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The daelkyr are extraplanar creatures that are native to the realm of Xoriat who appear as preternaturally beautiful humanoids.[4]

They are perfect in their power. They are without flaw save those flaws they choose. Their triumph is delayed but not denied—they will hold Eberron as they held Xoriat. They are the great lords of the dark and nothing is beyond their will.
— A fragment from the rites of the Cult of the Dragon Below[5]

History[]

The daelkyr attempted a planar invasion of Eberron during the time of the Dhakaani Empire, releasing hordes of their aberrant creations into the material plane. It took an alliance between the goblinoids of the Dhakaani Empire and the orc druids of the Gatekeepers to repel the forces of the daelkyr, cutting off the plane of Xoriat from Eberron and sealing the remaining daelkyr and their servants within Khyber.[4][6][2][7]

At least six daelkyr remain on Eberron, though they have yet to make a unified attempt to free themselves from Khyber or to restore the connection between Eberron and their home plane. Immortal, the daelkyr are endlessly patient and, as the lords of the realm of madness, their goals and motivations are unfathomable by mortals.[6][7]

Description[]

Daelkyr are said to look like remarkably beautiful and shapely humans, but with a hint of madness in their eyes and chitinous armor covering their bodies that makes them unsettling.[4]

Activities[]

They are responsible for most of the aberrations in Eberron, including beholders, dolgaunts, some symbiotic creatures, and many other monsters.[4][6]

The daelkyr are also known by the titles the Lords of Xoriat[1] and the shapers of flesh. Those few daelkyr who remain in Khyber are rumored to create new terrors to this day.[2][8]

Abilities[]

Daelkyr can assume the form of a humanoid of human or halfling size.[9] This process may not be conscious on the part of the daelkyr, and their appearance may reflect the person viewing them interpreting their form in a sensible manner.[10][11]

Their thought processes are alien, and any creature that attempts to read their mind is temporarily driven mad as per the confusion spell.[4][6]

A daelkyr's presence in a region can change babies in the womb into daelkyr half-bloods, aberrations born to humanoid mothers with some of the madness of the daelkyr and that carry a symbiont from birth.[12][13]

Notable Daelkyr[]

At least six daelkyr remain trapped in the underground realm of Khyber. Unlike the Overlords of the Age of Demons, the daelkyr are fully conscious and active, and can wander freely in this realm if they so chose. Each daelkyr has their own followers in various Cults of the Dragon Below, which may act as intermediaries for their unfathomable whims on the surface.[6][7][12]

  • Belashyrra, the Lord of Eyes: One of the most terrifying of the daelkyr, and credited with creating beholders. Belashyrra resides within the Citadel of Lidless Eyes, through which it is thought to be able to see through the eyes of any living creature. The Umbragen society of drow is currently fighting Belashyrra's army of aberrations in Khyber.[6][2][7][14][15][16]
  • Dyrrn the Corruptor: According to Gatekeeper legend, Dyrrn the Corruptor is the mightiest daelkyr. Dyrrn is responsible for the creation of dolgauntsdolgrims, and dolgarr from the hobgoblins, goblins, and bugbears. Dyrrn is believed to be trapped in Khyber beneath the Eldeen Reaches.[6][7][15]
  • Kyrzin, the Prince of Slime: The daelkyr lord of slime, ooze, and disease. Kyrzin is credited with the creation of gibbering mouthers and mimics, and is said to have particular influence over the orcs of the Shadow Marches and their descendants.[6][7]
  • Orlassk, the Lord of Stone: Orlassk is credited with creating the medusas (to their severe objection), basilisks, and other creatures that petrify their victims or manipulate stone. Orlassk is skilled at manipulating flesh and stone, and has knowledge of secret transmutation magic. It is said to travel within a moving citadel, a giant gargoyle prowling Khyber.[7][17][18]
  • The Stained One: The Stained One is the title of a daelkyr that is served by illithids, beholders, dolgrims, and other aberrations. It is trapped in the Fortress of the Stained within Khyber.[19]
  • Avassh, the Twister of Roots: Credited with creating shambling mounds and other forms of strange and twisted plant creatures.[20]
  • Valaara, the Crawling Queen: The daelkyr lord of worms, spiders, insects and other creepy-crawlies.[20]
  • The Master of Silence: A daelkyr trapped in a realm of Khyber connected to the Shadow Marches. It is served by Dah'mir and is followed by members of the Bonetree clan. The Master of Silence has no mouth and communicates exclusively via telepathy.[5]
  • Ysgithyrwyn: A daelkyr lord that during the Daelkyr War was banished back to Xoriat by the Gatekeepers. However, Sinnoch, a dolgaunt agent of Ysgithyrwyn, stumbled across a portal between Xoriat and Eberron. In 998 YK, Sinnoch and his unknowning pawn, artificer Elidyr Brochann, tried to bring Ysgithyrwyn from Xoriat to Eberron in a similar manner. Ysgithyrwyn is credited with the creation of symbionts.[21]

Appendix[]

Notes[]

Keith Baker has suggested on his website that the daelkyr are perceived as a perfect paragon of the same race as the person viewing them (i.e., they may look human to humans, but would look like a bugbear to goblinoids). He further explains that their true form may not be interpretable by a rational mind and the humanoid form is the nearest approximation.[10] Keith Baker further expanded on this topic in a now-lost post on the Eberron Discord, stating that, while the daelkyr are perceived in different ways depending on the individual viewing them, this is distinct from shapechangers because the daelkyr do not consciously change their form.[11]

Regardless, the Errata for the Eberron Campaign Setting, 2nd June 2006, available here gave the daelkyr an Alternate Form (a Small or Medium Humanoid), replacing its polymorph and quickened polymorph any object spell-like abilities, as part of a general revision of shapeshifting rules in late 3.5 D&D. This errata seems to itself be in error, as polymorph originally let the daelkyr shapechange other willing creatures, not itself. Thus, Keith's suggestion that this represents perception rather than true shapeshifting seems the best interpretation.

In The Grieving Tree by Don Bassingthwaite, some Cults of the Dragon Below believe daelkyr appear without flaws save the ones they allow.[5]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Bruce R. Cordell, Stephen Schubert, and Chris Thomasson (2005). Magic of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 38. ISBN 0-7869-3696-7.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Keith Baker (2005/07/04). Lords of Madness. Eberron Expanded. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2016/11/01. Retrieved on 2021/08/15.
  3. James Wyatt and Keith Baker (2009). Eberron Campaign Guide. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 205. ISBN 0-7869-5099-4.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Keith Baker, Bill Slavicsek, & James Wyatt (2004). Eberron Campaign Setting. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 279. ISBN 0-7869-3274-0.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Don Bassingthwaite (2006). The Grieving Tree. (Wizards of the Coast), p. ?. ISBN 0-7869-3985-0.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 James Wyatt and Keith Baker (2009). Eberron Campaign Guide. (Wizards of the Coast), p. ?. ISBN 0-7869-5099-4.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 James Wyatt, Keith Baker, Luke Johnson, Steven Brown (2006). Player's Guide to Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 85. ISBN 0-7869-3912-5.
  8. Bruce R. Cordell, Stephen Schubert, and Chris Thomasson (2005). Magic of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 22. ISBN 0-7869-3696-7.
  9. Eberron Campaign Setting Errata. Wizards of the Coast. (02/06/2006). Archived from the original on 02/06/2019.
  10. 10.0 10.1 Keith Baker (08/21/2018). Dragonmarks: The Daelkyr and their Cults. Archived from the original on 01/24/2019.
  11. 11.0 11.1 Keith Baker (02/16/2019). Keith Baker on the Daelkyr and Shapechanging. ""My second daelkyr comment is actually a question. I just looked at the wiki, and it says that daelkyr can assume the form of any medium or small humanoid, citing the ECS as a source for this. I've never thought of the daelkyr as being shapechangers, and I can't find the ability listed in the ECS or ECG. Is this just an error? It occurred to me that it may be based on my statement that different creatures may PERCEIVE the daelkyr in different ways, but that's supposed to be perception, not active shapeshifting.""
  12. 12.0 12.1 Bruce R. Cordell, Stephen Schubert, and Chris Thomasson (2005). Magic of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 21. ISBN 0-7869-3696-7.
  13. Bruce R. Cordell, Stephen Schubert, and Chris Thomasson (2005). Magic of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 37. ISBN 0-7869-3696-7.
  14. Keith Baker (2005/11/28). Weapons of Legacy. Eberron Expanded. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2016/11/01. Retrieved on 2021/08/15.
  15. 15.0 15.1 Keith Baker (June 2005). “Touched by Madness”. Dragon #332 (Paizo Publishing).
  16. Keith Baker, Nicolas Logue, James Desborough, C.A. Suleiman (2008). City of Stormreach. (Wizards of the Coast), p. ?. ISBN 0-7869-4803-5.
  17. Keith Baker (2006/09/05). The Medusas of Droaam. Dragonshards. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2018/08/15. Retrieved on 2021/06/24.
  18. Keith Baker (2005/07/25). Masters of Magic. Dragonshards. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2016/10/31. Retrieved on 2021/06/30.
  19. Bruce R. Cordell, Stephen Schubert, and Chris Thomasson (2005). Magic of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 23–24. ISBN 0-7869-3696-7.
  20. 20.0 20.1 Keith Baker, Jeremy Crawford, & James Wyatt (2019). Eberron: Rising from the Last War. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 283. ISBN 0786966890.
  21. Tim Waggoner (2010). Lady Ruin. (Wizards of the Coast). ISBN 0-7869-5625-9.

Connections[]


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