Svarts and Xvarts.......

[Cas Liber]

This drove me nuts (did someone hit the wrong key on a typewriter?) - the original svart appeared in White Dwarf 9 and also was used in a module in the same issue. The inspiration being the svarts (from Svart-Alfar or 'Black Elves' as opposed to 'Lios Alfar' or light elves in the Alan Garner books - the Weirdstone of Brisingamen, which I read ad enjoyed as a child in the 70s), however they were transfromed into 'Xvarts' for the Fiend Folio - was it a copyright problem?

 

[BOZ]

interesting, i never knew that.

i suspect it was not a copyright problem, but more likely a design choice.

 

[Alzrius]

interesting, i never knew that.

i suspect it was not a copyright problem, but more likely a design choice.

Probably similar to how "Lolth" became "Lloth" for a good long while there (mostly in Salvatore books), or "The Elder Elemental God" becoming "The Elder Elemental Eye".

 

[Cheiromancer]

Hmm. The verbal similarity between Xvart and Svart never occurred to me, either. That's interesting.

Looking up the Xvart, I see that the creature catalogue conversion is here. But the "official" update is in Living Greyhawk Journal #1. Anyone know how I get ahold of that? Is it available online?

 

[BOZ]

i don't believe LGJ#1 is available anywhere - maybe on ebay. you never know, it could reappear somewhere again...

and the CC version was put in the crypt, a long time ago, after the LGJ came out.

 

[Agamemnon]

That same distinction between svart alfar and lios alfar was also used in Guy Gavriel Kay's Fionavar Tapestry trilogy, wherein, the svart alfar were described as small, hunched skulking creatures.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Is the Living Greyhawk Journal a separate publication? I have a feeling that it was printed in Dragon Magazine or something.

If so, does anyone know how often it printed? (i.e. what Dragon issue corresponds to what issue of LGJ?

 

[Filby]

I believe that LGJ was published as a separate magazine for the first 6 or 7 issues or so, before being integrated into Dragon. I don't know which issue of Dragon it was first included in.