Things you have always wondered about
Ballad
Member Posts: 205
This is kind of the reverse of the Did You Know? -thread. Share any questions you might have about the series, big or small, that have always puzzled you and you've never gotten an answer to. It can range from anything, from the story behind an item or a character, to bigger, speculative questions regarding the plot or lore. And yes, I do realize that a lot of these questions could just be solved by a simple Google search, I think it would be more fun to collect them under this thread, just for the sake of discussion.
Here are are a few things that have always intrigued me
- In one of the houses in the Bridge District, you run into a band of adventurers (one of them is called Valeria, I think.) They are automatically hostile and leave behind no item of lore hinting at their purpose. Who are these people? Are they connected to some quest I do not know of?
- Speaking of the Bridge District, in Reijek Hidesman's basement, you run into a mage called Vellin Dahn who makes a menacing statement about 'commanding your death' and then promptly teleports away, leaving behind a couple of ghasts, a bone golem and three Rune Assassins for you to deal with. Who is this guy? What about the assassins? Could they be connected to the Twisted Rune, as implied by their name? This brings me to my next question
- Apart from being a cool fight and yielding you the best mage item in the game, is there any lore or backstory to the Twisted Rune that I do not know of?
Here are are a few things that have always intrigued me
- In one of the houses in the Bridge District, you run into a band of adventurers (one of them is called Valeria, I think.) They are automatically hostile and leave behind no item of lore hinting at their purpose. Who are these people? Are they connected to some quest I do not know of?
- Speaking of the Bridge District, in Reijek Hidesman's basement, you run into a mage called Vellin Dahn who makes a menacing statement about 'commanding your death' and then promptly teleports away, leaving behind a couple of ghasts, a bone golem and three Rune Assassins for you to deal with. Who is this guy? What about the assassins? Could they be connected to the Twisted Rune, as implied by their name? This brings me to my next question
- Apart from being a cool fight and yielding you the best mage item in the game, is there any lore or backstory to the Twisted Rune that I do not know of?
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Comments
it was supposed to be part of a quest i think. maybe it gets done properly in unfinished business?
edit: http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Shangalar_the_Black
Vellin Dahn appears again, if you know where to find him. There's a riddle hidden in Reijek's shop that might help.
As for the random adventurers, I'm not sure. My money would be on uncompleted questline/cut content though.
edit: if your answer is egg-zactly, i'm going to die laughing
(I think it lasted almost a year?)
Bhaal could have sired children well before he learned of his fate. Wasn't one child of Zeus' born so he could prevent himself from being killed, or something?
Either way it seems like his backstory is rather limited. At least considering there are pages (as there are with all the other deities) devoted to his avatars/worshipers/spells and that he has a video game series that revolves around the aftermath of his death.
That would be Firkraag. They always show up once you accept his quest.
Firkraag's point is not to kill you, it's to toy with you
Another encounter: Alhoon and his mind flayer cohorts. The quest ends with Alhoon's note, and the conclusion that the Illithids' plans have been thwarted for now.
In BG1: Samuel the Deserter (why did he desert? who/what injured him? what's the link with Gellana Mirrorshade? what happens with him after Gellana takes care of him?), Denak and his red-robed friends, the history that Tarnesh and Branwen share, among others.
Returning to the Bridge district again, does anyone have a clue as to which quest the two nobles (a man and a woman) and their bodyguards are supposed to be part of? They stand near the temple of Helm in the SE part of the district, just north of the kidnappers' house.
Why it's unacceptable for Clerics to slice people open but it's perfectly okay to hit someone with a staff that deals more lethal damage than a large two handed sword. Their gods even bless them with the strength of a giant when doing so.
Of course, this begs the question of whether potentially liquefying somebody's organs with a forceful blow from a cudgel is more merciful than a quick slash at the blood vessels from a dirk...
In my original, unmodded game from when BGII first game out, there was a mysterious potion on a shelf either in the Temple of Helm or Lathandar, in the Temple District. I can't remember the exact text but it was supposed to only work on Ogre Magi (you couldn't drink it yourself). I've no idea what it was used for and it's disappeared in the EE. If I had to guess it may have been something to do with the Gong quest, since an Ogre Mage appears in that, but was cut to save time.
As for his race, I think he was human when he was mortal. For his race as a deity and all his sleeping around, I assume one of two things: he either shapeshifted into whatever he wanted and sowed his seed the old-fashioned way, or he just used his divine essence to impregnate the women. Like Zeus in the Perseus myth; he never slept with Danae, he appeared to her as golden rain and impregnated her that way. I'm not sure which is more likely, though.
In 2nd edition Half-Dwarves did exist though they were sterile, and in 4th edition they aren't sterile anymore. They're called Muls. So yeah, they could have been included in the game.
Not sure about Half-Halflings (I'd like to call them Quarterlings but that wouldn't be an apt name hehe).