A warlock's faith

[Millstone85]

So I am still playing that warlock in Forgotten Realms and I think it is time I figure out who she prays to.

Of course, most already see her as a worshipper of the great old one she gets her powers from, a view that is not entirely inaccurate.

Still, her patron doesn't have a portfolio, the Kelemvorites dislike the way she kept the Order of Blue Flame going after the Sundering, and she does sometimes worry about ending up in the Wall of the Faithless.

The deity I have my eyes on, pun intended, is Savras.

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/c/c2/Savras_symbol_new.jpg

Lawful neutral god of divination and fate, with the domains of Arcana and Knowledge.

My reasoning is that, being often subject to dreams and visions, some from her patron, others from rival Far Realm entities, she would pray to Savras for stronger and more secure Wi-Fi help in deciphering it all.

Savras also looks like a god who would inspire the pursuit of dangerous knowledge through unorthodox methods, whether or not that's his intention.

Does that make sense to you?

[Vingelot]

Yes. I think that especially with the great old one it makes sense to (be able to) not worship him, as he wouldn't care. The other patrons would probably get a bit upset about the competition.

[Naanomi]

No Gods are really cool with Far Realm contact... one of the very few points they mostly agree on. The very few exceptions are those Gods commonly worshiped by abberations... Piscaethces, the Great Mother, Illsensine (if you still count any of them as Gods, 4e mucked around with that),
Ghaunadaur, Mak Thum Ngatha

Beyond that, I’d be looking at Chaotic Gods who are more into the ‘rule breaking’ aspect of what you are doing... Shar perhaps, or Diinkarazan/Diirinka,

That being said, Savras isn’t a horrible choice, especially if you are more into studying the GOO lore than actively worshiping them. Other scholarly Gods might fit as well, Deneir perhaps (attempting to worship the forbidden tongues of that horrid place)

[Asmotherion]

Sure, makes sence. Generally speaking, all kinds of character concepts make sence, as long as you can enjoy them, and can justify them in an RP concept.

What you are aiming for seems accurate, and interesting, and you don't need our approval for it. The only thing you might need is DM approval, since in your DM's version of the Forgotten Realms, Macrocosmic/Celestial Politics may make it so that your Patron and Deity have conflicting interests, and your DM may tell you that your Patron is against you praying to your Deity or you feel strangly uncomfortable when you see your holy symbol etc.

Personally, I think people should move away from the "Devil Worshiping Warlock trope" as the only cannon. It's an amazing fantasy trope, but nothing prevents a warlock form being any other alignment or faith.

[Tiadoppler]

If you're playing a multiclass of (something divine)/Warlock, there might be a real conflict of faith versus patron. If you're just a warlock, and that character happens to worship a specific deity, then (in my campaigns, at least) there wouldn't be much external conflict. There may well be an internal, psychological conflict for the character, but, as a DM, I'm okay with the PCs in the party being conflicted, hypocritical, or deluded.

Sure, you worship Bahamut, and you're an assassin for hire, and you've made a deal with a Great Old One! You're pretty psychologically messed up, but that's just fodder for good/funny roleplay. I don't usually have a mechanical penalty for picking a deity as a roleplay choice, except that you may be judged by the less hypocritical members of that faith.

Usually, deities don't plane-shift right in front of people to say "stop worshiping me! I don't like you!", at least not in my campaigns.

[Naanomi]

Usually, deities don't plane-shift right in front of people to say "stop worshiping me! I don't like you!", at least not in my campaigns.
No, but in Faerun; if you die and your God says ‘that guy? Ugh... I’ll pass’ things are not going to be great for you

[Tanarii]

No, but in Faerun; if you die and your God says ‘that guy? Ugh... I’ll pass’ things are not going to be great for you
Especially if they've determined your worship to be False or Faithless. At least, that's what humans believe. So turning to a FR Great Old One for power is dangerous bidness in regards to your everlasting soul, and any Warlock that does it should know it.

As a side note, most of the Forgotten Realms Old Ones listed in SCAG aren't Far Realms entities. They're ancient & unknown (or unknowable) powers of corruption. And Evil, with a capital E.

[Tiadoppler]

No, but in Faerun; if you die and your God says ‘that guy? Ugh... I’ll pass’ things are not going to be great for you

*shrug* I'm okay with people being short-sighted, stupid, and violating the spirit of their morals and beliefs. It adds... verisimilitude.

[Millstone85]

Yes. I think that especially with the great old one it makes sense to (be able to) not worship him, as he wouldn't care. The other patrons would probably get a bit upset about the competition.I don't see why an archfey, fiend or lich would care any more than a great old one. A celestial might advertise their own god, but would also have to remember that your relationship is one of business, not devotion.

My character sees her patron as a fairy godmother, though less "fairy" and more "veiled star with a thousand wards". She also has a druid-like approach to the Far Realm in general.

Having a deity-deity would help show the difference, I think.

Coincidentally, the ranger in our group is thinking about defining his magic as coming from the emotions of nature, while independently addressing prayers to Umberlee.


No Gods are really cool with Far Realm contact... one of the very few points they mostly agree on.Well, in this campaign, my warlock got a Cynosure assembly to hear her patron, through her familiar, and it apparently ended with the gods accepting the patron's help.

That doesn't mean any god will want of my warlock, but at least she will go into the Wall calling them hypocrites. :smallbiggrin:


As a side note, most of the Forgotten Realms Old Ones listed in SCAG aren't Far Realms entities. They're ancient & unknown (or unknowable) powers of corruption. And Evil, with a capital E.Actually, SCAG's GOO are all from the Far Realm, or touched by it, according to the introduction they get in that book.


Beyond the planes known to great wizards and sages lies the Far Realm of the Great Old Ones, beings outside time, space, and sanity. That realm is reachable by profane rituals and in the dreams of some of those drawn to those entities' power. Some of the blasphemous names associated with that place and its madness include the following:My warlock's patron is custom made, though a blatant rip-off of Shub-Niggurath. I have left it to the DM whether it is malevolent or just irreconcilably alien.

The warlock herself is NE. According to Faiths and Pantheons, Savras' clerics can be LG, LN or LE. I am not sure how that translates on common followers.

[Tanarii]

Actually, SCAG's GOO are all from the Far Realm, or touched by it, according to the introduction they get in that book.I stand corrected. Afaik that's new lore for many of those guys listed. OTOH a lot of my FR lore knowledge harks back to 1e and 2e. Anyone know if it's new to 5e, or an older edition association?

[Millstone85]

I stand corrected. Afaik that's new lore for many of those guys listed. OTOH a lot of my FR lore knowledge harks back to 1e and 2e. Anyone know if it's new to 5e, or an older edition association?I don't know how recent that is, but it is the reason I wouldn't go with some of Naanomi's suggestions.

Piscaethces, the Great Mother, Ilsensine, Ghaunadaur, Mak Thum Ngatha... Probably all GOO / Far Realm by current standards. And so here the patron would see competition.

Regarding Shar, my character got into this pact in the first place to control her spellscar. Suffice to say, she is not the biggest fan of the Nightsinger.

Never heard of Diinkarazan/Diirinka before. He seems to be mainly a dwarf thing.

[Unoriginal]

Is your PC sincerely going to worship this deity, or is it just the "going to pray this one so I avoid the Wall"?

Because sincere faith is kinda required here.




The warlock herself is NE. According to Faiths and Pantheons, Savras' clerics can be LG, LN or LE. I am not sure how that translates on common followers.

Faiths and Pantheons is a 3.X book, the alignment system is not the same as 5e's own. Nor is the way you become a Cleric, either.

Clerics can be of any alignment. Though a god you worship but don't follow the precepts is not likely to want your soul.




Piscaethces, the Great Mother, Ilsensine, Ghaunadaur, Mak Thum Ngatha... Probably all GOO / Far Realm by current standards. And so here the patron would see competition.

I think the Great Mother is a literal god still, and it's been confirmed Ilsensine is a philosophical ideal of the Mind Flayers.

[Tanarii]

Never heard of Diinkarazan/Diirinka before. He seems to be mainly a dwarf thing.
Derro. Similar to Duergar, deep dwarves twisted by magic, except more insane.

[Millstone85]

Is your PC sincerely going to worship this deity, or is it just the "going to pray this one so I avoid the Wall"?

Because sincere faith is kinda required here.But isn't that the whole point of the Wall? Apparently, without it, the FR gods couldn't recruit anyone.

I am thinking of going by this paragraph of SCAG.
In general, worshipers view their relationships with the gods as practical and reciprocal: they pray and make offerings because that is how one invites the blessings of the gods and turns away their wrath. These prayers and other acts of devotion are generally performed quietly at the shrine in one's household or community, or occasionally in a temple dedicated to one's deity, when a worshiper feels the need to "come knocking upon a god's door" to ask for attention. Like I said, she would pray Savras when trying to understand dreams and visions brought by the Far Realm. She would also hope that, in the end, he might have some sympathy for her as a seeker of eldritch knowledge.

Still working on becoming an aberration herself and joining the Outside, though.


Faiths and Pantheons is a 3.X book, the alignment system is not the same as 5e's own. Nor is the way you become a Cleric, either.

Clerics can be of any alignment. Though a god you worship but don't follow the precepts is not likely to want your soul.The same probably applies to simple followers, then. No idea how that works in the Outer Planes.

[Unoriginal]

But isn't that the whole point of the Wall? Apparently, without it, the FR gods couldn't recruit anyone.

I am thinking of going by this paragraph of SCAG. Like I said, she would pray Savras when trying to understand dreams and visions brought by the Far Realm. She would also hope that, in the end, he might have some sympathy for her as a seeker of eldritch knowledge.

It's still faith that this super-powerful entity can help you, and might help you.

Then again, you might just put your faith in a concept, like Self-Betterment

[Temperjoke]

You know, Asmodeus is probably willing to give your soul someplace to go besides the Wall. :smallamused:

[Millstone85]

You know, Asmodeus is probably willing to give your soul someplace to go besides the Wall. :smallamused:I suppose that in a more standard 5e D&D setting, my character's soul would fall to either Gehenna, Hades or Carceri and would subsequently be claimed by a deity of that plane, potentially one she never heard of, or be recruited into a yugoloth company, or just be left to worm amidst the ashes.

FR's Wall of the Faithless adds a level of complexity that I find a bit confusing. Perhaps praying to Asmodeus is a way to reintroduce the standard outcome. Not sure if my character would really have anything to gain from it, though.

Also, god or not, Asmodeus is a fiend, and my character is a GOOlock. I don't want to muddle the theme.

Despite what the current direction of this thread might suggest, the campaign is not that likely to explore afterlife matters. It is just that I am playing an FR character and those are generally expected to have some form of piety.

[Sigreid]

Depends. If your pact did sell your soul you may head to the far realms.

[Vogie]

The deity I have my eyes on, pun intended, is Savras.

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/c/c2/Savras_symbol_new.jpg

Lawful neutral god of divination and fate, with the domains of Arcana and Knowledge.

My reasoning is that, being often subject to dreams and visions, some from her patron, others from rival Far Realm entities, she would pray to Savras for stronger and more secure Wi-Fi help in deciphering it all.

Savras also looks like a god who would inspire the pursuit of dangerous knowledge through unorthodox methods, whether or not that's his intention.

Does that make sense to you?

Actually, Seeker may be a better patron than a GOO. Seeker's Speech invocation is a divine gift of language, and the (albeit terribly-named) Pact of the Star Chain is 100% about divining your fate using the augury spell

[Millstone85]

Depends. If your pact did sell your soul you may head to the far realms.The concept I am going with is that the character will likely transform into an aberration upon her human death, though whether she becomes some gibbering blob or something more daelkyr-like will depend on how powerful a warlock she is when it happens.

However, she suspects she has got the attention of Kelemvor himself, on account that one of his clerics is part of the adventuring party. Whether as a mercy or as a "Ha, ha, nope!", her soul might get reaped out of the process.


Actually, Seeker may be a better patron than a GOO. Seeker's Speech invocation is a divine gift of language, and the (albeit terribly-named) Pact of the Star Chain is 100% about divining your fate using the augury spellI am not looking for a patron compatible with prayers to Savras, I am wondering if prayers to Savras are compatible with the patron I already have.

[Sigreid]

The concept I am going with is that the character will likely transform into an aberration upon her human death, though whether she becomes some gibbering blob or something more daelkyr-like will depend on how powerful a warlock she is when it happens.

However, she suspects she has got the attention of Kelemvor himself, on account that one of his clerics is part of the adventuring party. Whether as a mercy or as a "Ha, ha, nope!", her soul might get reaped out of the process.

I am not looking for a patron compatible with prayers to Savras, I am wondering if prayers to Savras are compatible with the patron I already have.

Be a good little crime against reality and maybe you can become an aboleth.

[Naanomi]

I wouldn’t count on your soul ending up in the Far Realm... nothing from the place has one, and Souls don’t really have a path to get there. Instead, I would expect your soul to be destroyed or end up consumed/absorbed in the apotheosis to (or consumption by) some sort of horrible thing

[Sigreid]

I wouldn’t count on your soul ending up in the Far Realm... nothing from the place has one, and Souls don’t really have a path to get there. Instead, I would expect your soul to be destroyed or end up consumed/absorbed in the apotheosis to (or consumption by) some sort of horrible thing

Complete nonexistence is better than some afterlife options on the table.

[Millstone85]

Ah, turns out the ranger's player is no longer sure about Umberlee. He might go for Akadi instead.

Anyhoo, I think I will have my character address prayers to different gods depending on circumstances, something that's also in SCAG as a common Faerûnian practice. Savras' name will often come up, what with the weird dreams and all, but that's about it.


Complete nonexistence is better than some afterlife options on the table.That's where figuring out the lore becomes too complicated, I feel.

Like, fiends don't have souls, though some are made from souls, so it might be the same general deal as with the aberrant transformation I am imagining. In some versions, the Upper Planes work the same. Is it different when gods are involved?

And that's all before a specific DM's interpretation.

[Sigreid]

Hehe, I've often thought the fiend's bargaining position is "look, I'm offering you something for your soul, the other guys are effectively mugging you with give me your soul or else"

[Naanomi]

Mortal beings have souls housed within their flesh

Outsiders (fiends, celestials, etc) are made of their souls, not having a real physical body at all

Elementals have their soul completely bound to their body, and have no meaningful afterlife

Most aberrations have no soul (or anything analogous) to even relate to this system at all, the concept of an afterlife is completely unrelated


Complete nonexistence is better than some afterlife options on the table.
The Wall of the Faithless is essentially this, ultimately destroying the soul after a relatively brief (by afterlife standards) time

[Millstone85]

Even if the essence of a fiend were still considered a soul, which would surprise me, I was under the impression that the memories, the personality and, well, the identity of the mortal were all lost.

That's how I think becoming an aberration might be a better plan. The mind would endure. Warped, yes, but still recognizable. Assuming enough mastery of the power.

I am speaking semi-in-character here. It only has to make sense as far as roleplaying a GOOlock goes.

[Naanomi]

Fiends (and other outsiders) are made of ‘soul stuff’ but you are right they don’t exactly have souls the way mortals think of it.

And it is sort of hit and miss how much they retain of their mortal personality and memory... Orcus is somewhat famous for having a firm grasp of his time as a human for example, but most have no connection at all or just echoes of personality but no memories

[Rebonack]

Just because this conversation is interesting...

As I've gathered, standard DnD cosmogy has two types of stuff. Classical elements and ethical elements. Elementals are made purely of the former. Outsiders are made purely of the latter. Mortals are a blend of both.

Things from the Far Realm are absolutely other. They're simply not made of the same stuff. They don't follow the same rules. True Far Realm entities have trouble even existing on the material plane, it's simply too different.

Aberrations, rather are former material critters or descendents of former material critters that have been warped by the Far Realm. They're sort of material and sort of not, giving you this abomination that doesn't really belong anywhere.

Would a soul survive that process? Possibility. Or it might end up being translated into whatever unwholesome awareness passes for a motivating force there. Or it might just vanish altogether.

[History_buff]

This is part of the reason I liked the Xanathar’s patrons. Neither hexblade nor celestial is inconsistent with worship of a deity.

Celestial in particular could be pretty cool with that. You make a pact with a god’s exarch or top ranking angel and you work for him, but ultimately both you and your patron work for the god.

[Honest Tiefling]

No Gods are really cool with Far Realm contact... one of the very few points they mostly agree on.

Yeah, I kinda imagine this would be pretty much KOS, so the whole line of others seeing her as a follower of the Old Gods is probably not accurate unless she is significantly faster then torch and pitchfork wielding mobs. Has one of those ever been statted up, I wonder?

However, I could see Savras not aiding her (getting visions from the Old Ones is...A really bad idea overall), but trying to aid her to lead her away from that path, even if she is unaware of this. Instead of eliminating a potentially dangerous creature, he could have compassion and be trying to wean her away from her warlock powers, or to somehow break that pact that binds her. Or he's just using her powers until he gets what he wants and then plans for her to be purged.

[Naanomi]

Just because this conversation is interesting...

As I've gathered, standard DnD cosmogy has two types of stuff. Classical elements and ethical elements. Elementals are made purely of the former. Outsiders are made purely of the latter. Mortals are a blend of both.

Things from the Far Realm are absolutely other. They're simply not made of the same stuff. They don't follow the same rules. True Far Realm entities have trouble even existing on the material plane, it's simply too different.

Aberrations, rather are former material critters or descendents of former material critters that have been warped by the Far Realm. They're sort of material and sort of not, giving you this abomination that doesn't really belong anywhere.

Would a soul survive that process? Possibility. Or it might end up being translated into whatever unwholesome awareness passes for a motivating force there. Or it might just vanish altogether.
That’s not a bad way of looking at it, though some of the abberations are actually Far Realm creatures warped by Great Wheel Cosmology... it is in many ways just as harmful to them as their reality is to us. Piscaethces, for example, is supposed to be in maddening agony and constantly looking for a way back to the Far Realm; but has been so changed by her contact with our reality that she cannot really go back and survive there

Also, note that there are a few types of ‘energy’ (positive, negative, and temporal) that beings can be made up of... and that the ‘thought stuff’ of the Astral is often treated as an additional component that some creatures made of only ‘mental energy’ are formed from

[Millstone85]

Orcus is somewhat famous for having a firm grasp of his time as a humanFitting for the demon lord of the undead.


As I've gathered, standard DnD cosmogy has two types of stuff. Classical elements and ethical elements.I still tend to see the 5e Great Wheel through the lens of the 4e World Axis.

The Astral isn't just a transitive plane between the Outer ones, and the Elemental Chaos isn't just where the Inner Planes all bleed into each other. Rather, most planes are part of one or the other.


Yeah, I kinda imagine this would be pretty much KOS, so the whole line of others seeing her as a follower of the Old Gods is probably not accurate unless she is significantly faster then torch and pitchfork wielding mobs. Has one of those ever been statted up, I wonder?First, "follower of the Old Gods" is something I would apply to a barbarian, druid, paladin of the Ancients, or ranger. A warlock of the Archfey could pass for, or even legitimately be, one as well.

As for the torches and pitchforks, you have to thank the PR efforts of the Order of Blue Flame. Where do spellscars come from after the Sundering? A newly discovered distant plane of wild magic. You have already heard bad things about it? Well, this particular region is new and we have got a friend on the other side. One whom Our Reborn Lady of Spells herself accepted the help of during that crisis in Suzail.

It makes sense in the context of the campaign. That or my DM let something fly that you wouldn't have.

Also, it is rapidly falling apart. Like I said, the Kelemvorites like the Order of Blue Flame even less than before. I have out-of-character knowledge that they are building an army to snuff out the Lighthouse, which is the place where scar pilgrimages are done now. And recent events with another Far Realm entity will certainly help the Kelemvorites find recruits for their crusade.

[Honest Tiefling]

Sorry, meant Old Ones instead of old gods. I think it's confusing for me because Cthulu and friends are often gods in their native literature.

Admittedly, I don't know much of the Blue Flame whatsits, but I think that's because they are 4th edition and very little of 5th edition seems to recognize what happened there. I don't think they got referenced at all by the SCAG, so they are a bit questionable on canon. I mean, they don't really address that Savras got better, through death has always been a revolving door for gods.

Perhaps you should explain a bit of what your DM has run for the plotline? I think that might help with suggestions for your character.

[Millstone85]

Admittedly, I don't know much of the Blue Flame whatsits, but I think that's because they are 4th edition and very little of 5th edition seems to recognize what happened there. I don't think they got referenced at all by the SCAG, so they are a bit questionable on canon. I mean, they don't really address that Savras got better, through death has always been a revolving door for gods.SCAG also doesn't address how Azuth got better, even though it does mention that "during the Spellplague, Asmodeus consumed the divine spark of Azuth and thereby achieved godhood" (p118). According to the FR wiki, there is a novel called The Devil You Know where Azuth's soul was able to fight Asmodeus from the inside and then various characters made sacrifices so the two could exist as separate gods.

I don't know what the deal is with Savras, and I am not sure I care. D&D/FR can be worse than comic books when it comes to figuring out a canon.

At least with the OoBF, SCAG has the excuse that their headquarters are, or were, near a different coast.


Perhaps you should explain a bit of what your DM has run for the plotline? I think that might help with suggestions for your character.I think that I already got my answer. FR is a setting where you get to say "I favor god X and hope they recognize me", but that's more difficult with a warlock and nearly impossible with a GOOlock. Unless, of course, your Great Old One is the God of Oozes, which is what I think of everytime I see GOO written as GoO.

I may still write a summary of the plot so far, for fun and wild suggestions.

[Dappershire]

I've actually thought about this quite a bit. And I ended with thinking that the best match might be Mask.

He's liable to accept your faith just for having the insane courage to try. Now granted, you're not a rogue. But alot of Goolocks have stealthy, manipulative features. Not to mention, Mask would probably appreciate someone who attacks enemies with dark, shadowy tentacles, and can see in absolute darkness.

And, to top it off, you might even earn yourself some major cred with him, for giving him the idea. "What? You mean you can just steal Ol' Tentacleface's power? While he's sleeping?" Because nothing turns the God of Thieves on like a major heist, that will earn him untold power, and is also likely to blow up in his face like all his other plots do.

So wear the mask of Mask. Maybe even decorate the bottom with tassels.

[Millstone85]

So I caught a cold and lost the motivation to write that summary. Feeling a bit better now.

Escarboucle Ormphel was born at a post-Spellplague pre-Sundering date, in a druidic community within the western border of the Chondalwood. These people were doing what they could to limit the influence of the Plaguewrought Land on the forest.

https://i.imgur.com/FVaCPPq.jpg
Unfortunately, a wild magic surge had just reached their location, killing some and turning the rest into plaguechanged creatures, Escarboucle's expectant mother being among the latter. And yet, Escarboucle herself wasn't born plaguechanged, but merely spellscarred.

With what was still left of her lucidity, the mother, Miranda was her name, prayed to the primal spirits, the fey and the First Circle, asking them to foster the child.

Something answered.

The presence, Uruboriade, wasn't unlike the entities that had been called upon, and it felt godmotherly. It evoked woods and beasts, with a thousand wards already in its care. But its voice was coming from the Plaguewrought Land, or from a portal that had opened somewhere within that unnatural place.

Miranda hesitated, but this was the only help that had been offered.
Escarboucle grew up a feral child, among a spellscarred wolfpack that was guided by Uruboriade. The first language she spoke was a human form of Deep Speech.

Later, Uruboriade sent her on a quest to reach the eastern border of the Chondalwood. It was a difficult journey, that left Escarboucle with much enmity toward ghostwise halflings. In the end, she met with new allies of her patron.

She was brought to a kaorti cyst within the Underchasm, where she wasn't turned into a kaorti herself but was taught Undercommon, Common, arcane magic and more. In at least one occasion, she helped the kaorti assess the defenses of a human village, whose population was subsequently assimilated.

Eventually, Escarboucle was sent on a new quest by Uruboriade. She was to seek and join an adventuring party that her patron knew was about to face great challenges, so she could grow stronger. Escarboucle was 15 years old when she found these adventurers.
The adventure started with the rescue of a man caged by orcs, somewhere along the road. He died of his wounds, but urged the party to meet someone in his place. It turned out that he was going to escort a girl called Mel, much younger than Escarboucle, to Suzail. The party took the mission, which came with a substantial prepayment, and hired an NPC ranger / wet nurse to deal with the baby stuff.

It soon became evident that quite a lot of people were after Mel. This included Banites, as well as a different group of kaorti that was linked to a devil who had been to the Far Realm and back, Yurtoth. When the party finally reached Suzail, it was revealed that Mel was about to become the new incarnation of Mystra and bring an end to the Spellplague.

That's when Escarboucle gave Melystra, as she nicknamed the reawakening (and fast growing) goddess, some magobabble about the benefits of having one stable portal to the Far Realm with a friend on the other side. It would make it more difficult to open other Far Realm portals, by monopolizing the planar permeability. An honest, but likely very deluded, theory. Melystra decided to bring Escarboucle's familiar with her to the Cynosure, where she and other gods would consider the offer.

When the familiar returned, it had apparently worked some major diplomancy, because they bought it. :smalleek:

And so, after a final fight where the party had to protect a ritual in Suzail, all traces of the Spellplague disappeared from Toril. But a giant hollow violet tree grew somewhere in what had been the Plaguewrought Land, preserving the portal leading to Uruboriade.

Escarboucle's pact magic, originally attached to her spellscar as a mean to control it, could have been washed away with it. This would have left her free of Uruboriade's influence, but unlikely to be any good at magic. Escarboucle refused this trade-off and held onto the connection.
Escarboucle is now 24 years old. She has become an Accordant of the Order of Blue Flame, this organization now deriving its power from Uruboriade instead of the Plaguewrought Land.

She was contacted by the Kelemvorites regarding recent incidents through Faerûn that bore a resemblance with Spellplague-related spontaneous combustion. She agreed to help one of their clerics investigate the matter, and that's how she was reunited with Sha-Karn, the only other character still in play from the previous campaign.

So far, it looks like Yurtoth is back in force, but his agents are now reaching the Material through the Shadowfell. It is all still very obscure, though, pun intended.

"What? You mean you can just steal Ol' Tentacleface's power? While he's sleeping?"Ah well, that has not been my character's experience.