Fane of Shadows
Encyclopedia
The Fane of Shadows is a temple that journeys the worlds on the currents of the secret Weave
, in the fictional setting of the Forgotten Realms
campaign in Dungeons & Dragons
. The place has many names in many tongues, and is also known as the Temple of Night or the Umbral Shrine. Created by Shar, it serves as many dark gods of many worlds, and as a gift of the god of shadows to their faithful—a sanctuary that journeys through time and worlds. It also serves as a bastion/armory for the servants of the twilight. It is located within the Lightless Lake (The Moonmere) in the Gulthmere Forest, but it only materializes during a certain date at midnight, and stays only temporarily in each world for a short time. Upon its arrival onto Toril
, the Fane appeared within the depths of the Lightless Lake in a diffuse, ochre light. The entirety of the temple is situated on an invisible platform encapsulated within a dome of air. The architecture includes black-veined columns, graceful arches, and thick pillars all crafted from marble, basalt, obsidian, or ebony. The Fane of Shadows is guarded by a host of shadows inside the courtyard area. They are only hostile to those not subservient to shadow. The courtyard contains a statue garden of hundreds of obsidian sculptures, all of them depicting the innumerable world's gods of shadow. Statues of Toril's deities of night and shadow, Shar and Mask, are among the collection. Beyond its doors it contains a long, wide hallway, the Grand Hall, filled with shadows and bathed in a low, green light. Painting and mosaics line the walls, while tables and pedestals are hidden inside alcoves along it. These alcoves usually hold an item of great power, one of the many gifts of shadow found within. Only one gift may be taken from the Fane of Shadows. A husky, female voice tries to persuade its guests in a perceived, familiar tongue into taking an item of power. The Grand Hall also contains the caretaker of the temple, who materializes from the shadows. He is an elderly man, with solid black eyes, and his duty is to serve his calling into the shadow. The hallway ends at a pair of double doors, which leads into the inner sanctum. The inner sanctum contains a skydome ceiling of black encrusted in gems, representing the night sky of the world in which it currently exists in. The inner sanctum itself has a polished slate floor inlaid with an amethyst border, and in its center lies a black sphere bordered in purple, Shar's symbol. A horsehoe-shaped altar lies in the center of the symbol on some kind of black crystalline substance, under an area of ceiling of the blackest black, depicting Shar's moon. It is underneath this symbol where a host receives the transforming energy of the greatest gifts offered by the Shadow Weave
: the transformation into a shade
. Black curtains line the walls of the inner sanctum, as well as a mosaic of the Weave Tap. Entrance into the Fane of Shadows requires either being adept in the Shadow Weave, or reverence to a god or goddess of shadow.
As seen in Paul S. Kemp
's book, "Twilight Falling", Erevis Cale
is on a mission to stop the shadow adept, Vraggen, from taking the greatest gift from the Fane of Shadows and transforming into a shade. Vraggen's band of members (Azriim, Serrin, Dolgan) betray their comrade and kill him before the transformation into a shade occurs. Instead, they find and take the Weave Tap, a sapling with smooth, black bark, few gray leaves, and three oval, silver fruits, hidden behind the mosaic replica. Erevis Cale steps onto the altar to transform into a shade in order to prevent his death. In doing so, he gains the powers of immortality, regeneration, and agelessness. He also receives a tome of history and knowledge pertaining to his calling from the caretaker.
Weave (Forgotten Realms)
In the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting Forgotten Realms, the Weave is the fundamental force of both arcane magic and divine magic, from which spellcasters draw their strength. It permeates the world, comparable to aether, the mystical substance....
, in the fictional setting of the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
campaign in Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
. The place has many names in many tongues, and is also known as the Temple of Night or the Umbral Shrine. Created by Shar, it serves as many dark gods of many worlds, and as a gift of the god of shadows to their faithful—a sanctuary that journeys through time and worlds. It also serves as a bastion/armory for the servants of the twilight. It is located within the Lightless Lake (The Moonmere) in the Gulthmere Forest, but it only materializes during a certain date at midnight, and stays only temporarily in each world for a short time. Upon its arrival onto Toril
Toril
Toril, meaning bullpen in Spanish, can refer to:* Toril - a District in Metro Davao in The Philippines* Toril - a Barangay in Island Garden City of Samal, Metro Davao, The Philippines* Toril y Masegoso, a town in the province of Teruel, Aragón, Spain...
, the Fane appeared within the depths of the Lightless Lake in a diffuse, ochre light. The entirety of the temple is situated on an invisible platform encapsulated within a dome of air. The architecture includes black-veined columns, graceful arches, and thick pillars all crafted from marble, basalt, obsidian, or ebony. The Fane of Shadows is guarded by a host of shadows inside the courtyard area. They are only hostile to those not subservient to shadow. The courtyard contains a statue garden of hundreds of obsidian sculptures, all of them depicting the innumerable world's gods of shadow. Statues of Toril's deities of night and shadow, Shar and Mask, are among the collection. Beyond its doors it contains a long, wide hallway, the Grand Hall, filled with shadows and bathed in a low, green light. Painting and mosaics line the walls, while tables and pedestals are hidden inside alcoves along it. These alcoves usually hold an item of great power, one of the many gifts of shadow found within. Only one gift may be taken from the Fane of Shadows. A husky, female voice tries to persuade its guests in a perceived, familiar tongue into taking an item of power. The Grand Hall also contains the caretaker of the temple, who materializes from the shadows. He is an elderly man, with solid black eyes, and his duty is to serve his calling into the shadow. The hallway ends at a pair of double doors, which leads into the inner sanctum. The inner sanctum contains a skydome ceiling of black encrusted in gems, representing the night sky of the world in which it currently exists in. The inner sanctum itself has a polished slate floor inlaid with an amethyst border, and in its center lies a black sphere bordered in purple, Shar's symbol. A horsehoe-shaped altar lies in the center of the symbol on some kind of black crystalline substance, under an area of ceiling of the blackest black, depicting Shar's moon. It is underneath this symbol where a host receives the transforming energy of the greatest gifts offered by the Shadow Weave
Shadow Weave
In the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Shadow Weave is a force of magic that is the inverse and opposite of the Weave. The Shadow Weave does not originate from Mystra, but from the dark goddess Shar. A spellcaster who wants to manipulate the...
: the transformation into a shade
Shade (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, shades are humanoids who have merged with the essence of the Plane of Shadow. In Third Edition, a shade is created by applying a template to a humanoid creature.-Publication history:...
. Black curtains line the walls of the inner sanctum, as well as a mosaic of the Weave Tap. Entrance into the Fane of Shadows requires either being adept in the Shadow Weave, or reverence to a god or goddess of shadow.
As seen in Paul S. Kemp
Paul S. Kemp
Paul S. Kemp is a fantasy author most known for his Forgotten Realms novels. Some examples of his work include Resurrection, the final installation of War of the Spider Queen series...
's book, "Twilight Falling", Erevis Cale
Erevis Cale
Erevis Cale is a fictional character in the Forgotten Realms series of books, which are published by Wizards of the Coast and based on the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game...
is on a mission to stop the shadow adept, Vraggen, from taking the greatest gift from the Fane of Shadows and transforming into a shade. Vraggen's band of members (Azriim, Serrin, Dolgan) betray their comrade and kill him before the transformation into a shade occurs. Instead, they find and take the Weave Tap, a sapling with smooth, black bark, few gray leaves, and three oval, silver fruits, hidden behind the mosaic replica. Erevis Cale steps onto the altar to transform into a shade in order to prevent his death. In doing so, he gains the powers of immortality, regeneration, and agelessness. He also receives a tome of history and knowledge pertaining to his calling from the caretaker.