I have some question one which monster class book has Lich classes? Also when are you going to do a video on what they don’t tell you about liches you have a video on the undead in general and I think in that video if I remember you said you would eventually do a video on liches but I might be misremembering what you said in the undead video
Silverymoon aristocrat: "He's not a man, he's a... BLACK DRAGON!!" Claugiliamatar: 😯 Aristocrat: "He isn't a black dragon... HE'S TWO BLACK DRAGONS!!!" Claugiliamatar: 😮😮😮😮😵
Interesting that both the dracolich and the regular lich just mysteriously up and left without any warning. Especially for a dragon to leave not only their lair but their hoard as well.
@@Krishnath.Dragon Oh man, could you imagine if Ebondeath actually did that and now has the command spell for the wearers of the crown? So now you got a Dracolich in control of two beefed up ancient black dragons? Throw in an army of Kobolds, zombies and Clay Golems and you have a truly scary army....
.........*sigh* Undead dragons don't retain their lust for treasure. Therefore abandoning a hoard is about as dramatic as them walking away from a horse hoof after they've eaten the rest. If you know why dragons hoard treasure you'd know undead dragons have absolutely no need of it.
I find it very strange and alarming that the two most powerful residents of the mere, being Iniarv and Ebondeath, are missing. No sign of them going anywhere, no sign of a climactic battle that a lich or dracolich would surely cause. Just gone.
I went and read the modules and there is explanation but it's very odd and I can see why it wasn't included in the video. it just has very strange implications for dracoliches and undead in general I'll type it up abbreviated below as to not spoil if people care. like really, if you may play it one day then it's probably best you don't read. there aren't HUGE spoilers but still spoilers nonetheless. essentially, EbonDeath (also known as Chardansearavitriol) was a dracolich due to having met a cultist of myrkul, Stongor Bonebag, who was associated with the young cult of the dragon. His undeath was connected to Myrkul, However, the power of Myrkul always waxed when an infrequent and relatively unknown astronomical phenomenon known as the Eye of Myrkul. This event involves the passage of a new moon through a certain ring of seven stars associated with an old symbol of Mystra. it's pretty uncommon and when it happened he literally just crumbled into dust atop an altar of Myrkul. it was very sudden and the cultists were all extremely confused but decided to interpret this as a second step of divine ascension that the previous cultist Strongor (who had been dead for a while now) had said. There is some truth as Ebondeath actually still manifests in a spiritual form when the eye of myrkul appears so it is entirely possible that he really did ascend to some capacity. what exactly is that ascension? uh. I don't know. anyways, that's the thing that happened. now you know. As for the lich I haven't a clue. I haven't read all of it but I will update if i learn anything.
Oh that's super cool! I like the idea that undeath is an energy that can be blocked by certain events. Like in the R. A. Salvatore novels when mystra left existence and all magic was screwed up ileven astral magic. It makes. A lot of thematic sense too if the whole "holy powers remove the touch of death from a creature" that makes sense if you can just shut down the flow of undeath energy the undead use
@@bumblefoo5169 Update? maybe the lich also gained undeath through mykrul. or maybe he just went back to sleep like he did before the war between the second kingdom and the everhorde. using his powerful spells to cloak his tower, onky to be awakened when he feels the effects of the two crowns being worn by our twin dragons.
in the module, its explained that Ebondeath's bones have crumbled after such a long time because a dracolich needs a constant supply of dead dragon skeletons to eventually move their spirt into when the old body falls apart. You can still find Ebondeath's ghost in the Uthtower.
Oddly enough, hes the only ‘one’ of the big bad dragons that isn’t really, bad, nor needlessly violent. While dangerous if crossed, safe to just talk to. Very unique amongst the chromatics.
These two killed my character. I was counting on Mirror Image and Greater Invisibility to save my Wizard, but I forgot Blindsight was a thing. A costly mistake, but I learned from it. My next Wizard had 22 AC (27 with Shield spell), +8 initiative, +8 Dex save, +12 Wis save, +14 Con save, a spell save DC of 20, resistance to fire, cold, and poison damage, and didn't rely on the illusionary defence spells. I might have been over-compensating a little lol.
My group stayed away from them in that campaign but ended up with a tpk shortly after bc they let the wizard and black dragonborn get away. i skipped to the next modual and told the players we were going to the next book but if they had a tpk again i was done being the dm they died after killing the white death in the ever moving ice
@@goldenhate6649 Clauglyimatar(or however you spell it) is moderately safe to talk to as well. Especially if you're female or willing to oil up a thirsty dragon babe for cash 😂
Well most Dragons don’t have more then one true name Sure they’ll have up to half a dozen nicknames or more that are popular among alleys, potential alleys, and foes, but it’s very rare for a dragon to give themselves even just 2 names. So they probably have long names to make there names more unique among other dragons.
Put yourself in the shoes of the dragon You are mighty and powerfull creature, with posibilly to outlife whole civilisations You won't call yourself simply 'Bob". Thats lame
@@tproll170 But they should change it as they aren’t different races they are different species (or at least closer to that concept). Race should be for different groups inside of a species, but that’s just my opinion
@@gamingwhilebroken2355 Don't spur someone wishing another person a good day. Regardless of your stance on religion. Raining on parades for no reason makes you the asshole.
These two just sound like friend material to me. I want to enable them. Sound like cool dudes, just vibing and learning and preferring to not die or go dracolich. Enjoying being bros.
I'm actually deviating from the campaign Rise of Tiamat, using Voaraghamanthar as a means to make things interesting with my players. In my adaptation of Rise of Tiamat, one of the options presented before the players to prevent or delay Tiamat being risen is by locating and destroying all of the Dragon Masks. I have planted seeds to guide my players to the Mere of Dead Men where it is rumored that the Cult of the Dragon is looking for something. The players will assume they're looking for the Black Dragon Mask, but instead, they are actually looking for the other half of the Twinned Crown for the Black Dragons. The dragons actually already have the Black Dragon Mask, but refuse to give it to the Cult unless they find the crown for them. When the players arrive, Voaraghamanthar will confront them, saying he will give them the mask instead if they find the Crown before the Cult. I'm excited for this dynamic to play out, and have the players question, "which is the lesser evil?" determining if they give the crown to the black dragons, or not. As an extra bit of cruelty, I have an NPC that the players are travelling with that will be abducted, and buried alive as incentive for giving them the crown instead of trying to seek a loophole of holding onto the crown with the aim of simultaneously preventing the cult from getting the mask, and the black dragons from getting the crown. They could still potentially track down and free the NPC, still executing the loophole, or they could leave the NPC to die. But I'm going to make them work for it. >:)
As another Tyranny of Dragons DM I love the homebrew scenarios that people come up with. The module is so fucking cool conceptually but as written it is rather underwhelming. I actually made Claugiyliamatar a double agent who is actively working against the cult because she prefers the human world over a draconic one. I was already going to make these two dragons have the black mask before I saw this but this post just gave more ideas of what to do with them.
@ethanduncan1646 I also gave my players a path to summon an Avatar of Bahamut to fight alongside them during the final battle with Tiamat. My intent is to have Tiamat begin to phase into the material realm no matter what, just at a weakened state depending on how many masks are destroyed.
This video gave me an idea for a character (if I ever get a chance to play it). The pitch: A necromancer that heard some of the history of the Mere of Dead Men, and decided to use his/her magic and knowledge, such as Speak With Dead, and the destruction of undead in the Mere in order to put the souls of the dead at rest, thus breaking the curse and allowing the Mere to gradually disappear. Kinda like an ecologist mixed with a spectral psychologist, that uses magic.
Just realized all (I think) of the dragons you’ve covered are the “most important” ones in the 3.5 Dragons of Faerun appendix. Thanks for getting the heavy hitters
Are there any famous dragons that live on the Outer Planes? Or even the Inner Planes? Could be a great tie-in to your planar series 👀 Love the content dude, your voiceover quality is unmatched, truly. 😄
@@richardmccloud7500 Bahamat would be great if he hadn't already done the Seven Heavens of Mount Celestia! I'd still enjoy a full Bahamut video though, no doubt.
Love the dragon videos. I used to watch you when you were making skyrim content and then I recently found you in my recommended section and have been keeping up with the dragon videos for a few months now. Really love the videos man
I have DMed this one, In my version, not only is Iniarv' still alive, he is dormant until the both crowns are active again. Once both crowns are worn, his "alarm clock" goes off and he returns. As both crowns are his phylactery, meaning that both crowns need to be destroyed in order for him to remain dead.
But they were, both of them, deceived, for in his tower on the southern border, the Archmage created a master crown. One crown to rule them all, One crown to find them, One crown to bring them all, And in the darkness bind them.
I’m pretty sure Hoard of the Dragon Queen takes you to the mere in the 5th chapter. And Lutes and Dice channel did a great breakdown of the story and plot of HotDQ and he relates an abbreviated version of this tale. Thanks Rhexx for filling the blanks. I’m loving these individual dragon lores you’ve been putting out. Good luck with your kickstarter. Hopefully once One D&D implodes itself you can be the new paizo and pump out great “not” 5e content.
Yes it does! Lutes inspired me a lot when running it myself. The players discovered a damaged part of one of the crowns after killing a shambling mound.
I ran HotDQ and, although the book says that you should have the players steer clear of Vorag's lair, I had will o wisps guide them to what was a very interesting and death free encounter with the black dragon in question. That being said, my players should have brought their brown pants to that session.
My long-running evil campaign became unexpectedly focused on the Mere of Dead Men, so this is super fascinating. I found bits of this lore myself, but I sure wish I had the rest a while back! Your content is amazing, thanks for all of the inspiration!
If only this video came out 3 years ago! I had to dig through old D&D Magazines for Lore and Abilities when running "The Hoard of The Dragon Queen." It's legit just a name drop with nothing else XD Great video and informative as always!
It's so unexpected to here about not just one but two black dragon's that don't like the idea of becoming undead I thought out of all the chromatic black dragon's were the most likely to lean towards undeath
@Helarki True but their aversion to being undead isn't what makes them so strong and able to reach the pinnacle of their species Though is a very nice change of pace that they have that unique personality trait What truly makes them power houses is their telepathic and empathic link with one another and the trust they share enabling the two to work together
Fun fact: These two make a cameo in a Neverwinter Nights 2 campaign called Storm of Zehir. I didn't realize they were established characters until seeing your video. Great job!
Which is interesting, since the original NWN2 starts in a village _in the Mere of Dead Men._ These dragons don't make any sort of appearance at all in the story. They're overshadowed by the ancient Illefarn Empire and the King of Shadows instead. Which isn't a bad thing, necessarily. The idea that the Mere is so big it can have multiple powers working multiple plans across history is cool!
@@General12th Which is extra intressting since in Act 3 of NWN2 You fight 2 Black Dragons at the same time when you go and talk to Nolaloth (Nolalothcaragascint)
This series has been the ultimate inspiration for a dragon 5e campaign. Just based on all the major dragons of DnD deciding to all begin moving upon their plans in Faerun
It's also worth of note that the dragon/dragons are mentioned in the Hoard of the Dragonqueen or Tyranny of Dragons as it's known as now. The part it's mentioned is in, is when the party arrives at Castle Naertyr that is located in the mere of deadmen.
I'm so excited to watch this one! These two are my favorite dragons in Faerun. Most evil characters in Forgotten Realms are so single minded and obsessed with power or wealth that they can really run together. Their bond makes them interesting and relatable. Their attitude toward adventures is also much more dynamic for play. The crowns also have special powers specifically for twins. Iniarv used a special set of enchantments to allow himself to control the wearers.
ALways love hearing about dragons. My favorite creatures in D&D. Please do some about gem dragons, Those have always been my favorite due to being so rare in the lore. In all the books that I read years ago I think the gems were only mentioned once and that was in one of the first Dragonlance books. "The neutral dragons have chosen to stay out of this conflict due to not wanting to risk their eggs." Didn't help the Metallics.
Probably one of my favorite layers within the Forgotten. I love all of the story and potential around everything you have gathered here from their products. I ran this particular module run several times across several years for different groups. The layers are so expandable. One of those moments when you can say that something was done right and to extent for the imagination.
Love your Lore content and with that in mind I got in on your Kickstarter...can't wait to see it come to life! With the way you deep dive into D&D everything; I can only suspect it will be magnificent. SKÅL!
I plan on using this very story line to continue my phandelver/icespire peak/divine contention/tyranny of dragons campaign. All of these modules lend so well to each other and I feel as though an all powerful liche controlling 2 ancient dragons would be a great Epic level story!
This dragon series is the best! I'm running a Neverwinter campaign atm and my players are level 8, from 1st. I've done my own bits of research into Claugiyliamatar (with one player being if great interest to her), Palarandusk, Arveiturace and Chardansearavitriol, The Ebondeath already, but your videos on them have been immensely helpful. I knew next to nothing about the Voaraghamanthar twins and didn't know where to really start with them, and I didn't even know about Zundaerazylym! All your hard work here will definitely be put to good use in my campaign. Thanks!
These dudes have the tropes of a horror movie...acid blood like Aliens, appearing out of nowhere no matter how fast someone runs making it appear like they everywhere at once like Jason Voorhees lol
I think I'm going to use the twins concept for a duo of Lunar Dragons. Blood moons rising, and the New Moon not raging sibling will call to Selune for assistance (who then directs my Twilight Cleric and the party to aid the "good" sibling). Then I can have the dying "good" sibling bestow a Lunar Pseudodragon as a neat thematic gift to the Twilight Cleric.
I know you're super busy you're doing great work. Could you do a video on all the surviving nethersse archmages like Aumvor,Larloch ect ect? Thanks for all the hard work.
I'm wrapping up a homebrew version for 5e available on DM Guild called "Eye of Myrkul" based on the Dragon Magazine adventure for 2nd edition D&D. I tied it into the chapter in Hoard of the Dragon Queen called "Castle Nerytar". The twin dragons want the adventurers to retrieve the Twinned Crown of Myrmoran. Next game night the adventurers face off agaisnt Chardansearavitriol. If they retrieve the crown and bring it above ground, an army of 50 bullywugs and 100 Lizardfolk led by the Cult of the Dragon will be waiting for them, with Voraghamanthar. Waevrender will be invisible, watching for the crown to be handed off.
Hello Mr. Rhexx. I've been a subscriber to your channel for maybe a year and a half now and with each new video you put out never fail to disappoint. I started and stopped playing D&D in the 1980s. Since then, I've only dabbled in the various editions. I've played numerous other RPG systems, but none of them has ever truly fit all my wants and desires except Palladium Books (the company responsible for Rifts, and at one time TMNT and Robotech). I've been a freelance writer for them since 2012. I must say though I am so envious with the content that you have provided for D&D players/GMs/fans since I've been watching this channel. You manage to collect all the material about various monsters, deities, and planes of exists over the last 40+ years and turn into a brilliant narrative that tells a complete story, something Wizards of the Coast should have continued to do after acquiring D&D from TSR. Just because you change editions, the details could have stayed the same, and your videos prove that. The idea that so many of these monsters have almost no information about them because of different writers and editors over the years kept or deleted parts of stats and abilities is so annoying. I get it. Today's 5th edition D.M. just needs to have a monster show up so the party can charge it like their playing World of Warcraft, kill it, gain their experience points, and move on. But I for one need more meat and potatoes to go with my monsters when I run a campaign. I want the full capabilities. I want the lore that provides all the major and minor particulars and even obscure details because that feels organic to the role playing. It gives the players a skill roll to attempt in order to remember or figure out what they're fighting and what will hurt it. I am so envious that Palladium Fantasy doesn't such a rich history to draw from. Kevin has written one for the various monsters for the Rifts RPG and they are in the process of making a second book, but not one for Palladium Fantasy and I can't foresee a reason why they would. Nevertheless, your videos inspire me to write further elaborations in the material I submit to the Palladium Fantasy RPG. Can't thank you enough for it. I wish you success on your Kickstarter. Looks fascinating and on multiple levels. Unfortunately, I must decline a purchase at this time in order not to be influenced by a second party as I'm currently writing material that has undead in it. Can't wait for the next dragon to come out. Sincerely Glen A Evans
These dragon videos are such a rich inspiration! I am more then ever convinced to run a forgotten realm adventure , but first and foremost you inspire my homebrew setting AF :D This and your elven empire 10-11-12 level spells are of the roof
Same. Don't have the time or the money to invest in the hobby but I still wish I could. These videos are the next best thing. If you're interested in other creators I can also recommend Guy at How to be a great GM. Fascinating insights on creating stories and worlds and the technical side of things, AJ pickett, the dungeon dudes, and Puffin Forest, although a lot of his stuff is comedy/animation and he posts VERY infrequently. Still a great guy to listen to talk about the hobby though.
7:08 what book does that map come from? It has West harbor, the weeping willow inn, and Fort Locke on it. I thought all of those were just original creations of Obsidian in Neverwinter nights 2. You actually get to fight Voaraghamanthar and his twin brother in the NWN2 expansion called Storm of Zehir.
Thanks! for confirming I was wracking my brain for a while as I remembered fighting two black dragons in a dark, swampy area that wanted tribute from a village on NWN2
@@alimcknight The name is used by two Dragons posing as one to fool people into thinking he is a dragon with special powers. Voarag is one of the dragons (Both use that name) the other twin is actually named Waervaer.
The Sands of Doom is something I'd like to see your channel do with other RU-vidrs play once it's been out for a while... not because it's a horrible thing, but so we can all see it wonderfully played without the spoilers ruining your sales. As for that crown and the twin things, I homebrewed something like that crown. Mine was (rather uncreatively) called the Corsican Crown (not at all related to Corsica, but the twins of an outside-of-AD&D myth). I got my inspiration off of a SNES video game system version of Final Fantasy involving twins who inherited a kingdom, Edward who became a technologically gifted king, and Sabin his vagabond brother who specialized in being a super-brawler. I wrote my version, and those were powerful recruitible NPC characters in that campaign, both wore the Corsican Crown. Sorry for the rant, but this was a fun reminder. I actually have time as a real game-balancing factor in my campaigns. I have since the 80s. It's more than just letting mages research spells, enchanters make magic items, crafters create items worthy of enchantment, money based upon land to do its work, miners to get what they need, and armorers/weaponsmiths to create their wares. I have seasons, not a big deal, and major background events... like tides of war the adventurers didn't participate in and quests that potential BBE's complete when not stopped/delayed by players characters. In my campaigns (if I chose Faerun as the campaign world), by year 10 from the beginning, if my players didn't stop them, those twin dragons would have the crowns.
Must be nice for a dragon (especially a chromatic dragon (double especially for a black dragon)) having someone you could fully trust with no worries of betrayal.
Running LMOP with some home brew sandbox stuff this weekend. I love the ideas, maps, lore. Thanks for placing the copies for copies of old issues of Dragon Magazine. I used to get copies during the Summer of 1988 on after I learned of that magazine.
I've been watching a lot of dnd lore videos and book reviews for the last two years and this is the first one I've found really interesting. The developers need to make stories like these.
We always see Dragons with classes in like Wizard or Sorcerer, sometimes Druid, which makes sense. But I wanna see a Fighter or Paladin Dragon. Imagine a Dragon who can use battle master manuvers and gets second wind and even more attacks. Or a dragon that goes into a Barbarian rage
You can do it on your own. I do it all the time. I give Nightwalkers the equivalent of Polearm master if you approach within 15ft of them, and the Sentinel feat.
Great video. If you get a chance you should do a video on Blithen of the Many Names. He's a gem dragon and not connected to the Realms, but still a fun dragon.
I actually introduced a pair of Young Black Dragon twins to my players a while back that they are on friendly terms with. The Party saved their mother, ant the twins from being taken by evil Shadow Cultists that were going the turn them into corrupted Shadow Dragons.
These videos are so helpful with my Forgotten Realms campaign. Faerûn has such deep lore that my job as a DM is just to figure out my story and work the parts out so that it all fits.
I played the advenutres when I played Rise of Tiamat a few years back, it was a nice side adventure, the tower is a fun place. Spoilers ahead. I made Ebondeath mostly attack the life force with his attacks and age the pcs (which was fun because humans are much more susceptible to it and it changed the attributes of the fighter around a bit after aging almost 50 years)
The Kingdom Two Crown artwork being used at 3:48 really threw me for a loop lmao I hardly ever see anyone mention/pull from that game. Great video aswell
i wish there was a PDF or video that would keep track of lore like this around the sword coast and beyond... my players always wonder what to find in e.g. the Neverwinter Forest, or the Sword Mountains... And I always have to improvise - which is fine - but given that there is so much cool cannon lore... It's a shame I cannot make use of it. Thanks a lot for these great videos
@phantvm402 true, but especially as a PDF I think it is doable. For example, just having the lairs and domains of the mighty dragons around the Sword Coast area with a paragraph about their motives/habits/enemies/allies would be like what? maybe 10-12 pages? Then another addition like "typical monsters around that domain" would maybe be another 5-6 pages? I do not need every detail and I do not think most people would, just general "overlords" of each area as canon in lore, the rest is easy interpretation for DMs. It's just a wish I have had for a long time now, and I cannot think of anyone more qualified then Mr Rhexx ;)
Aww, he failed to mention Neverwinter Nights 2! It's literally starts in the mere of dead men! And has a whole story about it too! Missed opportunity. Fantastic game!!
When he brought up the Mere an old memory of your adoptive father from that game saying "The Mere of Dead Men" popped into my head and it took me by surprise having not played that game in like 10 years.
If the swamp keeps moving up to but not past the road, I wonder if said swamp will shrink if the lord's alliance decides to pave the road through the swamp?
Already bought Sands of Doom (and hype abt it!), but this was my first time actually watching the trailer and holy shit. Chills, mate. Quality work, as w everyrhing I see you do!
Ah, one of my dragon(s) ever (my top favorite being Olothontor)! I just wish they would use these characters in novels and stuff, the story potential is right there!! I think even Daurgothoth (my third favorite) got a mere mention in one novel, which saddens me. Speaking of favorites, can you also talk about Olothontor? Literally nobody talks about him and he's my favorite dragon that needs love and recognition!
When you finish the named dragon series. I’d love to see a series about locales from the forgotten realms and their history. I loved the section of the history of the mere of dead men.
Im a new DM that is running my first Dnd homebrew adventure, And my players are in The Mere! traveling to Neverwinter, and this video is very interesting for the lore of the old Kingdom. A bit sad that they will leave soon, but i love this kind of videos. Hope to see a Video of Neverwinter!
Black dragons are my favorite! This one really got me jump started with all sorts of things, now I’m only jonesing for the next black dragon. Maybe down the line we can hit up my personal favorite, Nurvureem. Thanks for the hard work and videos!!!
This video came out at an Opportune time. My party has been talking about meeting the Dragon in the Mere of Dead Men for some months, and at our last get together they finally met Voaraghamanthar. This is going to be fun.
Dwight Games’ “Ranger’s Choice” is *SPOILERS* having us go through a swamp ruled by a black dragon as well!!! We haven’t found the dragon yet but I’m watching this video and your old black dragon one to try and see what to expect
It's always nice to learn more about dragons that you didn't know they even existed. Great work as always. Is there any chance you could cover Ashardalon in a later video?
Considering that black dragons were nicknamed skeleton dragons even before dracolich’s existed really puts into perspective just how fitting being a dracolich normally is for them.
The group I'm running is entering this territory right now. They've been just noe warned of this dragon. My brother is probably watching this losing his mind at the timing. May his firbolg druid last.
My second game as a DM and the party is getting close to 17, they're currently facing some monstrosities left by the mad mage Halaster and might make an optional foray into Undermountain for loot and more epic adventure, will definitely have to file "twin black dragons under the control of a lich" for future use though. Great lore.
Voaraghamanthar is in my Sunday campaign. It’s a fusion of rot and skt that my dm is planning from 1-20. We fought them once with the help of an airship and it was nuts. I managed to spot their lair through a spyglass so we will be heading back to finish things before too long.
I think I just found my favorite dragons. Two bro dragons who don't fall into the stereotypes of their color to much. Feels more like two player characters instead of dragons
