o the recent deluge of awesome info about dark and mad gods gave me a hankering to sit down with faiths & avatars to idly read.
Until now I’d never read Leira and Lliira consecutively.
With some imagination it’s possible to see them as either 2 aspects Of a single god, sorta Tyche style or a split god (again Tyche) into 2 distinct selves.
While it might be fun for you to illuminate that, it’s just a thought exercise. What it did make me genuinely wonder is if there’s much of a scholarly and/or fannish industry/

— 🌈Jaye🦄Em🌹Edgecliff🏳️‍🌈 (@jayeedgecliff) October 2, 2019

Of delving into the histories, namely origins, of the deities. Who they were as mortals, what planes they migrated in from … and this did lead to an exceedingly amusing mental image of some amateur godshistory nerds sitting around like “Dayvr, listen … Bane …/ Follow me here … is the half demon daughter of an elvish vampire lord from Ravenloft”
“But … Sael, Bane’s no—“
“No, but see this passage here? Where Bashiira says ‘I am become Bane of this world!’”
“Whoa! Head canon legitimised!!” *high fives*

But in a less laughing /

— 🌈Jaye🦄Em🌹Edgecliff🏳️‍🌈 (@jayeedgecliff) October 2, 2019

At Realmsian versions of my own sort of nerdery there comes the follow up question RE the safety and life expectancy of either true sages or amateur geeks delving too deeply into these speculations given some gods are very circumspect or even insecure about their Pasts but balanced against the potential guidances and protection of gods of truth, suddenly it’s deliciously complex (or looks it on surface anyway) and runs a high probability of Elminster throwing in his 10¢ on the subject …

— 🌈Jaye🦄Em🌹Edgecliff🏳️‍🌈 (@jayeedgecliff) October 2, 2019

1)
You raise some great points about the perils of inquiring too deeply or energetically into the mortal pasts of deities in the Realms. What I can tell you from observed history is that MOST deities have no problem with their… )
…own clergy researching and speculating—so long as what the church then tells lay worshippers and outsiders is what the god approves of. (And yes, most of them prefer mystery and “I have existed since before the world began” …#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

3)
…to “I was once a short, pimply street thief with pimples who once fell in a sewer and twice got caught stealing plums from street stalls.”)
When it comes to sages and other lay individuals, their ire is reserved for those who 4)
…publish falsehoods or exaggerations/generalizations the god dislikes, or who uncover more of the truth than the deity prefers (most deities being vain, and caring about their image in the minds of all). Such sages may be…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

5)
…smitten with divine fire or a wasting, wizening curse, struck blind, or scared by visiting servitors of the gods (think of the three Spirits who visit Scrooge in A CHRISTMAS CAROL) who demand that the sage recant, in print, 6)
…offering instead THIS approved version—or suffer the fatal consequences of failing to do so. In any case, copies of published works that a deity disapproves of will be hunted down, seized, and destroyed by clergy and devoted…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

7)
…followers of that deity (sometimes, success at this is part of a novice priest demonstrating their readiness for elevation into “the full priesthood”). Which has, of course, the effect of making the few surviving copies 8)
…valuable, eagerly sought after, and believed by all to be preserving “dark truths that the deity wants suppressed.” (Candlekeep is one likely repository of such “shunned” works, but so are the private libraries of archwizards…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

9)
…such as Elminster, who can magically hide and trap such reading-chambers so as to safeguard what’s shelved there.)
A curious adventurer who has no intention of publishing or discussing what they find beyond the circle of 10)
…their fellow adventurers will usually NOT be chastised by the god, but manipulated by the god’s agents (servitor creatures and mortal clergy) into “uncovering” what lore the deity wants uncovered, to bolster the image and…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

11)
…origin story they prefer to be “out there” in the world. This is known among upperpriests as “turning a disbeliever.” The idea is that the adventurer (or amateur whose hobby is an interest in matters divine or a particular 12)
…god) will come to believe in, and spread to the extent they talk to others at all, the view of the deity that the deity prefers the world accept.
Now, as for Bane, I can tell you this: as a mortal, he lived centuries ago, …#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

13)
…and upon his death his soul was snatched and stored by Jergal, who Had Plans for his own retirement, and was looking for certain qualities in a successor (in the case of Bane, a quenchless hunger to rule all, and be feared 14)
…by all through the maliciousness and malevolent intentiveness of his rule). [So Bane died long before his ascension to godhood.]#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 3, 2019

@TheEdVerse I hope your recovery is going well! 🙂 I have a couple questions if you don't mind: (1) is Velen still an independent duchy and (2) while Athkatla seems a reasonable place to restock/refresh while traveling via ship from Waterdeep to Port Nyranzaru, is Velen? Thanks!

— Elisabeth (@ElisabethADixon) October 7, 2019

Hi! Yes, Velen is still an independent duchy, ruled by a Duke, but it now enjoys friendly relations with Tethyr (the two realms are staunch allies, cooperating against pirates and mercenary forays sponsored by ambitious 2)
…satraps of Calimshan seeking to annex territory). Within Velen, many Tethyrian loyalists work to overthrow Velen’s ruling duke and courtiers, but they work quietly (if you want things to become violent in your campaign, …#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 8, 2019

3)
…there’s a DM’s Guild adventure, MURDER IN VELEN, that covers such events).
Regardless of how much unrest and tumult you want to have in Velen itself, it has always been a stronghold resisting the pirates of the Nelanther, 4)
…meaning it’s well-defended (with ballistae and trebuchets stationed on heights, a harbour chain and harbor defense ships bristling with ballistae that can launch fiery missiles to set ships aflame, and a well-equipped… #Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 8, 2019

5)
…fighting force of defenders, the Stalwart Shields or just “Stalwarts,” who know how to swim), well-equipped (full drydocks for ship repairs, several sailmakers and ropers { =ropemakers} and outfitters who can swiftly turn a… 6)
…ship from a damaged hulk into a seaworthy vessel), and well-provisioned (not only does it have coopers and warehouses galore, it’s endured pirate sieges in the past and so by local law has food-stores “laid by” as well as a…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 8, 2019

7)
…lot of edible goods warehoused for trading. Sailors on the Sword Coast know that Velen is a reliable source for casks of salted meat and biscuits, wheels of cheese, and pickles, all in bulk sufficient to fill the cargo holds 8)
…of any large Sword Coast cogs.
Which is a long-winded way of saying to your questions: 1. Yes. And 2. Yes. ;}#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 8, 2019

is there a mine complex inside Citadel Felbarr? Yes. Leading down to a forge rift (lava vent that dwarves use the heat of, like a forge-fire).#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 30, 2019