Shadar-Kai - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Shadar-Kai

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
DoctorBadWolf
Jan 15, 2011 10:57:01 Eberron has a Shadowfell, and there is no specific mention of Shadar-kai that I'm aware of, so are they simply the same as their core fluff, minus the Raven Queen?

Is there a god (preferably not one of the evil Dark Six) that can reasonably be tied to the Shadar-kai? What would the people of Khorvaire think of them?
#2
hanzo187
Jan 15, 2011 13:47:19 There's very little on the shadar-kai in Eberron, other than a little tidbit in them once being humans that wound up in Dolurrh for some reason.

Personally, I think this creates a prime opportunity to create your own deity. One of the advantages of Eberron is the uncertain nature of the gods, and you can use this to your benefit.

Now, though you might not want them to worship the Dark Six, it's always possible the patron deity of the Shadar-Kai is an aspect of them or the Sovereign Host. After all, a sect of drow in Xen'drik worship the scorpion god Vulkoor, who is said to be an aspect of The Mockery. Since the shadar-kai are oriented towards death and darkness, the two deities they could most closely associate with are Balinor and The Mockery. In their own way, Balinor represents more the cycle of life that inevitably leads to death, whereas The Mockery could represent the darkness witin their own souls. I was thinking of The Keeper, as well, but since many of his worshippers are necromancers (and the shadar-kai despise undeath), I ruled him out. Of course, The Keeper might be a viable option.

Of these deities, I think Balinor connects most closely with The Raven Queen, so you could say the shadar-kai worship her, and those who know their Sovereign Host might find the similarities between The Raven Queen and Balinor. Since shadar-kai were once human, and the Sovereign Host originated from the humans of Sarlona, it could stand to reason that the religion was carried, but warped, by the shadar-kai.
#3
Siberys
Jan 15, 2011 18:52:46 I use the shadar-kai stats for Umbragen in my own games. There's already a race of shadow-infused people in Eberron - no need to reinvent the wheel.
#4
tallric_kruush
Jan 15, 2011 19:41:43 I built, but never played, a Thuranni Thief using Shadar-kai as the mechanical frame. Their racial power is pretty appropriate for a character bearing the Mark of Shadow.

That said, I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to Eberron. If we ever used a Shadar-kai for anything other than a reskin of something else (as above), it would likely be as a unique, possibly one of a kind, being.

Exposure to the energies of Mabar or Dolurrh would make sense as a point of origin for such a character. Whether through an arcane experiment gone wrong, or exposure to a Manifest Zone (such as the Gloaming), that's the route we'd likely go.

That's my two cents, for what it's worth.
#5
DoctorBadWolf
Jan 16, 2011 3:59:18 Well my main point is that I like the Shadar-kai as they are, and would prefer to keep them with the fundementals of their fluff intact. It's not just that they're shadow infused, but that they have become creatures of shadow who must live in an extreme manner in order for the shadowfell/dollurh to not claim them with it's oppressive ennui.

I like the Balinor idea. I suppose that they could worship The Mockery or The Keeper by a different name, but it seems to me that an unaligned god fits them more adequately than an evil god. Which is why, in FR, I like to have Shadar-kai who have rejected Netheril and Shar, and instead worship Mask, as the shadow within the shadow, just as they are born in the shadow of Netheril.

I toyed with the Traveler. The main problem there is that it has nothing to do with death, and they have little enough to do with secrets. Or at least, I can't see it as a primary cultural trait. Then again, if they worship a god who is probably an aspect of The Traveler it need not be a god of secrets. It could instead be a god of change, invention and adversity, viewing adversity as a positive thing. "Ashan-Mal sends adversity, that we may become as him." Or something like that...
#6
hanzo187
Jan 16, 2011 12:04:43 I also forgot to mention: There's a religious sect Keith Baker has mentioned several times called the Restful Watch. They revere Aureon and The Keeper above the rest, but they don't view The Keeper as evil. On the contrary, they believe The Keeper takes souls so they are not lost in Dolurrh, only to return these souls to the world when they are truly needed. I think how it works is Aureon judges the soul whether he/she's been just and The Keeper snatches said soul so it can be kept safe until needed.

I don't know how that would fit, but you never know.
#7
DoctorBadWolf
Jan 16, 2011 16:17:16 I like it. I think I may go with that, actually.
#8
skeptical_clown
Jan 17, 2011 7:31:44
I toyed with the Traveler. The main problem there is that it has nothing to do with death, and they have little enough to do with secrets. Or at least, I can't see it as a primary cultural trait. Then again, if they worship a god who is probably an aspect of The Traveler it need not be a god of secrets. It could instead be a god of change, invention and adversity, viewing adversity as a positive thing. "Ashan-Mal sends adversity, that we may become as him." Or something like that...

This is sort of the official line. Dragon 372 suggests that the Shadar-kai made a pact with the Traveler and moved to Dolurrh out of fear of death. There's no real detail on this pact, and on the face of it that doesn't make a ton of sense. It also says that they favor the Traveler, but worship the other Dark Six and sometimes the Sovereigns too--their tendency for body modification is tied to the Mockery for example.

So what I've been working out in my campaign has been based on the details of the characters--one of the players is Shadar-kai, another is Vistani. The Vistani also worship the Traveler. So I'm thinking that some ancient Vistani may have been among the first of the Shadar-kai. They traveled to Dolurrh to face death head-on. By facing the challenges of life in Dolurrh, and living through adversity, they emulate the Traveler and fulfill their pact with him. In this way they hope to become truly deathless like the Traveler they emulate, and find their way through Dolurrh to the eternal life that lies beyond. In this case, they specifically do NOT worship the Keeper, as he represents exactly what they hope to avoid.
#9
DoctorBadWolf
Jan 17, 2011 23:59:00 Nice. I think it makes rather a lot of sense that there's no real detail on the pact they made with The Traveler, given The Traveler's nature.

#10
sidekick
Apr 24, 2011 17:28:28 For what it's worth - here's my take on Sharak-kai in Eberron.

I go with Hellcows direction for them having made a deal with the Traveller - however I've made them not be Humans originally. Instead they were Eladrin.

When the Mourning hit and the Feyspires all got turfed out of Thelanis the Elders of the Shadow Court made a deal with the Traveller. Dump their people in Dollurh and take the souls of the elders.

Well, the Traveller exactly that. It transported the people of the Court (Eladrin and Gnomes) and dumped them in the Shadowfell and back in time a couple centuries - and all minus the reason why they were there. So they stayed, got warped by the shadowfell and are now Shadar-kai and Dark Creepers.

Beware the gifts of the Traveller...
#11
DoctorBadWolf
May 04, 2011 1:40:54 Nice. So many options. :P

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 DoctorBadWolf Jan 15, 2011 10:57:01	Eberron has a Shadowfell, and there is no specific mention of Shadar-kai that I'm aware of, so are they simply the same as their core fluff, minus the Raven Queen? Is there a god (preferably not one of the evil Dark Six) that can reasonably be tied to the Shadar-kai? What would the people of Khorvaire think of them?
#2 hanzo187 Jan 15, 2011 13:47:19	There's very little on the shadar-kai in Eberron, other than a little tidbit in them once being humans that wound up in Dolurrh for some reason. Personally, I think this creates a prime opportunity to create your own deity. One of the advantages of Eberron is the uncertain nature of the gods, and you can use this to your benefit. Now, though you might not want them to worship the Dark Six, it's always possible the patron deity of the Shadar-Kai is an aspect of them or the Sovereign Host. After all, a sect of drow in Xen'drik worship the scorpion god Vulkoor, who is said to be an aspect of The Mockery. Since the shadar-kai are oriented towards death and darkness, the two deities they could most closely associate with are Balinor and The Mockery. In their own way, Balinor represents more the cycle of life that inevitably leads to death, whereas The Mockery could represent the darkness witin their own souls. I was thinking of The Keeper, as well, but since many of his worshippers are necromancers (and the shadar-kai despise undeath), I ruled him out. Of course, The Keeper might be a viable option. Of these deities, I think Balinor connects most closely with The Raven Queen, so you could say the shadar-kai worship her, and those who know their Sovereign Host might find the similarities between The Raven Queen and Balinor. Since shadar-kai were once human, and the Sovereign Host originated from the humans of Sarlona, it could stand to reason that the religion was carried, but warped, by the shadar-kai.
#3 Siberys Jan 15, 2011 18:52:46	I use the shadar-kai stats for Umbragen in my own games. There's already a race of shadow-infused people in Eberron - no need to reinvent the wheel.
#4 tallric_kruush Jan 15, 2011 19:41:43	I built, but never played, a Thuranni Thief using Shadar-kai as the mechanical frame. Their racial power is pretty appropriate for a character bearing the Mark of Shadow. That said, I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to Eberron. If we ever used a Shadar-kai for anything other than a reskin of something else (as above), it would likely be as a unique, possibly one of a kind, being. Exposure to the energies of Mabar or Dolurrh would make sense as a point of origin for such a character. Whether through an arcane experiment gone wrong, or exposure to a Manifest Zone (such as the Gloaming), that's the route we'd likely go. That's my two cents, for what it's worth.
#5 DoctorBadWolf Jan 16, 2011 3:59:18	Well my main point is that I like the Shadar-kai as they are, and would prefer to keep them with the fundementals of their fluff intact. It's not just that they're shadow infused, but that they have become creatures of shadow who must live in an extreme manner in order for the shadowfell/dollurh to not claim them with it's oppressive ennui. I like the Balinor idea. I suppose that they could worship The Mockery or The Keeper by a different name, but it seems to me that an unaligned god fits them more adequately than an evil god. Which is why, in FR, I like to have Shadar-kai who have rejected Netheril and Shar, and instead worship Mask, as the shadow within the shadow, just as they are born in the shadow of Netheril. I toyed with the Traveler. The main problem there is that it has nothing to do with death, and they have little enough to do with secrets. Or at least, I can't see it as a primary cultural trait. Then again, if they worship a god who is probably an aspect of The Traveler it need not be a god of secrets. It could instead be a god of change, invention and adversity, viewing adversity as a positive thing. "Ashan-Mal sends adversity, that we may become as him." Or something like that...
#6 hanzo187 Jan 16, 2011 12:04:43	I also forgot to mention: There's a religious sect Keith Baker has mentioned several times called the Restful Watch. They revere Aureon and The Keeper above the rest, but they don't view The Keeper as evil. On the contrary, they believe The Keeper takes souls so they are not lost in Dolurrh, only to return these souls to the world when they are truly needed. I think how it works is Aureon judges the soul whether he/she's been just and The Keeper snatches said soul so it can be kept safe until needed. I don't know how that would fit, but you never know.
#7 DoctorBadWolf Jan 16, 2011 16:17:16	I like it. I think I may go with that, actually.
#8 skeptical_clown Jan 17, 2011 7:31:44	I toyed with the Traveler. The main problem there is that it has nothing to do with death, and they have little enough to do with secrets. Or at least, I can't see it as a primary cultural trait. Then again, if they worship a god who is probably an aspect of The Traveler it need not be a god of secrets. It could instead be a god of change, invention and adversity, viewing adversity as a positive thing. "Ashan-Mal sends adversity, that we may become as him." Or something like that... This is sort of the official line. Dragon 372 suggests that the Shadar-kai made a pact with the Traveler and moved to Dolurrh out of fear of death. There's no real detail on this pact, and on the face of it that doesn't make a ton of sense. It also says that they favor the Traveler, but worship the other Dark Six and sometimes the Sovereigns too--their tendency for body modification is tied to the Mockery for example. So what I've been working out in my campaign has been based on the details of the characters--one of the players is Shadar-kai, another is Vistani. The Vistani also worship the Traveler. So I'm thinking that some ancient Vistani may have been among the first of the Shadar-kai. They traveled to Dolurrh to face death head-on. By facing the challenges of life in Dolurrh, and living through adversity, they emulate the Traveler and fulfill their pact with him. In this way they hope to become truly deathless like the Traveler they emulate, and find their way through Dolurrh to the eternal life that lies beyond. In this case, they specifically do NOT worship the Keeper, as he represents exactly what they hope to avoid.
#9 DoctorBadWolf Jan 17, 2011 23:59:00	Nice. I think it makes rather a lot of sense that there's no real detail on the pact they made with The Traveler, given The Traveler's nature.
#10 sidekick Apr 24, 2011 17:28:28	For what it's worth - here's my take on Sharak-kai in Eberron. I go with Hellcows direction for them having made a deal with the Traveller - however I've made them not be Humans originally. Instead they were Eladrin. When the Mourning hit and the Feyspires all got turfed out of Thelanis the Elders of the Shadow Court made a deal with the Traveller. Dump their people in Dollurh and take the souls of the elders. Well, the Traveller exactly that. It transported the people of the Court (Eladrin and Gnomes) and dumped them in the Shadowfell and back in time a couple centuries - and all minus the reason why they were there. So they stayed, got warped by the shadowfell and are now Shadar-kai and Dark Creepers. Beware the gifts of the Traveller...
#11 DoctorBadWolf May 04, 2011 1:40:54	Nice. So many options. :P