Whenever and wherever possible, the faithful of Eilistraee must
encourage drow to return to the surface world, and work to promote
harmony between drow and surface-dwelling races, to establish drow as
rightful, non-evil inhabitants of the surface realms.
Requirements: Attribute Scores: Dexterity must be 16+, otherwise
standard; Alignment: any good; Weapons allowed to Clergy: Any; Armor
Restriction: magical armor only; Special Powers granted to priesthood:
magic missile, gained at level four, twice per day (four missiles per
spell); enchanted weapon, gained at level six, thrice/day, by touch, on
bladed weapons only, which glow with a silvery radiance and a +2 bonus
for 7 rounds, regardless of how many attacks they land or how many
dispel magics are launched against them; spell turning, gained at level
nine; Turn undead.
Aims, Credo, and Ethos: Aid the weak, strong, grateful, and churlish
alike; be always kind, save in battle with evil.
Encourage happiness everywhere; lift hearts with kind words, jests,
songs, and merriment. Learn how to cook game, and how best to hunt it.
Learn new songs, dances, ways with weapons, spices, and recipes, and
pass this learning on whenever possible. Learn to play, make, and repair
musical instruments. Practice music and swordwork. Defend and aid all
folk, promoting harmony between races.
Strangers are your friends. The homeless are to be given shelter from
storms, under your own roof is need be. Repay rudeness with kindness.
Repay violence with swift violence, that the fewest may be hurt, and
danger fast removed from the land. This is the credo of the Dark Maiden.
Rituals: The customary worship of the Dark Maiden is a hunt, followed by
a feast and dancing, and a “Circle of Song”, in which the worshippers
sit and dance by turns in a circle, each one in succession leading a
song. If possible, this is done out of doors, in a wooded area, on a
moonlit night.
Daily prayers are sung whenever possible, and priestesses try to lead
others in a song or two every evening, even if no formal ritual is held.
“The High Hunt” is celebrated once in each of the four seasons. This
involves a night-time hunt of a dangerous best or monster, led by
priestesses of Eilistraee. By tradition, the hunters may use any bladed
weapons, and wear anything - except the priestesses, who go without
armor, and carry only a single sword. If the quarry is slain, a chanted
prayer and circle-dance to the goddess is held.
Whenever a sword is finished or fist taken into use by a worshipper of
the Dark Maiden, a priestess will try to call down the blessing of the
goddess upon it. This is done by planting the blade point-down in the
ground, out of doors and by night, and dancing. If successful (45%
chance, per night attempted), the blade glows with a silvery radiance.
For three months, the sword will be immune to breakage or rust, and
though lacking a bonus or dweomer, can strike creatures normally hit
only by magical weapons. If the sword is a drow weapon, it is also made
immune to sun and removal-from-radiation damage for the same period.
At least once a year, priestesses of Eilistraee undertake a “Run”.
Those who are not drow blacken their bodies with natural dyes and oils.
All priestesses, drow or not, boil certain leaves and berries to make
their hair silvery, and go wandering (on the surface world). (Hostile
drow say their silver hair indicates that the brains within the head are
addled, though many drow who don’t worship Eilistraee have silver hair.)
Trusting to their music, kind ways, and sword-skills to keep them from
being slain as drow, priestesses of the Dark Maiden go where they are
strangers, making an effort to seek out elven communities, and bring
them game, kindness, and helping hands. They try to learn new songs,
music, and sword-ways, and do not come to preach their faith or make a
mark for themselves.
In the end, all priestesses who do not die in battle hold their
greatest ritual; the “Last Dance”. In old age, Eilistraee’s priestesses
will hear the goddess singing to them, by night, calling them to her.
When the song feels right, they will go out under the moonlit sky and
dance - never to be seen again.
Those who have observed such dances say that the goddess comes and
sings overhead, and the aged priestess begins to dance more
effortlessly, looking younger and younger. Her hair begins to glow with
the same radiance as the Dark Maiden’s , and then she becomes slowly
translucent, fading away as the dance goes on. In the end, only a
silvery radiance remains, with two voices raised together in melancholy,
tender song.
Customs, Rituals, & Taboos: Worshippers of Eilistraee try to let out all
of the gathered emotions of the day with an “evensong”, which is a
personal thing - often wordless and done in private. Priestesses of the
Dark Maiden who have the coins to do so are required to hire any strange
minstrel or bard they meet for a song or two; lay worshippers are
encourage to do so as well.
Faithful must aid drow who are in distress. If the distressed are
fighting with other drow, the combat is to be stopped with as little
bloodshed as possible. So long as drow met with are not working evil on
others, they are to be aided, and given the message of Eilistraee: “A
rightful place awaits you in The Realms Above, in The Land of the Great
Light. Come in peace, and live beneath the sun again, where trees and
flowers grow.”
Whenever possible, priestesses of the Dark Maiden must use swords in
battle. If no swords are to hand, but other bladed weapons are
available, they must be used in preference to other weapons.
When the faithful and allies of a priestess fall in battle, any
priestess present must, if possible, provide burial, a funeral song, and
comfort to the bereaved.
Any hungry travelers met with, who offer no threats, are to be fed by
the faithful of Eilistraee. Priestesses are to carry food with them for
this purpose at all times, while traveling. Where food cannot be
purchased or received, it must be gathered or hunted for.
Faithful of Eilistraee are to set aside food, and to give it as often
as possible to strangers in need, particularly outcasts and those of
other races. If food yet remains, it is to be given to the priestesses
of Eilistraee, that they may do the same, for none shall go hungry. In
time of plenty, food is stored for lean times ahead. In harsh winters,
the lands about the priestesses’ strongholds are patrolled to find and
take in the lost, the hurt, and those caught in the teeth of the cold.
Whenever possible, food is eaten with the accompaniment of song. Except
for properly sad occasions, feasts are accompanied by merriment; the
faithful of the Dark Maiden are commanded to promote happiness and
gaiety whenever possible.
Equipment, Garb, & Offerings: Priestesses of Eilistraee wear their hair
long, and dress practically for whatever they’re currently doing. For
rituals, they wear as little as possible. Otherwise, they tend to wear
soft leathers for hunting, aprons when cooking, and - when battle is
expected - armor. If armor not of drow make is worn, it must be magical.
Priestesses of the goddess are allowed to keep and accumulate monies
given them as offerings - with the understanding that this wealth will
be used to buy food, musical instruments, and other tools (such as good
swords) to serve the will of the goddess. Priestesses of Eilistraee and
allowed to go adventuring so long as they feed, aid, and defend the
needy along the way. They are encouraged to aid adventuring parties,
with the price of their aid to be provision of some sort of beneficial
magical armor they can use (or failing that, an enchanted sword of some
sort).
Faithful of Eilistraee are encouraged to give food to others in need,
with a prayer to the goddess, to act with kindness, and to give food and
money they can spare to the priestesses.
Priestesses are to feed themselves as much as possible by their own
gardening and hunting skills, and to try to convert at least one
stranger per moon to the worship of Eilistraee. Leading a convert in
prayer to the Dark Maiden is itself an offering to the goddess, who
often (68%) manifests as a sign to the convert. When priestesses of the
goddess must fight evil, they are to burn the bodies of the evil
creatures they slay as an offering to the goddess - unless such
creatures are edible, and there are hungry folk near.
