Your Absolute Worst Down Under...

[Summer-Knight925]

"STOOPID FAT HOBBITS!"---Favorite enemy found in the underdark, posted by Ogen the Foul, Orc barbarian, int. 4

 

[Lancelot]

In my homebrew campaign world, the koroashi [eaters of knowledge]. This includes mind flayers, aboleths, kopru and neh-thalggu.

Unlike other campaign worlds that split the races out, I see them all as part of a single culture. They arrived on the Material Plane as intruders from "elsewhere" a very long time ago, back when humanity was still being taught how to craft bronze tools and form words by the elves and dwarves. Maybe they stepped through portals from the Far Realm, maybe they arrived on Spelljammers, maybe they just spontaneously formed from the nightmares of sentient creatures. Nobody really knows.

The different races each have their own purposes within the culture. Mind flayers are most numerous, and are the politicians, merchants and slave-masters. Aboleths are biologists and scientists, creating many of the aberrant creatures that plague the world (manticores, displacer beasts, etc). Kopru (originally from old Expert D&D, but also revised in 2e and 3e) are the aquatic scouts and assassins. Neh-Thalggu (also from old Expert D&D, but revised in 3e) are the archivists, researchers and loremasters.

 

[Summer-Knight925]

In my homebrew campaign world, the koroashi [eaters of knowledge]. This includes mind flayers, aboleths, kopru and neh-thalggu.

Unlike other campaign worlds that split the races out, I see them all as part of a single culture. They arrived on the Material Plane as intruders from "elsewhere" a very long time ago, back when humanity was still being taught how to craft bronze tools and form words by the elves and dwarves. Maybe they stepped through portals from the Far Realm, maybe they arrived on Spelljammers, maybe they just spontaneously formed from the nightmares of sentient creatures. Nobody really knows.

The different races each have their own purposes within the culture. Mind flayers are most numerous, and are the politicians, merchants and slave-masters. Aboleths are biologists and scientists, creating many of the aberrant creatures that plague the world (manticores, displacer beasts, etc). Kopru (originally from old Expert D&D, but also revised in 2e and 3e) are the aquatic scouts and assassins. Neh-Thalggu (also from old Expert D&D, but revised in 3e) are the archivists, researchers and loremasters.

can the races intermingle with one another and have offspring using real gene tables? with dominant and recessive aspects of life? Or is it a sort of caste system similar to the covenant from Halo where they're born into life?

just thinking outloud here, something I might add in my next campaign (With beholders a warrior caste, like military tactician types)

 

[the Jester]

I'm a huge fan of mind flayers, derro and yes, Drow.

Then again, Drow are actually extremely rare in my campaign; nobody has had a combat encounter with them in over 10 years, real time. And they have always been far closer to the deranged demon-worshipers in G3 and the D Series than every later interpretation. Ain't no monolithic Lolth worship here! Nor will you EVER see a Drow pc in my campaign. That's not what Drow are for.

Illithids- ooh, can't go wrong! So much juicy lore! The Illithiad, various psionic books, Lords of Madness, oh God I love my brain-eating aberrant aliens!

And derro- who are the deranged descendants of dwarves intermixed with human slaves, possibly tampered with by (mumble mumble)... I love them. I love that they're all freaking insane. I love that they use hook fauchards to pull you off your feet. In my campaign they have no long-lived stable civilizations, but they haunt the leavings of other subterranean cultures and sometimes flourish for a few years or decades in one area or another before utterly collapsing and undergoing a mass dispersal.

 

[lostingeneral]

Maulgoths.

No seriously, mind flayers. And if we're talking Eberron, the Daelkyr are so rad.

 

[Subtlepanic]

After reading the 4E Underdark book, I'd love to do a campaign that delves into the Underdark from 1st level all the way to 30th, ending on a battle with Torog himself.

 

[Gilladian]

In my campaign, I've always had a hollow earth. Inside, at the core, there burns a horrible "sun". It is a prison for the evil death god of the campaign world - Aragh. He lies there in uneasy sleep, dreaming horrible dreams of death and war and destruction, sending waves of his thoughts out to bathe the Skyless World.

Here's what I have written on my wiki:
The Lands in Shadow

Below the surface of Miraboria are a whole series of other worlds, commonly called The Lands in Shadow by their residents. Surface dwellers more commonly call them The Dark Below.

There are three levels to these realms.

• The areas closest to the surface are usually settled by modified surface dweller races or by creatures evolved from them. These caves are essentially not terribly liveable - they are dark, and cool, often damp and have little access to any source of energy - the sun or the bitter radiance of the Core. Those who dwell here are aware of the deeper realms, but either are refugees from what dwells there and fear them, or have been driven out, or are happy to live on the fringes and not draw attention to themselves. Some, like the hill and mountain dwarves, see themselves as hardy survivors who don't need the Core Radiance to make their lives better. Few surface dwellers realize how extensive this realm is, and have no hint of what lies even deeper. The Dark Below is the common name for this realm in surface dweller languages.
  • One race which lives extensively in this region are the Ittakens - an insectile race of telepathic beings who are often found living in their own complex series of tunnels that both open to the surface and connect at their deepest points to Subtenebrae. Unfortunately, the Ittakens often find themselves caught between the surface dwellers whom they rely on for food, and the dwellers in the Middle Realms, who make demands upon them for tribute.

• The Middle Realms below - often called Subtenebrae by the intelligent species who live there, is a transitional area. No light or warmth from the surface world reaches these depths, but the Core Radiance is partly blocked by the layers of rock and metal that lie between. The peoples and creatures here are perfectly adapted to the Radiance, but may fear its direct force, and are certainly aware of at least some of the nature of those who dwell in the Skyless World. Plants here need no daylight, but instead thrive on unseen Radiance. Even animals adapted to the realm need little food in comparison to those above.

• The Skyless World - The core of Vishteer is hollow, and at the heart of the planet rests a strange smoldering ball. It puts out a powerful energy known to all the dwellers here as the Core Radiance. Some say this is the soul of the world - perhaps Nelora herself - but others claim it is Aragh's heart. This interpretation is the widely accepted one, as the Skyless World is ruled by the most evil and dominating creatures of the Dark - mind flayers, aboleth and other horrors compete for the control of this vast core realm. Ancient Evil has gripped this realm for tens of thousands of years, and it no longer seems possible for that to ever change.

 

[Celebrim]

My favorite underdark race since 1e has been the Dark Creepers as presented in the original FF, whose culture I based off of naked mole rats. The walked a line between alien and familiar that I appreciated, and they were little used and so I could make them my own.

I also like goblins, giants, derro, mindflayers, kopru, and aboleths. Myconids would be ok.

I do not much like drow, duergar, and deep gnomes (considering my campaign world has no gnomes, this isn't surprising).

However, I do have drow in the campaign - only they are nothing like they've been portrayed as.

Campaign level secrets follow:

Spoiler

They have ivory white skin and ebony black hair. They live in small tribal bands with a culture I've based of that of lions, and they most certainly do not represent a threat to the surface world except in the frenzied imaginations of the surface dwellers. In fact, none have been seen in many centuries by anyone, and the truth of the matter is that they are a broken, dwindling, fallen race, so busy surviving the harshness of the Underworld and each other that they have no time to really plot revenge. They certainly have no unified culture, unified religion, or unified rituals. They have no cities, because any group of much more than 60 or so Drow ends up with one half murdering the other half of its members. Although its not their intention and they'd gladly enslave, murder, torture and/or eat any surface dweller that fell into their clutches, the actual effect of drow on the world is to act as a buffer and check on the power of the things in the Underworld that represent real existential threat to the surface world. These strange surface interlopers with their powerful weapons and magic, hiding in the darkest shadows and passages of the Underworld are the boogeys that mindflayers fear. The surface elves prepare for the vengeful return of their exiled kin in vain, and were they to preemptively try to extinguish them they'd only make their own problems worse. Of course, of this, the PC's know nothing, although the sages and learned among goblin kind no more of the Drow than any other race with commerce on the surface world.

 

[Scott DeWar]

The Rabbit of Caerbannog.

I have spread too much xp in the last 24 hours. I must try again later.

I like Duegar or Derro, Illithids, an adaptation of nasty hobbitses and the aquatic race of the abboliths.

It kind of gives a feeling of "the old ones"


.. .. .. ..What is that lord cathuhu? That is classified information? .. .. .. ..

sorry that is all i can talk about right now.

*maniacal giggling ensues*.. .. .. ..

 

[steeldragons]

I don't know it. Details?

Sorry, maybe I got it wrong. I thought I'd seen it referred to as GDQ...maybe it was GDW?...no, I think I'm right.

[MENTION=17106]Ahnehnois[/MENTION] (and anyone else unfamiliar)

"GDQ"with a little help by Wikipedia a collection of original 1e modules that formed a coherent (and lengthy but awesomeness in awesome sauce cubed) campaign, including:

• the Giant (G) series [or in my case], Against the Giants (written by Gary Gygax and published by TSR in 1981). It combines the G series of modules previously published in 1978: Steading of the Hill Giant Chief, Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl, and Hall of the Fire Giant King.
• the Drow or, arguably, if you prefer, the "Descent" series. Either way, it's the "D" series. Descent Into the Depths of the Earth is coded D1–2 (also, written by Gary Gygax) and combines two previously published modules from 1978, the original Descent into the Depths of the Earth and Shrine of the Kuo-Toa. A sequel to the first two modules, Vault of the Drow, was D3.
• and culminating in the Queen (Q) module, Q1, Queen of the Demonweb Pits (written by David Sutherland). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_of_the_Demonweb_Pits#cite_note-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_of_the_Demonweb_Pits#cite_note-Dummies-1This module sends the PCs to the demonic abyss to defeat the evil demigod Lolth, the demonic goddess of the drow.

So, there you have it...G-D-Q.

If you do not have in your possession copies (or pdf's) of these classic Classics and quintessences of D&D history, I highly recommend getting them for yourself. But I also highly recommend, whether you personally have copies or not, PLAYING through them whenever you have the opportunity.

Thanks for all of the responses so far, guys. Some really intriguing (i.e. getting my creative wheels squealing) stuff here.

Apologies to those I "must spread some around..." (Jester, as usual, haha. and WbDb)...and to others as it seems I have already "given too much XP in the last 24 hours." blech. So I'll getcha tomorrow I guess.

Keep 'em comin'.
--Steel Dragons