I'm fairly new to the FR, and I've just recently began reading the books. In the FRCS and I do believe in Magic of Faerun, they touch on the time of troubles, or something like that. Now I know it had something to do with the changes from 1e to 2e, and the ascencion of ciryc, mystra, and kelemvor. But really what WAS it. what happened, and what allowed so many mortals to ascend to godhood, especially greater godhood (mystra)?
[FRCS] What was the time of troubles
- Thread starter ~Joseph~
- Start date
Ds Da Man
First Post
The time of troubles was when the head cheese god, Ao, cast all the gods down to the mortal realms. During that time, Bane, Bhaal, Myrkul, Torm, and Mystra was killed. Several new gods, i.e. Cyric, Kelemavor (sp?), and Midnight (acutually Mystra) ascended to godhood. This killing of the gods and such is what caused a lot a wild magic, dead magic areas.
RogueJK
It's not "Rouge"... That's makeup.
Actually, there's more to it than Ds Da Man said.
Everything Ds Da Man mentioned (the ascension of Mystra, Kelemvor, and Cyric, the death of some of the gods, etc.) is only what is covered in the Avatar Trilogy of books: Shadowdale, Tantras, and Waterdeep.
However, during the Time of Troubles, more than just that happened. There are many other products that describe other events that occured. My Time of Troubles history is a bit rusty (it's been a while since I've read the many novels and FR products that covered all of the events), so I'll leave the explanation to someone more qualified.
You can also find most of you information you'll need on page 264 of the 3rd Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting. It explains the cause of the Time of Troubles, as well as most of the major events which occured.
Everything Ds Da Man mentioned (the ascension of Mystra, Kelemvor, and Cyric, the death of some of the gods, etc.) is only what is covered in the Avatar Trilogy of books: Shadowdale, Tantras, and Waterdeep.
However, during the Time of Troubles, more than just that happened. There are many other products that describe other events that occured. My Time of Troubles history is a bit rusty (it's been a while since I've read the many novels and FR products that covered all of the events), so I'll leave the explanation to someone more qualified.
You can also find most of you information you'll need on page 264 of the 3rd Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting. It explains the cause of the Time of Troubles, as well as most of the major events which occured.
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Flexor the Mighty!
18/100 Strength!
The plotline of a really poor series of novels.
Napftor
Explorer
Looks like a good time...
...to bring back the Tales of the Formerly Dead Three!
Here is the Time of Troubles as seen by Bane, Myrkul and Bhaal themselves!
Bane: "Well, it all started when I stole the Tablets of Fate right out from under Ao's very--"
Myrkul: "Ahem. I helped steal them too. And who pulled your rump out of the frying pan at the Battle of Shadowdale?"
Bane: "That's a matter for historians. And while we're on accomplishents, who murdered Mystra? Hmm?"
Bhaal: "Hey, I'm the Lord of Murder around here!"
Myrkul: "You WERE the Lord of Murder. You were killed by Mask in the form of a sword wielded by that upstart Cyric. Heh. I can only imagine what that deranged halfling who had Godsbane would have done to you."
Bane: "Yeah, so just shut up."
Bhaal (fingering a bone dagger): "One of these days..."
Myrkul: "You'll what? Sneer at us?"
Bane: "Back to the story, I also made short work of Torm. What a moron."
Bhaal: "Aha! He killed you too!"
Bane: "Where's your evidence? Am I not still alive and well in the Realms? Where are you these days Bhaal? Oh yes, the topic of computer game plots. I see your career is making great strides."
Mykul: "Just calm down, Bane. Why don't you acknowledge who's been able to survive the longest, eh? Me!"
Bhaal: "Huh? You got blasted to bits in the skies over Waterdeep!"
Myrkul: "Ah, but my essence survived in the Crown of Horns. Pretty ingenious if I do--"
Bane: "Oh, I'm trembling. Longevity inside any fop that can wear a spikey hat. You two better go back to Evil 101."
Bhaal: "Jerk."
Myrkul: "Still, I am the longest living. I was killed once. You were killed...what was it? Three times?"
Bane: "I don't have any time for this. Why we keep having these get-togethers is beyond even my divine powers."
Myrkul: "Cuz we threw the bones for Jergal's position, that's why. From now until the end of time we're stuck with each other. Get used to it."
Bhaal (in his best whiny kid voice): "Yeah, what he said."
Myrkul: "Oh, shut up."
Bane: "Idiot."
So much for getting a straight answer out of them! But inside are little bits of the avatar trilogy to pick out. I say just read and enjoy them.
...to bring back the Tales of the Formerly Dead Three!
Here is the Time of Troubles as seen by Bane, Myrkul and Bhaal themselves!
Bane: "Well, it all started when I stole the Tablets of Fate right out from under Ao's very--"
Myrkul: "Ahem. I helped steal them too. And who pulled your rump out of the frying pan at the Battle of Shadowdale?"
Bane: "That's a matter for historians. And while we're on accomplishents, who murdered Mystra? Hmm?"
Bhaal: "Hey, I'm the Lord of Murder around here!"
Myrkul: "You WERE the Lord of Murder. You were killed by Mask in the form of a sword wielded by that upstart Cyric. Heh. I can only imagine what that deranged halfling who had Godsbane would have done to you."
Bane: "Yeah, so just shut up."
Bhaal (fingering a bone dagger): "One of these days..."
Myrkul: "You'll what? Sneer at us?"
Bane: "Back to the story, I also made short work of Torm. What a moron."
Bhaal: "Aha! He killed you too!"
Bane: "Where's your evidence? Am I not still alive and well in the Realms? Where are you these days Bhaal? Oh yes, the topic of computer game plots. I see your career is making great strides."
Mykul: "Just calm down, Bane. Why don't you acknowledge who's been able to survive the longest, eh? Me!"
Bhaal: "Huh? You got blasted to bits in the skies over Waterdeep!"
Myrkul: "Ah, but my essence survived in the Crown of Horns. Pretty ingenious if I do--"
Bane: "Oh, I'm trembling. Longevity inside any fop that can wear a spikey hat. You two better go back to Evil 101."
Bhaal: "Jerk."
Myrkul: "Still, I am the longest living. I was killed once. You were killed...what was it? Three times?"
Bane: "I don't have any time for this. Why we keep having these get-togethers is beyond even my divine powers."
Myrkul: "Cuz we threw the bones for Jergal's position, that's why. From now until the end of time we're stuck with each other. Get used to it."
Bhaal (in his best whiny kid voice): "Yeah, what he said."
Myrkul: "Oh, shut up."
Bane: "Idiot."
So much for getting a straight answer out of them! But inside are little bits of the avatar trilogy to pick out. I say just read and enjoy them.
Neo
Explorer
I would add a coupl of points here
1st Flexor the Mighty, you are certainly entitled to your opinions, but i for one happened to enjoy the Avatar trilogy and two follow up novels that add heasps of detail to how the realms has changed since that time.
2ns Ao is the head Cheese.although the gods to him are viewed alost certainly in the same way as the gods view us mere mortals. Ao also as much as says he isn't the the highest of the divines, and that there are others even he must answer to.
1st Flexor the Mighty, you are certainly entitled to your opinions, but i for one happened to enjoy the Avatar trilogy and two follow up novels that add heasps of detail to how the realms has changed since that time.
2ns Ao is the head Cheese.although the gods to him are viewed alost certainly in the same way as the gods view us mere mortals. Ao also as much as says he isn't the the highest of the divines, and that there are others even he must answer to.
The Crimster
First Post
Since no one else has said it, that was damn funny, Napftor.
The Dungeon Nazi
First Post
The Tablets of Fate were the lists of every god that existed in Faerun, and then detailed their duties, their portfolios, and so on. Bane and Myrkul stole them from Ao, and as punishment for this (and for all the gods in general paying more attention to their own squabbles with each other than to their mortal followers), Ao forced them to choose one avatar, and cast them down into the Realms in that form. The only one to escape this fate was Helm, who was charged with guarding the gateways into the deities' planes of existence. As a matter of fact, I think that's how Mystra was killed -- she tried to return, and Helm cut her down.
In the seconds before her last breath, she dumped the essence of The Weave into a number of mortals, and Elminster hosted the brunt of it. In doing so, he lost all of his spellcasting abilities, so he had little more than a few magic trinkets and his fighter and thief levels to preserve him, along with the Rangers Three (this is all in the Shadows of the Avatar trilogy, which you are now hereby bound to read). Anyway, this is when all the magic went nuts. Since Drizzt and the Friends of Mithral Hall are so far removed from civilization during most of this, Salvatore only touches on it briefly.
In the meantime, the rest of the pantheon began realizing that while they're mortal, their foes are, too, and so many of them set out to settle old scores once and for all, and thus you have the deaths of many gods during this time. Opportunistic Cyric also realizes this, and he does his own share of deity-slaying, with his sword Godsbane -- the avatar form Mask had chosen when he was cast into the Realms, unbeknownst to anyone but himself. The downside is that he takes a *big* hit in power when the sword is destroyed. But anyway, this is why all the gods in the Realms hate Cyric. I think he's the only one listed in the FRCS without any allies.
Once the mortal wizard Midnight, along with the mortal Kelemvor, tracked down the Tablets of Fate, the Time of Troubles ended and Ao set things as he saw fit, returning the remaining deities to their divine forms and bringing Torm back to life (since he died in service to his ethos and thus demonstrated to Ao that his godly duties were important to him). Midnight ascended to become the new Mystra, taking back The Weave into herself, though I don't think Kelemvor ascended at this time.
And I just realized that this is all available on page 264 of the FRCS.
In the seconds before her last breath, she dumped the essence of The Weave into a number of mortals, and Elminster hosted the brunt of it. In doing so, he lost all of his spellcasting abilities, so he had little more than a few magic trinkets and his fighter and thief levels to preserve him, along with the Rangers Three (this is all in the Shadows of the Avatar trilogy, which you are now hereby bound to read). Anyway, this is when all the magic went nuts. Since Drizzt and the Friends of Mithral Hall are so far removed from civilization during most of this, Salvatore only touches on it briefly.
In the meantime, the rest of the pantheon began realizing that while they're mortal, their foes are, too, and so many of them set out to settle old scores once and for all, and thus you have the deaths of many gods during this time. Opportunistic Cyric also realizes this, and he does his own share of deity-slaying, with his sword Godsbane -- the avatar form Mask had chosen when he was cast into the Realms, unbeknownst to anyone but himself. The downside is that he takes a *big* hit in power when the sword is destroyed. But anyway, this is why all the gods in the Realms hate Cyric. I think he's the only one listed in the FRCS without any allies.
Once the mortal wizard Midnight, along with the mortal Kelemvor, tracked down the Tablets of Fate, the Time of Troubles ended and Ao set things as he saw fit, returning the remaining deities to their divine forms and bringing Torm back to life (since he died in service to his ethos and thus demonstrated to Ao that his godly duties were important to him). Midnight ascended to become the new Mystra, taking back The Weave into herself, though I don't think Kelemvor ascended at this time.
And I just realized that this is all available on page 264 of the FRCS.
Flexor the Mighty!
18/100 Strength!
Neo said:
I read the first two books but never bothered to read the last one. I didn't care much for the writing or the characters. Actually the only FR books I really liked were the Moonshea novels. Those were pretty good. Ed Greenwood books on the other hand...ugh. Spellfire was nearly criminally bad.
The whole FR trend of incorporating every novel in the setting cannon is one of the thigns that soured me on the FR.
