Drow: like cow or crow?
- Thread starter Desdichado
- Start date
I don't really care how the illustrious Mr. Gygax or anoyne else says it is supposed to be pronounced. Rhyming it with "cow" gives you a word that is simply not ominous enough.
The sentence, "Oh wow! It's a drow!" gives the image of a woman with big hair, too much eye makeup, and chewing gum with her mouth open saying it. Sorry, nothing Fran Drescher says is ominous. No self-respecting drow would allow the race name to be associated with that nasal sound.
The sentence, "Oh no! It's a drow!" is far more fitting ot the dark and dreadful nature of the race, and the apprehension they instill.
The sentence, "Oh wow! It's a drow!" gives the image of a woman with big hair, too much eye makeup, and chewing gum with her mouth open saying it. Sorry, nothing Fran Drescher says is ominous. No self-respecting drow would allow the race name to be associated with that nasal sound.
The sentence, "Oh no! It's a drow!" is far more fitting ot the dark and dreadful nature of the race, and the apprehension they instill.
Manta's are huge!
jester47
First Post
DROOOO!!! DROOOOO!!!
No no no, Drow... Duh rrrrr oww.
DRROOOOW DRRRROOWW
Sad times are these when ruffians can go about saying Drow to old women...
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I think it can be either. I hear Thayans say Drow, while cormyrans say droh. Strangely enough when you get up to the north near waterdeep it becomes Drow again. But cali
es pronounce it like snow. In Kara Tur I have heard say that they pronounce the word like dow. The south side of the sea of fallen stars uses the cow pronunciation and the moonsea seems to favor the other. The dale lands seem to follow the cormyrans. I hear both Amn and Tethyr use different pronunciations because this is somthing else for them to fight about.
As for Oerth, I know that the old oeridian pronunciaton accentuates any word with an O, so they follow the snow pronunciation. So Nyrond and the Not so great Kingdom would pronounce it snow. Ancient Suel however seem to favor the Cow pronunciation. This most likely comes from the verbal tradition of the Suel and the ability to insult them is increased with thir name rhyming with cow. A good example is "That drow cow cast a spell on me" meaning a matriarch of the drow. Matron Mother = Drow cow. This is very hard to do when pronounced like snow. Thus this pronunciation is most common in the Duchy of Urnst and amongst the barbarians of the northeast. The Baklunnish peoples tend to pronounce it droo with a trilled R. The Rhenee seem to find a way to say it using neither the snow or cow pronunciations, but a strange middle of the road. This tends to further infuriate people.
Dwarves are prone to using the Cow pronunciation because when mumbled or not heard correctly the snow pronunciation can sound like derro. The cow pronunciation reduces potentially deadly communication errors.
Halflings most often use Dark elf, however, since they are imitative they tend to also use the pronunciation of the people wherever they live.
Elves rarrely use the word drow or dark elf except when talking to other races and peoples. Analysis of the language used would indicate that most elves think dark elves would make good compost.
Gnomes like both, whatever rhymes best with what they are saying. So, if a contingint of drow stole a gnomes cow while it was snowing, the Gnome would say: "A droh arrived in the snow last night. Holding me at swordpoint that drow stole my cow."
Half orcs tend to base their pronunciation on where their other half came from.
Most monsterous humanoids tend to use the word master when refering to the drow.
I guess my point is, dont fight about the differnces, use em to liven up the game.
Aaron Webb
No no no, Drow... Duh rrrrr oww.
DRROOOOW DRRRROOWW
Sad times are these when ruffians can go about saying Drow to old women...
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I think it can be either. I hear Thayans say Drow, while cormyrans say droh. Strangely enough when you get up to the north near waterdeep it becomes Drow again. But cali
es pronounce it like snow. In Kara Tur I have heard say that they pronounce the word like dow. The south side of the sea of fallen stars uses the cow pronunciation and the moonsea seems to favor the other. The dale lands seem to follow the cormyrans. I hear both Amn and Tethyr use different pronunciations because this is somthing else for them to fight about. As for Oerth, I know that the old oeridian pronunciaton accentuates any word with an O, so they follow the snow pronunciation. So Nyrond and the Not so great Kingdom would pronounce it snow. Ancient Suel however seem to favor the Cow pronunciation. This most likely comes from the verbal tradition of the Suel and the ability to insult them is increased with thir name rhyming with cow. A good example is "That drow cow cast a spell on me" meaning a matriarch of the drow. Matron Mother = Drow cow. This is very hard to do when pronounced like snow. Thus this pronunciation is most common in the Duchy of Urnst and amongst the barbarians of the northeast. The Baklunnish peoples tend to pronounce it droo with a trilled R. The Rhenee seem to find a way to say it using neither the snow or cow pronunciations, but a strange middle of the road. This tends to further infuriate people.
Dwarves are prone to using the Cow pronunciation because when mumbled or not heard correctly the snow pronunciation can sound like derro. The cow pronunciation reduces potentially deadly communication errors.
Halflings most often use Dark elf, however, since they are imitative they tend to also use the pronunciation of the people wherever they live.
Elves rarrely use the word drow or dark elf except when talking to other races and peoples. Analysis of the language used would indicate that most elves think dark elves would make good compost.
Gnomes like both, whatever rhymes best with what they are saying. So, if a contingint of drow stole a gnomes cow while it was snowing, the Gnome would say: "A droh arrived in the snow last night. Holding me at swordpoint that drow stole my cow."
Half orcs tend to base their pronunciation on where their other half came from.
Most monsterous humanoids tend to use the word master when refering to the drow.
I guess my point is, dont fight about the differnces, use em to liven up the game.
Aaron Webb
Desdichado
Hero
Hmmm, I think drow-cow sounds sillier than drow-crow. But really, both are pretty silly sounding. Really, I kinda like Dark Elves best and always have.
Lazybones
Adventurer
I'd always used drow-crow... I never even considered alternatives until I played the Baldur's Gate games and I heard the voice-description ("Beware the drow" or some-such was their cry when they appeared). I've adjusted to the "official" version now, I guess, though I agree that "dark elf" sounds more menacing.
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