lifetime to know that he’s better off not becoming one.

Moreover, it was so funny witnessing Catti’s reaction towards her realization that Gromph really has gone soft. Her being shocked at how Gromph would offer her his old robe, their conversation and banter etc

Like, this for example:

“What could go wrong with a fireball, after all?” Gromph said dryly, and when Catti-brie looked at him, she saw that he was staring her way. He was trying to show her that he was still that hard-hearted and merciless grand wizard from Menzoberranzan, she recognized, and she thought it rather… Cute? Or pathetic? No matter, she realized. Gromph’s ego bristled at any thoughts of emotional softness.

Lmao, that cute or pathetic line just had me laughing.

On a more serious note, rereading this scene had my heart breaking, especially knowing what is to come:

A few heartbeats later, he shook the notion away, reminding himself that this place he had created from no more than magical strands, and more especially for the golems and treasures he kept within the pocket dimension, needed to be maintained and protected. His caretakers had to be powerful of their own accord, and influential within the hierarchy of the Hosttower of the Arcane. The possibilities for him to fill the needed posts formed a very short list, and given the dark nature of the plan to be concealed and protected, even shorter. Kimmuriel would have been his first choice, but Kimmuriel was gone to Menzoberranzan, along with his second choice, Jarlaxle. Catti-brie would have been his third, except that her heart was still tied to Mielikki, though the bonds were strained. And that goddess, called the Forest Queen, for all her own recent meddling with the realm of death, would probably not approve of Gromph’s little game here.

Gromph trusts Kimmuriel, Jarlaxle and Catti-brie to protect his cloned body. That is massive. That is really poignant. And for Kimmuriel to be the first on his list? I genuinely wished we’d get to see Gromph’s reaction to what happened to Kimmuriel.

Speaking of Kimmuriel, something in Gromph and Kimmuriel’s conversation at the beginning of novel struck me.

“The heart and the mind are often in conflict,” Gromph said. “I have perhaps another two centuries of life—more if my studies prove fruitful. I wish to live those centuries and more. And when I am finally done with this existence, I know that Lolth will remain very much entrenched in the afterlife.”

I know the Generations series is set in about 1488 DR. I’m not sure the exact date of the Way of the Drow series but since Gromph is born in 670 DR… the dude is over eight centuries old. That’s really old, even for an elf or drow. Amulet of Eternal Youth or not, as one grows older, mortality is sure to become more of a nagging thought. Gromph clearly has been thinking about his life and afterlife. There’s just something heartbreaking about realizing too that he spent the first seven to eight centuries of his life under the oppression of Lolth’s matriarchy, only to finally get to live freely as the Archmage of the Hosttower in the extremely recent years of his life. It’s too soon for him to die— he’s only begun to truly live.

I think Gromph’s motivations for cheating death is less about wanting to “win” against death, to become better than your average mortals or whatever… he genuinely wants to live. Especially now that he has something worth living and fighting for, something worth protecting. I’m talking about his daughter, his brother, his friends.

Maybe I’m woobifying Gromph too much but damn, I love this old Archmage so much. I have a month left before my PhD officially starts… with the remaining free time, I really want to write some self-indulgent OC romance fanfic with Gromph with my Baldur’s Gate 3 protagonist.... and also Liriel Baenre!!

Yvonnel II is alright. But Liriel? I adore Liriel. I fucking love her. I really want Gromph to meet Liriel again, to reconnect with her, to see how much she has changed and how much he has changed.

[whistleswings]

bored, so have a Gromph sketch

[voidknightart]

Gromph Baenre trying to unleash a demon lord a second time + Kimmuriel Oblodra silently judging

-

[Please do not use or repost. Reblogs are cool though! Thanks :D]

[drowhumor]

This was simply begging to be made... Original Art by  by DrowElfMorwen on deviantArt

[defnotjarlaxle]

It's because he's not controlling him.

¯\_(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)_/¯