It seems the stock story for Wilden would fit in Eberron with very little change. Here's my brief write-up:
The Daelkyr grew tired of the numerous forces that were ready to battle them in Eberron, and so they turned their attention to Thelanis hoping for easier prey. They marched in and after a year the Daelkyr returned. Alone. No-one has managed to hear the tale of what happened in that year.
In the last few months a new race has begun popping up around Khorvaire. They call themselves the Wilden and say they were created by the plane of Thelanis itself to battle the Daelkyr. Whether or not this is true no-one knows, but the Wilden appear to believe it. Funnily enough the eladrin have also been appearing more often in Khorvaire as well. What they're doing they keep to themselves.
And the DM-only part of the write-up:
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When the Daelkyr led their armies into Thelanis, they were immediately immobilised. The Eladrin wield powerful magic over most of the portals that leads from Eberron to Thelanis. Those they don't control, are controlled by the Formorians. Those the Eladrin captured were experimented on.
The more natural slaves the Daelkyr had brought had their minds wiped before they were sent back to Eberron. This went by unnoticed except by a couple of studious House Jorasco researchers who noted a sudden spike in amnesia patients. The Eladrin were able to cleanse most of the more extreme abberations. After doing so they transformed them into the Wilden and imbued within each Wilden a respect for nature and a hatred for Xoriat. This effectively turned the Daelkyr weapon against them. Confident in their manipulations of the abberations, the Wilden were given free movement in both Thelanis and Eberron. Although many eladrin have been sent to Eberron to ensure that the Wilden aren't changing back into their former selves.
The Daelkyr were experimented on for a year. Attempts were made to transform them physically, as well as transform them mentally. All of the attempts failed. They finally let the Daelkyr return to Eberron, confident that the excruciating pain the Daelkyr went through was sufficient to ensure they never attacked Thelanis again.
Nothing is known about those forces captured by the Formorians.
The more natural slaves the Daelkyr had brought had their minds wiped before they were sent back to Eberron. This went by unnoticed except by a couple of studious House Jorasco researchers who noted a sudden spike in amnesia patients. The Eladrin were able to cleanse most of the more extreme abberations. After doing so they transformed them into the Wilden and imbued within each Wilden a respect for nature and a hatred for Xoriat. This effectively turned the Daelkyr weapon against them. Confident in their manipulations of the abberations, the Wilden were given free movement in both Thelanis and Eberron. Although many eladrin have been sent to Eberron to ensure that the Wilden aren't changing back into their former selves.
The Daelkyr were experimented on for a year. Attempts were made to transform them physically, as well as transform them mentally. All of the attempts failed. They finally let the Daelkyr return to Eberron, confident that the excruciating pain the Daelkyr went through was sufficient to ensure they never attacked Thelanis again.
Nothing is known about those forces captured by the Formorians.
The gatekeeper orcs originally confused them for the extraplanar threat varrack warned them of, and the wildren instinctively learned druidism from fighting their enemies.
then the dealkyr invaded and the gatekeepers realised how wrong they were, and joined forces with the wildren. however, since they warred against each other for so long, both forces combined weren't enough to save Dhakaan, and they could only imprison and repel the dealkyr instead of defeat them as they were meant to.
The huge cluster between the orcs and wildren is the real reason Varrack was an outcast from Argonessen. Most other dragons were of the opinion that Eberron would protect itself from the comming incursion. Varrack incorrectly interpreted that as children of Eberron, meaning the lesser races, would defend it, so she taught the orcs how to. So really, her interferance made things worse.
I'll be using the same story I used for Killoren. The wildren were birthed by Eberron herself, in preparation for the coming invasion of the dealkyr.
The gatekeeper orcs originally confused them for the extraplanar threat varrack warned them of, and the wildren instinctively learned druidism from fighting their enemies.
then the dealkyr invaded and the gatekeepers realised how wrong they were, and joined forces with the wildren. however, since they warred against each other for so long, both forces combined weren't enough to save Dhakaan, and they could only imprison and repel the dealkyr instead of defeat them as they were meant to.
The huge cluster between the orcs and wildren is the real reason Varrack was an outcast from Argonessen. Most other dragons were of the opinion that Eberron would protect itself from the comming incursion. AvonRekaes incorrectly interpreted that as children of Eberron, meaning the lesser races, would defend it, so she taught the orcs how to. So really, her interferance made things worse.
Briliant, AvonRekaes! Exept for the part about Varrack making it worse. This idea is great, but I'm intrested in how exactly Eberron predicted it. Did her knowledge of the planes warn her, or did her on going struggle to keep Khyber bound tell her?
Also, why did you edit my quote so that I incorrectly interpreted something, rather than Varrack? How can I misinterpret something I made up myself?
My point about Varrack is that she's considered a heretic by draconic standards. In the canon setting, she's considered as such merely for teaching the secrets of druidicism to the orcs. Dragons are a bit squeemish about teaching other races after they taught the giants of Xen'drik arcane magic and ended up having to destroy them before they caused a second catastrophe. In my version of the setting, she's doubly damned because in her efforts to self-fufill the Prophecy, she ended up inadvertantly hindering the true defenses of Eberron against the Dealkyr, by creating the orc druid army that incorrectly interpreted the race emerging from the woods itself, the Killoren/Wilden, as an extraplanar threat (they thought fey lords were invading from Thelanis).
Also, I have the Ashbound sect being the second oldest on Khorvaire after the gatekeepers,, and was founded by a Killoren/Wilden as a reaction to the works of Dhakaan.
She's an overgod. There's no reason to think she didn't see it coming. You know how dragonmark-like formations appear on mountains or cave walls sometimes? That's probably Eberron revealing parts of the prophecy.
Yeah that's true. All though I'm still wondering why should do it. I'd asume she is probaly just protective of life though.
Also, why did you edit my quote so that I incorrectly interpreted something, rather than Varrack? How can I misinterpret something I made up myself?
What?! When and where did I do that? Are you trying to bait me, or did you think I was trying to bait you?
My point about Varrack is that she's considered a heretic by draconic standards. In the canon setting, she's considered as such merely for teaching the secrets of druidicism to the orcs. Dragons are a bit squeemish about teaching other races after they taught the giants of Xen'drik arcane magic and ended up having to destroy them before they caused a second catastrophe. In my version of the setting, she's doubly damned because in her efforts to self-fufill the Prophecy, she ended up inadvertantly hindering the true defenses of Eberron against the Dealkyr, by creating the orc druid army that incorrectly interpreted the race emerging from the woods itself, the Killoren/Wilden, as an extraplanar threat (they thought fey lords were invading from Thelanis).
You know what that's true. but I don't think she would of done this out of fear or power, and she probaly meditated this for a long time, and were for the better, even if it didn't turn out that way.
Also, I have the Ashbound sect being the second oldest on Khorvaire after the gatekeepers,, and was founded by a Killoren/Wilden as a reaction to the works of Dhakaan.
Also a good idea.
You know what that's true. but I don't think she would of done this out of fear or power, and she probably meditated this for a long time, and were for the better, even if it didn't turn out that way.
Never said she did it out of fear or a grab for power. If anything defying the leadership and intellectual community of Argonessen and knowingly taking actions that will make you a pariah among your people, all in an effort to save the world makes you courageous and self-sacrificing.
That she happened to be wrong doesn't change that.
Never said she did it out of fear or a grab for power. If anything defying the leadership and intellectual community of Argonessen and knowingly taking actions that will make you a pariah among your people, all in an effort to save the world makes you courageous and self-sacrificing.
That she happened to be wrong doesn't change that.
Agreed.
There is a Druid sect that has a great deal of contact with Fey: the Greensingers. They are also amongst the inhabitants of Eberron most likely to cross into Thelanis, the fey realm.
True. The Greensingers could have been founded under the Wilden. After all I thought that the Ashbound was a younger sect and they are rather to fanaticaly anti-arcane, after all arcane magic is a key part of Eberron. Seems to me that a sect of druids founded by a race that was born from Eberron would know that arcane magic is a natural part of the world. AvonRekaes what do you think about the Greensingers being founded by the Wilden instead of the Ashbound?
As for the Greensingers, they seem to be focused on the more mischievous kinds of fey, like pixies and nymphs. Honestly I didn't consider them for a tie to killoren/wilden because, plain and simple, I'm not interested in them. I sorta just have this funny image of a random human greensinger being all fawning and foppish toward a killoren/wilden because it's a fey, and the killoren/wilden just being embarrassed by it.
It wasn't until sometime later that the Greensingers were revealed to have an interesting planar element to them. Even then, they wouldn't have a particular tie to the killoren/wilden, because the killoren/wilden came from Eberron, not Thelanis, despite being fey.
There is a Druid sect that has a great deal of contact with Fey: the Greensingers. They are also amongst the inhabitants of Eberron most likely to cross into Thelanis, the fey realm.
I'll admit I know very little about Eberron (I'm getting good on Xen'drik though). But I don't let that stop me in making stuff up for the setting :D
All I know on Thelanis is
Thelanis, the Faerie Court, also known as the Feywild in some ancient texts, is the mysterious home of the fey races, the fomorians and the eladrin. Many scholars believe the ancestors of the elves and the drow of Eberron originally came from Thelanis as well. Tales speak of travelers drawn into its eternal twilight, emerging after what feels to them like mere days, only to discover that weeks or even months have passed in the world. The influence of the Feywild is said to be strong near faerie rings and faerie mounds, which are most common in the forested Eldeen Reaches of Khorvaire.
So I got the impression NPCs very rarely, if ever, travel to the plane (unless they're natives). Is that right? Or completely wrong?
Manifest Zones defy the normal planar laws. Some like the area around Sharn simply empowers magic related to the nature of the plane of the manifest zone. Elsewhere like in the Eldeen there might just be holes in existance between two planes, the Twilight Demense (pg 174 ECS 3.5) is a place where the walls between Eberron and Thelanis are about as thin as tissue.
Dal Quor is the only plane without manifest zones.
I knowingly increased the age of the Ashbound sect to being the second-oldest, because I thought the idea of it being founded by a deranged, extremist killoren/wilden would be an interesting origin for the sect, like how the Wardens of the Wood were founded by Oalain, who was originally awakened by a Gatekeeper.
Ah. Very creative. Could explenation on why the Ashbound are that way. It it a rather intresting origin.
As for the Greensingers, they seem to be focused on the more mischievous kinds of fey, like pixies and nymphs. Honestly I didn't consider them for a tie to killoren/wilden because, plain and simple, I'm not interested in them. I sorta just have this funny image of a random human greensinger being all fawning and foppish toward a killoren/wilden because it's a fey, and the killoren/wilden just being embarrassed by it.
True. They do seem to be focused on the more mischievous kinds of fey. That image is rather funny.
It wasn't until sometime later that the Greensingers were revealed to have an interesting planar element to them. Even then, they wouldn't have a particular tie to the killoren/wilden, because the killoren/wilden came from Eberron, not Thelanis, despite being fey.
That is true. The killoren/wilden do come from Eberron(in your interoperation).
I'll probably just have them as transients from Thelanis during is coterminous periods. No reason to overcomplicate matters
Sure there's a reason. The more detailed a backstory, the greater ability you have to include interesting hooks for players.
I'd be interested on what stories for the Wilden other people make up to enhance their campaigns.
Somewhere in the middle, some planes are easier to get to than others. In the Eldeen Reaches you can very litterally stumble into Thelanis on accident, it is the easiest plane to get to more or less.
Manifest Zones defy the normal planar laws. Some like the area around Sharn simply empowers magic related to the nature of the plane of the manifest zone. Elsewhere like in the Eldeen there might just be holes in existance between two planes, the Twilight Demense (pg 174 ECS 3.5) is a place where the walls between Eberron and Thelanis are about as thin as tissue.
Dal Quor is the only plane without manifest zones.
Thanks. In that case perhaps this might be a bit better suited to fit in with core-Eberron then.
Amended DM Information on Wilden
With the initial invasion and battles between the Daelkyr and the races of Eberron, the Faerie Court decided to ensure that they would never be troubled by the Daelkyr.
They cast powerful spells on all of the known portals between Eberron and Thelanis to trap abberations. They were unable to do this in the Eldeen Reaches due to how thin the boundary was between the two planes in this region, however with the creation of the druidic sects, they felt they would be safe.
When the Daelkyr forces invaded Thelanis, most of them were in fact trapped. However there was one group who were able to evade the druids of the Eldeen Reach and make it to Thelanis. This group would begin to wage a fierce war on the Eladrin.
With war erupting, the Eladrin were desperate for a way to defeat the Daelkyr. They began experimenting on their captive abberations. The more natural slaves of the Daelkyr were able to be cleansed. However with the war only starting, there was much consternation over brainwashing the ex-slaves and sending them to fight. Instead they simply returned them to Eberron. This went by unnoticed except by a couple of studious House Jorasco researchers who noted a sudden spike in amnesia patients.
As the war progressed the Eladrin forces became more and more desperate. They were able to cleanse most of the abberations, but this simply wasn't enough. They then transformed the cleansed creatures into a new race they called the Wilden. Within each Wilden they imbued a respect for nature and a hatred for Xoriat.
They threw the Wilden at the Daelkyri forces and this would herald a turn of the war for the eladrin. With this new army at their disposal, they were able to push the Daelkyr down into the Underdark of Thelanis itself. This wasn't enough for the Eladrin forces however, and so even there the Daelkyr were harried. It is believed that the Daelkyr were completely wiped out. In actuality a small group were able to gain sanctuary in a Formorian city.
Experimentations on the Daelkyr themselves proved too unfruitful. The Eladrin eventually sent the Daelkyr back to Eberron confident that the tortures the Daelkyr were put through would prove incentive enough for them to not return.
With the war over, the Wilden are looking to find their own way in the planes and have begun venturing to Eberron. They believe they were created by the Plane of Thelanis itself in response to the Xoriat presence. This is a belief the Eladrin are happy to foster with only a few Eladrin mages and government officials actually knowing the truth. However fearful that their changes to the Wilden may begin to break apart, Eladrin have been informed of the true nature of the Wilden and sent to Eberron to ensure the Wilden do not return to their aberrant selves.
They cast powerful spells on all of the known portals between Eberron and Thelanis to trap abberations. They were unable to do this in the Eldeen Reaches due to how thin the boundary was between the two planes in this region, however with the creation of the druidic sects, they felt they would be safe.
When the Daelkyr forces invaded Thelanis, most of them were in fact trapped. However there was one group who were able to evade the druids of the Eldeen Reach and make it to Thelanis. This group would begin to wage a fierce war on the Eladrin.
With war erupting, the Eladrin were desperate for a way to defeat the Daelkyr. They began experimenting on their captive abberations. The more natural slaves of the Daelkyr were able to be cleansed. However with the war only starting, there was much consternation over brainwashing the ex-slaves and sending them to fight. Instead they simply returned them to Eberron. This went by unnoticed except by a couple of studious House Jorasco researchers who noted a sudden spike in amnesia patients.
As the war progressed the Eladrin forces became more and more desperate. They were able to cleanse most of the abberations, but this simply wasn't enough. They then transformed the cleansed creatures into a new race they called the Wilden. Within each Wilden they imbued a respect for nature and a hatred for Xoriat.
They threw the Wilden at the Daelkyri forces and this would herald a turn of the war for the eladrin. With this new army at their disposal, they were able to push the Daelkyr down into the Underdark of Thelanis itself. This wasn't enough for the Eladrin forces however, and so even there the Daelkyr were harried. It is believed that the Daelkyr were completely wiped out. In actuality a small group were able to gain sanctuary in a Formorian city.
Experimentations on the Daelkyr themselves proved too unfruitful. The Eladrin eventually sent the Daelkyr back to Eberron confident that the tortures the Daelkyr were put through would prove incentive enough for them to not return.
With the war over, the Wilden are looking to find their own way in the planes and have begun venturing to Eberron. They believe they were created by the Plane of Thelanis itself in response to the Xoriat presence. This is a belief the Eladrin are happy to foster with only a few Eladrin mages and government officials actually knowing the truth. However fearful that their changes to the Wilden may begin to break apart, Eladrin have been informed of the true nature of the Wilden and sent to Eberron to ensure the Wilden do not return to their aberrant selves.
Sure there's a reason. The more detailed a backstory, the greater ability you have to include interesting hooks for players.
I believe said backstory should be dependent on things the character has seen or done, not simply what a character is.
Also, if you actually read up on the Greensingers, they don't just sit around yuking it up with pixies and brownies. They are agents of Thelanis on Eberron; their actions unpredictable, and their motives inscrutable (capricious and ruthless). They are also inclined towards the Arcane.
The only issue that would generally bring them into conflict with Wilden would be the fact that they want to eliminate the boundaries between the fey world and all other realms of existence; including those inhabited by aberrations and creatures normally considered unnatural.
However, the faith does have a "do what you will" attitude and those who anger them are not simply stripped of powers or cast out, they are cruely punished in a variety of ways, such as being banished to planes, turned to stone, and the like. Wilden could represent this less benevolent or mischievous aspect of Fey.
Should I ever restart that campaign, I'll probably think of a good angle between the relations of the greensingers and the wilden. Still, I don't think there'd be an inherent link between them just because Wilden are fey. I'll probably keep the conciet that Wilden are born from Eberron and not Thelanis. I also don't want Wilden to start completely overshadowing all other druidic races and have key, important ties to several druidic sects.
As it is now, I have the Wilden being the "true" intended Gatekeepers, eventually joining forces with the original orc gatekeepers, and founding the Ashbound sect (mostly destroyers and a few hunters. It's also notable to mention that just because they founded it, doesn't mean they don't welcome likeminded individuals of any race. So particularly feral shifters would still make great Ashbound initiates and leaders).
Anything more than that and I worry that I'm shinning too big of a spotlight on them, instead of merely making them interesting. I'd probably just mention what kinds of Wilden are typically found in what sects. Like the Children of Winter may have a disproportionate amound of destroyers among the Wilden that join the sect (not that destroyer Wilden are a majority of all Children of Winter, just the majority of the wilden among them).
(And yes, I know Wilden can change their aspect everyday, but it's also stated that most wilden find themselves most comfortable with one aspect over the other two.)
I agree that the Greensingers have gotten quite a bit more interesting since Faiths of Eberron. It's just that prior to that book, there was very little information on them, and what there was didn't interest me at all.
Should I ever restart that campaign, I'll probably think of a good angle between the relations of the greensingers and the wilden. Still, I don't think there'd be an inherent link between them just because Wilden are fey. I'll probably keep the conciet that Wilden are born from Eberron and not Thelanis. I also don't want Wilden to start completely overshadowing all other druidic races and have key, important ties to several druidic sects.
As it is now, I have the Wilden being the "true" intended Gatekeepers, eventually joining forces with the original orc gatekeepers, and founding the Ashbound sect (mostly destroyers and a few hunters. It's also notable to mention that just because they founded it, doesn't mean they don't welcome likeminded individuals of any race. So particularly feral shifters would still make great Ashbound initiates and leaders).
Anything more than that and I worry that I'm shinning too big of a spotlight on them, instead of merely making them interesting. I'd probably just mention what kinds of Wilden are typically found in what sects. Like the Children of Winter may have a disproportionate amound of destroyers among the Wilden that join the sect (not that destroyer Wilden are a majority of all Children of Winter, just the majority of the wilden among them).
(And yes, I know Wilden can change their aspect everyday, but it's also stated that most wilden find themselves most comfortable with one aspect over the other two.)
You are definitely right not to shine to much of a spotlight on the Willden.
I just thought of something. How about the Willden were born by Eberron not only to serve as Gatekeepers, but also to train other races to be protectors. Perhaps Varrack didn’t know, or maybe she went to help the Willden to do this. Avonrekaes what do you think?
I believe said backstory should be dependent on things the character has seen or done, not simply what a character is.
I don't understand what you're saying in relation to this thread.
The backstory of the setting can be used to generate hooks for characters and adventures. Otherwise WotC wouldn't have spent so much of 3.5e printing fluff books.
NOTE: I'm not saying you're wrong. I mainly just don't understand what you're saying ;)
I just thought of something. How about the Willden were born by Eberron not only to serve as Gatekeepers, but also to train other races to be protectors. Perhaps Varrack didn’t know, or maybe she went to help the Willden to do this.
I thought I read somewhere that the Druidic sects are losing power as time goes on? Is that right? If so the Wilden could definitely be an attempt at either a group (or the planet itself) attempting to put new life back into the Druidic sects.
Or did I misunderstand what you were saying?
I don't think of race as important; it's just a genetic state. It doesn't determine your personality, inclinations, past, present, or future. It just 'is'.
I may be misunderstanding you and the point of the thread as well, but I don't see much cause to put that much effort into something that means so little as race.
I may be misunderstanding you and the point of the thread as well, but I don't see much cause to put that much effort into something that means so little as race.
In that case what's the point to the entire history of goblins in Eberron? Or any race? Why not just say "these are the stats for character, make up your own story"
I just don't see 'I'm Race X' (or even class X) as a substitute for a real background
This isn't a thread for players to make up their characters history. Its a thread to make up the history for a PC race, as the 3.5 books don't currently have a history for this particular race. Just like all those threads about how tieflings might fit in Eberron. Or Dragonborn. Its to give them a history and place in Eberron that's just as suitable as the place and history goblins have, or orcs have. New races lack this, because they were released after the Eberron source books.
Now I expect all of the PHB1 and PHB2 races will have a write-up in the Eberron books. But PHB3 races might not have them, so DMs are going to have to make up their own history if they want to include the race in their campaign.
Merely being a Wilden doesn't give you any intrinsic hook into any plot involving Xoriat;
Wilden are more likely to be interested in plots involving Xoriat given their racial write-up in the Dragon article. Just as dwarves are more likely to be interested in discovering where dwarves come from. It doesn't mean ALL dwarves are interested. Simply that they're more likely to be.
Also even if the players aren't interested in following that line of story, establishing the race's background and place within Eberron will influence lots of things. If Warforged had no history in Eberron and we simply had "Warforged can be used in Eberron. Have at it." How NPCs and societies act towards Warforged would be COMPLETELY different then how they're currently treated. Because there would be no established ways in which NPCs should act towards Warforged.
being a hero gives you that hook, regardless of your race or class.
That assumes a lot that IMO is simply unsafe to assume. It assumes the players will be playing heroic characters. In some settings and campaigns that's often the case. But what I like about Eberron is that everything isn't black and white. Heroes can be the most unheroic people. And villains can be the most heroic.
In the current campaign I'm in (not Eberron) we've got the following characters:
* A burglar. He isn't a hero and is only interested in surviving in the world and raising his daughter.
* A barbarian. She isn't a hero, she's simply looking for her brother.
* A nihilistic priest. He isn't a hero, he just wants to watch the world burn.
* An alcoholic ship captain without a ship. He definitely isn't a hero.
* A bard with a strange tattoo. He's the closest thing we have to a hero.
If you threw them a Xoriat hook most of them would go "Who cares?" Now if one of them were a Wilden, perhaps the alcoholic ship captain. He might go into an angry rampage and charge forward and say "Well I'll kill 'em! I might not have my ship, but I still know what's right and what's wrong!" Or he might not. He's certainly more likely to do it if he's a Wilden, then if he's a human.
I thought I read somewhere that the Druidic sects are losing power as time goes on? Is that right? If so the Wilden could definitely be an attempt at either a group (or the planet itself) attempting to put new life back into the Druidic sects.
It's not druidic sects as a whole, just the Gatekeepers. Their numbers are in decline because after the Dealkyr Invasion was effectively stopped, it started to become a thing of history. Prior to the invasion, the orcs were told by Varrack that a horrible enemy was coming so they made a bigger effort in gearing up for the war. Now that the war is over, their descendants might focus their efforts for other ideals (like becoming a member of another, more currently relevant druidic sect) or just not caring. A few descendants and new initiates remain because they recognize the importance of maintaining the seals, but it's not as if the Gatekeepers have a huge cause in the current day and age.
I just thought of something. How about the Willden were born by Eberron not only to serve as Gatekeepers, but also to train other races to be protectors. Perhaps Varrack didn’t know, or maybe she went to help the Willden to do this. Avonrekaes what do you think?
Wilden being created to teach makes sense. I don't see the Wilden as being a particularly numerous race. Had Varrack not intervened, perhaps the Wilden were supposed to teach the more numerous and quicker breeding orcs how to be Gatekeepers to make the bulk of the army that would have opposed the Dealkyr's abberant hordes.
I don't think Varrack went to help the Wilden. The way I have it, at least, she didn't forsee their existance, or actively disagreed, vehemently so, that a "magical race of green-men will pop from the forests". She probably thought the dragons that interpreted the prophecy in such a way were idiots, and that if they didn't do something themselves, Eberron would be overrun by Madness.
So the orcs were trained by Varrack to *be* the prophecised "green men". When the actual green-men showed up, there was conflict.
Perhaps once they realized their error and accepted the Wilden, the orcs were taught some deeper mysteries that Varrack didn't know about (Like, say, druid paragon paths/epic destinies that deal specifically with planar incursions).
After the Dealkyr Invasion, the Wilden might've followed the same course of action as all the other druids of the Towering Wood: More or less abandoning the Gatekeeper sect in favor of more currently relevant ideals. So Wilden being teachers could still make a lot of sense.
Also, I'd just like to clarify that all of this is merely my use of Wilden and how I fit them into my interpretation of Eberron. I'm not trying to tell anyone how they should use them, just sharing my ideas. ^_^;
Truth be told this discussion has helped me brainstorm a lot about how I want the interaction between Varrack, the Orcs, and the Wilden to be. Thanks!
It's not druidic sects as a whole, just the Gatekeepers. Their numbers are in decline because after the Dealkyr Invasion was effectively stopped, it started to become a thing of history. Prior to the invasion, the orcs were told by Varrack that a horrible enemy was coming so they made a bigger effort in gearing up for the war. Now that the war is over, their descendants might focus their efforts for other ideals (like becoming a member of another, more currently relevant druidic sect) or just not caring. A few descendants and new initiates remain because they recognize the importance of maintaining the seals, but it's not as if the Gatekeepers have a huge cause in the current day and age.
Exactly. It was like the popular thing at the time. But like all popular things they are replaced. Maintaining the seals is considerd to be importent, just not as importent as it use to be.
Wilden being created to teach makes sense. I don't see the Wilden as being a particularly numerous race. Had Varrack not intervened, perhaps the Wilden were supposed to teach the more numerous and quicker breeding orcs how to be Gatekeepers to make the bulk of the army that would have opposed the Dealkyr's abberant hordes.
I don't think Varrack went to help the Wilden. The way I have it, at least, she didn't forsee their existance, or actively disagreed, vehemently so, that a "magical race of green-men will pop from the forests". She probably thought the dragons that interpreted the prophecy in such a way were idiots, and that if they didn't do something themselves, Eberron would be overrun by Madness.
So the orcs were trained by Varrack to *be* the prophecised "green men". When the actual green-men showed up, there was conflict.
Perhaps once they realized their error and accepted the Wilden, the orcs were taught some deeper mysteries that Varrack didn't know about (Like, say, druid paragon paths/epic destinies that deal specifically with planar incursions).
After the Dealkyr Invasion, the Wilden might've followed the same course of action as all the other druids of the Towering Wood: More or less abandoning the Gatekeeper sect in favor of more currently relevant ideals. So Wilden being teachers could still make a lot of sense.
That seems right. Varrack probaly thought the dragons who prophecised about the "green men", were idiots.
The Willden probaly did know some sort of secret knowledge that helped end the Dealkyr invasion.
Also, I'd just like to clarify that all of this is merely my use of Wilden and how I fit them into my interpretation of Eberron. I'm not trying to tell anyone how they should use them, just sharing my ideas. ^_^;
Truth be told this discussion has helped me brainstorm a lot about how I want the interaction between Varrack, the Orcs, and the Wilden to be. Thanks!
I know. It is just that it is a really good opinion!
It's helped me to. And your welcome!
In essence, she thought that she had to teach one of these children of eberron how to defend the world, instead of understanding that Eberron would make specific children to do it.
She knew it wasn't her because she was long dead before the invasion actually arrived. While she may not have known exactly how long it would've been, I'm guessing she had a fair sense that the invasion would happen after her lifetime. She just "knew" that she had to set things in motion for the world to survive.
Well by "Children of Eberron", Varrack's take was that it would be one of the lesser races. Remember that according to dragon myth, Dragons are the children of both Syberis and Eberron, while the lesser races were birthed from Eberron alone.
In essence, she thought that she had to teach one of these children of eberron how to defend the world, instead of understanding that Eberron would make specific children to do it.
She knew it wasn't her because she was long dead before the invasion actually arrived. While she may not have known exactly how long it would've been, I'm guessing she had a fair sense that the invasion would happen after her lifetime. She just "knew" that she had to set things in motion for the world to survive.
Dang, you beat me again. And I thought I was on to something.
As mentioned elsewhere, the campaign I was using the "wilden are the original gatekeepers" backstory in just ended, and my next campaign is going to start with a clean slate.
I've already got a wilden monk in the new party, but I didn't want a repeat of the same wilden story. I think I'll go with yours :D