Such great stuff! I did have a question for for anyone who might know... At what point during this time did Dendar swallow the Sun? And I've read that Ubtao, the Deciever was the Primordial who switched sides to the Divines, shifting the balance in favor of the gods. Is this incorrect?
That event marked the end of the Blue Age and the start of the Shadow Epoch on Toril after the sun was devoured by Dendar the Night Serpent. During this phase of the war, Ouroboros the World Serpent was the major force leading the armies of the gods. Many more battles took place during this epoch until finally, the primordial Ubtao turned against his kin and aided the gods in imprisoning many of his former allies. In the aftermath, the sun was recreated and the oceans thawed. The battle of Kord and the death of Sehil was the last of many battles (at one point Kord also fought Moradin and Gruumsh), it was a chaotic time, but the Deception of Ubtao was pivotal to the events that ended the Dawn War and began the Days of Thunder.
@@AJPickett Is there, like, a book on this stuff? The history? I'm trying to create the metaphysics / cosmology of my own world and having a bit of trouble.
It explains why such a potentially more powerful god isn’t as powerful as others. Juiblex has one of the largest population base as worshippers, but isn’t as powerful as gods with much smaller numbers of worshippers. It makes you wonder if oozes, slimes, jellies and puddings have consciousness as well.
@almitrahopkins1873 that would be a crazy campaign. The main BBEG is Juiblex/stopping him being unleashed. The secondary BBEG is a Warlock of Juiblex who's goal is to gather necessary stuff & perform a ritual to give all slime/ooze etc consciousness & purpose of unleashing their God. The party would start of thinking dudes an idiot/loser for focusing on slimes etc but as the story progresses realize this is some insane stuff. They think "cool, that assoles dead. We're good." Then learn of his true plans success & have to try to stop one of the most powerful Demon Lords.
This is by *leagues* the best explanation of the Dawn War I've ever encountered. It really helped expand my admittedly murky understanding of these events. Thank you for putting this together.
Love me some Dawn War lore. Great work my guy. I'm currently working on a full campaign outline that some of this might actually come in handy for. *Sparknotes for the interested:* Zehir never quite gave up on swiping Asgorath's seat and portfolio. Rather, he merely set it asside while new preparations were set in place. Eons later, Zehir has quietly begun to move, and the world is at risk of seeing the King of Terror rise once more. With the once unassailable Asgorath still weakened by the concessions of power and domain made in the creation of his children gods, and with Bahamut and Tiamat too busy quarreling to truly see the impending threat, it falls to a small band of mortals to uncover the Serpent God's plans and foil them once more.
This would make great background info, and scenery for a campaign in which a group of players are tasked with guarding a scholar/mage that is traveling the lands, and planes to shed light on the truth of creation thru research ages so far back they are myth an legend. At first the players might only battle the monsters that had made their lair in the areas some of the lore is located in, than maybe having to go into the libraries of the orders of some of the gods an even primordials, yet later on out of fear an dread that if the scholar finds what he seeks or is fallowed the gods begin to send their own fallowers to stop them. I mean a mortal finding the actual truth of the war, may actually find a source of power, or items that the forces that had warred with the gods could use to restart the dawn war, or even just unmake things.
Wow AJ, this is some deep, deep lore my friend. While I can't roll much of this into my current campaign (except perhaps the weapons of mass destruction discarded to carceri), every other sentence seemed to provide motivation for entire campaigns, or at least short branches of larger arcs. I can't thank you enough. This could be used for years of content, or at the very least, some deep cut in game explatives from the particularly devout.
Absolutely fantastic research! A follower of the Chained God is to be featured in the first adventure of a campaign I'm running, which involves renewed hostilities between the Gods and Primordials. Your synopsis has given me a huge amount of material to work with. Eternal thanks!
I love D & D4 lore, mostly my favorite of all D&D. Dawn War is one of my favorite parts, apparently they are two sides, but in reality there are so many sub-factions and betrayals that it is almost Game of Thrones but with gods and primordials. In addition, Dawn War gives an explanation of why the universe is the way it is instead of just being that way. Which is an excellent detail. An excellent compilation.
Come to think of it, I might be making a sort of "Round 2" with my "apocalyptic prevention" campaign since the good gods of pretty much all pantheons will need to combine forces in order to stop the "no choice fusion" I'm trying to make with Tharizdur and Vecna at the forefront; there's also some Cthulu Mythos involved in said fusion.
This is the craziest story I've heard. The Gods and Eldridge Horrors, primormals all fighting and moving through space and time and dimensions and destroying entire worlds at a time in the conflict
only at 0:36 and already reached a simmilar level of happiness as when my first child was born.... note "almost".... but still .... dude.... it's close
your videos are amazing!! This one though is the one that made me become patreon. keep up with this amazing content, you should be proud of this incredible channel!
@@AJPickett Is there reason to think one is more "true" than the others? How many are there, anyway? All I know of are the Pact Primeval and Jazirian & Ahriman.
I have a suggestion for a video topic: positive and Negative energy planes, I find that the 5e DM guide, Monster Manual, and players handbook don’t explain it well enough for me to understand, I only understand you explode in positive energy plane and implode in the negative energy plane, but not what those planes ARE
That was incredible. I cant believe you kept track of so many disparate, moving parts like that lol insanity! But thoroughly fun to watch and listen to. Well done, man. Well done 👏👏👏 Now, more lore videos! 🤘🥳🤘 woot woot!
This is scholarship, a potent blend of Forgotten Realms history, lore, and mythology. Hesiod, Homer, Thucydides, Herodotus, Xenophon, Apollodorus, Ovid - AJ, in this presentation you approach their good eminence. No less than Calliope and Clio, daughters of Mnemosyne, sister muses of epic poetry and history, would champion such an edification, or offer its progenitor his due apotheosis. Expertly written and narrated, it subsumes its author's forebears - Greenwood, et al. - and, to humbly poach Dr. Johnson's apprehension of Paradise Lost, the work itself cannot be called the greatest recounting of the Draconic Pantheon, only because it is not the first. I for my part say it is a thing and many things - a hagiography and a poignant adoration, an explication of cerebral fiction and a divinely wrought mythos. And I say it is - like so much of what AJ gives his audience - a thing much closer to my heart than more common stock, which I find in old issues of Dragon Magazine, in Dungeons & Dragons sourcebooks, or deep within the marginalia and footnotes of the many fine and current Web resources. Thank you, AJ. We adore you for what you are - a scribe sublime.
An interesting site in the astral plane is a location called The Living Sea. After having been infused with the mental energies of the astral plane have granted this ocean an alien intelligence
Tharizdun the greatest insane con since the start of time. Sounds like the Gods and Primoridals have been going at it for a long while. Sounds like everyone has beef for a lot of reasons. The Halflings creator god blew them off. Gods of all types having to get into the Dawn War and throw down.
From what I understand of how gods work... If the dwarves had done *even less* worshipping of Moradin, he'd have become aware of their plight much sooner?
Oh man, am I happy to see this video. There is a fantastic but extremely dry document on Enworld covering the history of the Nentir Vale... And I have to read pages worth for at least two items per sentence. Im on page 30 (of 120+), and boy has it been,hard. And now after at least a month of going back and forth between sources and remembering a fraction each time I see this. I cant be happier! You rock man, and seriously this is such an amazing story its frankly worth sharing with non RPG enthusiasts. I'll be watching it repeatedly until I can get most of those names, races and events to instant recall.
Wait...it all began with the plan to make the lettuce of heaven...uh, I'm confused...I'm sure the salad is heavenly but I'm more of a meat and potatoes man myself. :D
So the Wolf-spider wasn't created by the queen of chaos, just corrupted. Which I guess boils down to the same thing for the obyrith. Nice that about the far realm making worship valuable to gods.
People like to shit on 4e but its additions to the general lore and cosmology were really neat. Yeah sure, its not specially FR and to some that might as well mean its trash fanfiction, but between the creatures and more and a few of the changes (namely making the Shadar-Kai former humans) were really cool. Making Monks a psionic class was a brilliant choice nobody appreciates, because im seemingly the only one who played 4e.
I played every edition as they came out, and I didn't jump ship to Pathfinder (I might have if my group was interested, but, we were fine with 3.0, 3.5, 4 and now 5), the defined roles in the party (and the monsters) was fun and easy to work out, the simple rules for Minions were excellent and the fact you could organise your special actions using cards? Brilliant.
Disclaimer this is aimed at WoTC not 4E. WoTC did throw out the baby with the bath water when the wrote 4E. They completely rewrote the lore of every world, wiping out whole established campaign settings. Killing off a lot of deities. FR went through it's 4th meltdown in the books.(why does TSR/WoTC feel the need to burn the world down every time a new edition comes out? That is so annoying.) Lots of people and gods died when the spellplauge happened. Greyhawk and Dragonlance disappeared. Forgotten Realms wasn't just made the default campaign setting, but the only campaign setting. All existing lore and origin stories where completely rewritten. For example Lolth's betrayal of Corellon didn't happen in the dawn war, but after a personal squabble between him and grumsh. This is how Grumsh lost his eye. Mechanic wise 4E was a complete rewrite. WoTC one of their exes verbally trashing 3.5 at Gen Con as part of the 4E roll out, shutting down of all support of 3.5. Removing all their. 3.5 free maps and pdfs from their site. Sending an army of lawyers after every site that supported 3.5 and for a while the it was not possible to legally purchase 3.5 pdfs. (If my information source is accurate) WOTC basically shit on 3.5 and its players. Every convention I go to im the only one running a 3.5 game. I'm constantly getting asked why I haven't moved on to 4E.. Pathfinder 5E Pathfinder 2. Games are supposed to be fun. 3.5 is my fun. If 4E is your fun go for it. No one should play a game they dont enjoy just because every else is into it. I dont enjoy 5E or 4E.
This video is great AJ, I study some lore too and found this story quite similar, you might find this interesting. TRANSLATION : D&D TO MESOPOTAMIAN Lattice of Heaven - Multicellular Cells Arathys - Queen of Orion Moradin - Anu? Corellin - Enlil? Obrynths - Phage Far Realm - Folded dimensions within atoms Lakal - Sophia Tharazdun - Enki The Abyss - Sophia's Disease Queen of Chaos - Phage Matriarch He Who Was - Marduk (imprisoned Tharazdun) Crystal Prison - Earth Godess's of the Quom - Namlu'u Rune of Stone Eternal into Spawning Stone - RNA to DNA Outsiders - Spirits stuck in 'between lives areas' Io - Engineer of Atoms (Owlzebra) Giants & Titans (Arathys) attack Dwarves (Moradin) Age of Strife - Time of conflict after infection leading to Dawn War (War in Heaven) ; approx 30m years Primordials - Common flora & fauna incarnations Archons - Created by Moradin to fight Arathys & Queen of Chaos Pantheon - DNA itteration of RNA multicellularity Carceri - Nibiru Athys - Tiamaat (old Earth) Aladrin - Old Empire / Deep State Lolth - Ishtar Azomdeus - Azazel Jinn - Cherubs The Seventy - Galactic Council of Worlds Portfolio of Gods - Soul (genome)
@@حَسن-م3ه9ظ I had watched the work of Wes Penre, he no longer makes videos. I think they knew each day is an entire lifetime, but we go to sleep and visit other worlds, so we do not live one lifetime but many throughout our life
I'd also like to se videos on the Great Artifacts. The Rod of Seven Parts, Orbs of Dragonkind, and so on. There where a bunch that I have no idea where they came from, or why they were created.
Excellent. Wouldn't it be wild if some future dystopia found all this lore as the most reasonable and appealing records of "ancient beliefs?" _this is just Western Hinduism, right?_
My understanding was that the shadowfell didn't exist at this point? Am I wrong in that? If I am, how does this align chronologically with the creation of the shadowfell
The Shadowfel was created very recently in DND lore. I think it was in 4e with the Spellplague that the Negative Energy Plane collapsed and then reformed into the Shadowfel.
@@kyleharrell4853 I had heard much the same, something about Shar binding the Shadow plane with the Negative Energy Plane. it may be AJ mis-spoke, or with all the creation and destruction of alternate multiverses, not to mention apparently conflicts warping time itself… what’s an extra Shadowfell or two? At least it’s not a Shadowdark.
Hehehe the closed captions keep talking about lettuce. Lol the plane of McKennas. Ooh it said letters one time, it’s fun to watch it take a whack at some of these names.
Dying to know your source material. I'm crafting a campaign around the princes of elemental *good*, seeking to balance their brethren & restore neutrality by claiming (adventurer) champions. Want to stay as close to canon as I can.
Love your stuff. I'm curious, what are some of the sources you used? Stuff like he who was, the forgotten sanctuary and the super weapons that were locked away. I knew quite a bit of the stuff mentioned but there was alot that I had not encountered before and would love to read up on it. But super great video. And idea on the dawn cataclysm?
Clearly Tharzun wasn't mad before grabbing the Shard, but was he Evil, or did the Shard cause that change also? It's not clear to me if he was. And what was his Sphere of Influence before hand?
True but production quality would be an issue, compare the books of ASOIAF to the GOT tv show. it's the whole reason why dune is being remade now. don't get me wrong, it was good, just nowhere near as good and as artistically fidel as it could've been.
great vid. lost a comment, but the theme was basically two chinese kungfu masters fighting in a china shop... not so successful in doing much damage to each other, but the china shop... well, is a metaphore for reality. each piece is a law of physics, or a concept of thought, or your intire planet... and you can't put a hand on either of them to so much as slow them down... fun times XD but this makes me think of a bunch of freed genies going up against a god in a plot... not to kill them, just to bind them in a light house or something permanently. forcably granting boons to the crews of ships all "do want fries with that." untill they escape, thoroughly maddened by the indignity and so decided to start an appocalpyse. *pictures an efreet & a dao using their vast wealth to by a genie lamp & sadistly rubbing it through magic to activate it alone in a hall of mirrors* which hmm now that i think on it, it links back... these vids are great inspiration, as always.
This seems to blend a lot of lore from different settings (or maybe those settings blend them). Like FR lore has Shar and Sune doing a bunch, and of course Erathis isn't a deity there, and Asmodeus is different than mentioned here. The beginning Tharzidun/Obyriths/Demons remains the same, and a lot of names remain the same. Erathis and Asmodeus makes this seem 4e specific. This makes no mention of say Dendar, Miska, or the primordial Ubtao betraying them and helping the Gods to end the war. Which may be just FR specific.
Correct! Dendar swallowing the sun of Toril is not, as far as I am aware, actually part of the Dawn War, as it happened during the Blue Age of Abeir-Toril. I do mention Miska the Wolf Spider, and yes, Untao was worth a mention, quite right.
Yeah for FR the Blue Age and the Shadow Epoch are part of the Dawn War. Dendar swallows the sun (ending the Blue Age and starting the Shadow Epoch), and the *end* of the Dawn War is partially signaled by the recreation of the sun after the Gods win, beginning the Days of Thunder. EDIT: To be clear on why it's part of the Dawn War. Dendar, a primordial, swallows the sun as it a favored creation of the god Selune. And also because he's a dick.
Because people more or less know about them. They are multi-spheric pantheons, meaning they are worshipped on multiple crystal spheres, but with differences here and there. In most places in Faerûn they are really not prevalent, so people just tend to ignore them.
What the dickens is the Green Path? I know the River Styx and Oceanus and the Color Pools in the Astral, but my internet searching brought nothing.... a Tree on the Great Wheel? Or...?
Wait, the over god fought a 1 on 1 fight and died? Also all the dragons joined the side of the primordial at first? No good/bad dragon differences? Finally what's with these super monsters imprisoned in Carceri? I've never seen super weapon monsters in any D&D books I encountered. I'd love to know what books any of this stuff is at to see info on all these Primordials and Gods. Also the first I've really heard jack on the planes of heaven let alone it being dropped on a primordial. I remember another story where Asmodeus was originally 1 of 2 who had a hand in creation of some sort fought and lost falling to the bottom of hell and it's original body feeding off the souls of non worshipers who arrive at the bottom or his haters who's souls have nowhere else to go. Need more info in what the Lattice was. Finally I recall reading somewhere that its believed some of the layers of the abyss are defeated realms by those alien beings that were dragged into and merged with the abyss so some of those unknown races from other worlds or what's become of them can be found in the abyss. While this says it's just layers somehow created by the shard burrowing?
I think your confusing the over God "Ao" with the original dragon God "Io" who was defeated and split into bahamut and tiamat. I do agree that the story of asmodeus being one of the creator entities now living in bator does contradict alot of what is said here but dnd lore is retconned and changed all the time. So choose which ever you prefer. As for the abyss I dont see why both the version you spoke of and the version presented in the video cant coexist. It was started by the shard and the realms you speak of could've been added after its initial creation.
@@thumbsup1214 asmodeus is actually a dragon who had no wings who lived before all was made along with another dragon who had wings thay both formed a circle by having the others tale in its mouth and when thay both pulled apart the winged dragon ahirmen flew up and lived in the heavens that where he stays and the other with no wings fell down all way to bottom of abyess right at bottom in what's known as the serpeants tail
I really appreciate the detail you add to all your videos. I do have a question. Which would you say is the true origin of Asmodeus? A) The Twin Serpents B) The Pact Primeval C) He-Who-Was ; or do you believe it to be an amalgam of all 3?
I noticed several things 1) kord ) dead worlds )no mention of Oeth still existing. Also 4E has 0 source material for Greyhawk. Did they use the dawn war as a means to kill off Orerth and Krynn?
Well, in his “Gord The Rogue” books, Gary Gygax destroyed the world of Greyhawk. That’s one ending for that world. Although I’m such a fan of old D&D any campaign I run is in Greyhawk.
Again great video's! i'm working with lifetime friend on a book which started about 18 years ago.. tho due both of our vivid ''imagination'' dreams and / of past life events.. this book.. has yet to be completed. as almost each day more knowledge info and lore, to this origins is added.. ( we would be about 5 books worth..however. there is so much... that we have not yet found a stable support to solidify this story.. in which we both connect. now i was so glad that you shared the name of: *The living Gate* sadly i was unable to quite get it.. and so my search into this further led to mostly mispelled attemps.. to find this name again.. as to it's Creation.. could you if there is enough to find regarding this. regarding the living Gate and all that dwells within in more depth details.....? again wonderful video! entertaining and educational! Thank you again for each of your video's !!!
2:08 so mortals could conceivably take their power that they're sending through worship to these so-called gods, pool it into something kind of like a mythallar, and share it? ha, reverse the polarity on the soulmonger so instead of feeding on soul energy it amplifies and reflects it I've been playing with the idea of a divine caster that pulls from within.
If you’re familiar with the Shaman class from Pathfinder 1st, they’re something of that sort. The spirits aren’t gods, but they aren’t primordial either. They’re a mental construct shared between the believers and powered by the power of the individual. It’s like a cleric of an ethos instead of a god.
How did Asmodeaus "seize" his lords divinity waaayyyyy back in the day, but other sources state he didnt become divine until he absorbed Azuth after Mystra died??? Also, how was Bane "known by another name", but as a mortal before he became divine(unless im missing something) he was known as Bane?? Geez, if i'm not mistaken about something theyre messing up their continuity worse than DC and Marvel (comics) before they do a reboot. Too many writers NOT paying attention to what came before(at least, that was DC and Marvels problem).
no, no, I am pretty sure Asmodeus is a big evil winged snake who had a brother good winged snake and they fought, but Asmodeus fell down into hell, now he is healing his wounds, also his true name is Ahriman.
@@dragonrenver Arihman didn't have any wings. That's why he fell........ But I have to go with what the fastidious Mr Pickett said, "it's all fiendish propaganda, don't believe a word of it." 😂🤣
Could it be possible to do a god of war move with a bbeg who seeks to destroy the gods and free all from godly intervention by teaming up with primordials to bring about a second dawn war?
@@AJPickett do you have any suggestions for who my bbeg should seek out and offer this deal to? What primordials or old ones should he seek to ally with?
@@kylerblack5189 Don't know if you're still seeking answers but I'd say Obyriths are definitely a potential Ally for this BBEG though I'd imagine they'd be scheming behind the back. Dendar is a very famous and important Primordial, as is Borem, Atropus the World Born Dead could be interesting as well. Telos is another somewhat well Known primordial.
Such great stuff! I did have a question for for anyone who might know... At what point during this time did Dendar swallow the Sun? And I've read that Ubtao, the Deciever was the Primordial who switched sides to the Divines, shifting the balance in favor of the gods. Is this incorrect?
That event marked the end of the Blue Age and the start of the Shadow Epoch on Toril after the sun was devoured by Dendar the Night Serpent. During this phase of the war, Ouroboros the World Serpent was the major force leading the armies of the gods. Many more battles took place during this epoch until finally, the primordial Ubtao turned against his kin and aided the gods in imprisoning many of his former allies. In the aftermath, the sun was recreated and the oceans thawed. The battle of Kord and the death of Sehil was the last of many battles (at one point Kord also fought Moradin and Gruumsh), it was a chaotic time, but the Deception of Ubtao was pivotal to the events that ended the Dawn War and began the Days of Thunder.
AJ Pickett That puts things into perspective! The Dawn War spanned for eons, including the Shadow Epoch! Thanks!
@@AJPickett Is there, like, a book on this stuff? The history? I'm trying to create the metaphysics / cosmology of my own world and having a bit of trouble.
i know it's kinda off topic but does anyone know of a good website to watch new series online?
@@AJPickett Wasn't Ouroboros the World Serpent made up of Asmodeus and Jazirian?
It's great that Juiblex is a hermit philosopher that ponders his own reason to be.
I goo, therefore I am.
Tharizdun's booger.
“WHAT THE FUCK AM I!”
It explains why such a potentially more powerful god isn’t as powerful as others. Juiblex has one of the largest population base as worshippers, but isn’t as powerful as gods with much smaller numbers of worshippers.
It makes you wonder if oozes, slimes, jellies and puddings have consciousness as well.
@almitrahopkins1873 that would be a crazy campaign. The main BBEG is Juiblex/stopping him being unleashed. The secondary BBEG is a Warlock of Juiblex who's goal is to gather necessary stuff & perform a ritual to give all slime/ooze etc consciousness & purpose of unleashing their God. The party would start of thinking dudes an idiot/loser for focusing on slimes etc but as the story progresses realize this is some insane stuff. They think "cool, that assoles dead. We're good." Then learn of his true plans success & have to try to stop one of the most powerful Demon Lords.
This is by *leagues* the best explanation of the Dawn War I've ever encountered. It really helped expand my admittedly murky understanding of these events. Thank you for putting this together.
Love me some Dawn War lore. Great work my guy.
I'm currently working on a full campaign outline that some of this might actually come in handy for.
*Sparknotes for the interested:*
Zehir never quite gave up on swiping Asgorath's seat and portfolio. Rather, he merely set it asside while new preparations were set in place. Eons later, Zehir has quietly begun to move, and the world is at risk of seeing the King of Terror rise once more. With the once unassailable Asgorath still weakened by the concessions of power and domain made in the creation of his children gods, and with Bahamut and Tiamat too busy quarreling to truly see the impending threat, it falls to a small band of mortals to uncover the Serpent God's plans and foil them once more.
This would make great background info, and scenery for a campaign in which a group of players are tasked with guarding a scholar/mage that is traveling the lands, and planes to shed light on the truth of creation thru research ages so far back they are myth an legend. At first the players might only battle the monsters that had made their lair in the areas some of the lore is located in, than maybe having to go into the libraries of the orders of some of the gods an even primordials, yet later on out of fear an dread that if the scholar finds what he seeks or is fallowed the gods begin to send their own fallowers to stop them. I mean a mortal finding the actual truth of the war, may actually find a source of power, or items that the forces that had warred with the gods could use to restart the dawn war, or even just unmake things.
You know a primordial was a bad ass when the solution was literally to drop heaven on it.
prryhic victory. "It couldn't stand under the weight of the heavens." XD
Fascinating stuff. Love the explanation of why genies are often found in bottles and lamps, ,etc.
"...it is gonna be some pretty nerdy stuff."
Sir, I specifically come to you for nerdy! *Pulls out popcorn, drink and notebook* Bring it on!
*puts on a wool sweater and horn-rim glasses, cracks knuckles and adjust pocket protector* lets do this.
Wow AJ, this is some deep, deep lore my friend. While I can't roll much of this into my current campaign (except perhaps the weapons of mass destruction discarded to carceri), every other sentence seemed to provide motivation for entire campaigns, or at least short branches of larger arcs. I can't thank you enough. This could be used for years of content, or at the very least, some deep cut in game explatives from the particularly devout.
The Dawn War is such an awesome piece of lore, and you did it the justice it deserves. Well done AJ!
Thanks Gambent :)
"Before me all things were none, save for things eternal and eternal I endure."
Asnodeus
Oooo, good quote!
Absolutely fantastic research! A follower of the Chained God is to be featured in the first adventure of a campaign I'm running, which involves renewed hostilities between the Gods and Primordials. Your synopsis has given me a huge amount of material to work with. Eternal thanks!
Did anyone else want a visual timeline and character list for this too or am I the only one?
I think it'd be cool, but due to time travel, the universal timeline is probably different from the timelines from the gods and primordials.
A visual timeline would need to be 3D, and probably look like a plate of spaghetti
In the long run the time line doesn't matter. Because the Dawn War was fought in the past, future, and present. It can be anything the DM wants to be.
I love D & D4 lore, mostly my favorite of all D&D. Dawn War is one of my favorite parts, apparently they are two sides, but in reality there are so many sub-factions and betrayals that it is almost Game of Thrones but with gods and primordials.
In addition, Dawn War gives an explanation of why the universe is the way it is instead of just being that way. Which is an excellent detail.
An excellent compilation.
Bahamut: *Leaps from Ao’s corpse.*
Bahamut: *Looks at Ao’s corpse.*
Bahamut: ”How did *that* happen?”
Ao is the overgod, Io(Asgorath) is the one you are mentioning,
@@ImperialCoffee769 Asgorath is also a overgod
@@lorekeeper685 really? I probably start going into dnd lore again
@@ImperialCoffee769 ay-oh! i-oh!
WOLOLO!!!! 🤣🧙♂️
JK, but yes, you are correct sir. :)
@@حَسن-م3ه9ظ that's weird.
Super informative. I'm so glad I now have a place to send anyone who asks me "what was the Dawn War?"
I used to debate myself on which video of yours I like the best. Then I was reminded of this one when it showed up in my recommended.
This is one of those videos that I have to watch multiple times to wrap my head around all the dense backstory.
I’m considering becoming a patron just to understand how the hell you know and say this stuff. Like this video was something else
Come to think of it, I might be making a sort of "Round 2" with my "apocalyptic prevention" campaign since the good gods of pretty much all pantheons will need to combine forces in order to stop the "no choice fusion" I'm trying to make with Tharizdur and Vecna at the forefront; there's also some Cthulu Mythos involved in said fusion.
Im really happy for your success! Good luck in your future endeavors!
Love lore dumps. Bless you, Mr. Pickett, haha. - gets some tea -
Thanks, I think I will get some sleep :)
This is the craziest story I've heard. The Gods and Eldridge Horrors, primormals all fighting and moving through space and time and dimensions and destroying entire worlds at a time in the conflict
Imagine a campain set in this.
Wawowewa! That's a lotta lore! Great job AJ!
Lore about the Great Old Ones? :D
only at 0:36 and already reached a simmilar level of happiness as when my first child was born.... note "almost".... but still
.... dude.... it's close
I'd prefer a "noon" war but i'm just lazy i guess! Good vid kiwi!
Known as the God, Bane.
"Ahh, you think darkness is your Ally.."
I think I'll rewatch this when I am more knowledgeable about d&d.
Sir as always another epicly informative entertaining video keep up the good work!👍
I will stay awhile and listen! Diablo 1 town music playing in my head while I hear this.
"from the dawn of time we come, walking down through the centuries"
great story. also shows a number of gods may have might without active worship.
I always love relistening to these videos, I learn something new every time!
an epic story told in an epic fashion thx
your videos are amazing!! This one though is the one that made me become patreon. keep up with this amazing content, you should be proud of this incredible channel!
I can't keep up with this one. It feels like the end of a long series without a known starting point.
There are some vids that need to be watched before diving into this one. Call it an advanced lecture on D&D lore.
Asmodeus is the foremost servant of he who was. Props to the deity/devil that has the longest portfolio in dnd lol my mans is literally everywhere
There are multiple true origins of Asmodeus.
@@AJPickett Is there reason to think one is more "true" than the others? How many are there, anyway? All I know of are the Pact Primeval and Jazirian & Ahriman.
'The shard corrupted many beings'
Starting with my mate Damo, all his teeth fell out and he tried to fight a cop :(
oh noooo
I kove just listening to this from time to time to remind myself of the complexity of this
I was playing Diablo while listening to this so the intro was great
Imix was destroyed?? Well don't tell that to Vanifer
that was one hell of an epic video.................mind blown
Some of your best work to date AJ.
Thanks Danny
If Middle Earths War of Wrath, and Diablo's Sin War weren't Epic enough for you, here is the Dawn War.
I have a suggestion for a video topic: positive and Negative energy planes, I find that the 5e DM guide, Monster Manual, and players handbook don’t explain it well enough for me to understand, I only understand you explode in positive energy plane and implode in the negative energy plane, but not what those planes ARE
That was incredible. I cant believe you kept track of so many disparate, moving parts like that lol insanity! But thoroughly fun to watch and listen to. Well done, man. Well done 👏👏👏
Now, more lore videos! 🤘🥳🤘 woot woot!
Thanks :)
This is scholarship, a potent blend of Forgotten Realms history, lore, and mythology. Hesiod, Homer, Thucydides, Herodotus, Xenophon, Apollodorus, Ovid - AJ, in this presentation you approach their good eminence. No less than Calliope and Clio, daughters of Mnemosyne, sister muses of epic poetry and history, would champion such an edification, or offer its progenitor his due apotheosis.
Expertly written and narrated, it subsumes its author's forebears - Greenwood, et al. - and, to humbly poach Dr. Johnson's apprehension of Paradise Lost, the work itself cannot be called the greatest recounting of the Draconic Pantheon, only because it is not the first.
I for my part say it is a thing and many things - a hagiography and a poignant adoration, an explication of cerebral fiction and a divinely wrought mythos. And I say it is - like so much of what AJ gives his audience - a thing much closer to my heart than more common stock, which I find in old issues of Dragon Magazine, in Dungeons & Dragons sourcebooks, or deep within the marginalia and footnotes of the many fine and current Web resources.
Thank you, AJ. We adore you for what you are - a scribe sublime.
*bows* Thank you
A great one shot/campaign would to have another realm connect to the remains of the lattice
An interesting site in the astral plane is a location called The Living Sea. After having been infused with the mental energies of the astral plane have granted this ocean an alien intelligence
Tharizdun the greatest insane con since the start of time. Sounds like the Gods and Primoridals have been going at it for a long while. Sounds like everyone has beef for a lot of reasons. The Halflings creator god blew them off. Gods of all types having to get into the Dawn War and throw down.
From what I understand of how gods work...
If the dwarves had done *even less* worshipping of Moradin, he'd have become aware of their plight much sooner?
Oh man, am I happy to see this video. There is a fantastic but extremely dry document on Enworld covering the history of the Nentir Vale... And I have to read pages worth for at least two items per sentence.
Im on page 30 (of 120+), and boy has it been,hard. And now after at least a month of going back and forth between sources and remembering a fraction each time I see this.
I cant be happier! You rock man, and seriously this is such an amazing story its frankly worth sharing with non RPG enthusiasts.
I'll be watching it repeatedly until I can get most of those names, races and events to instant recall.
All this fuss over a heavenly lettuce... Selune must really love BLTs.
Full animation of lore would be amazing 👍 great job as always for the in depth info on d@d lore.
Excellent thank you this one was exceptionally good.
Wait...it all began with the plan to make the lettuce of heaven...uh, I'm confused...I'm sure the salad is heavenly but I'm more of a meat and potatoes man myself. :D
Dawn war AKA ultimate shit hitting the fan and shit storm.
So dense in lore thank you so much!!
So the Wolf-spider wasn't created by the queen of chaos, just corrupted. Which I guess boils down to the same thing for the obyrith. Nice that about the far realm making worship valuable to gods.
People like to shit on 4e but its additions to the general lore and cosmology were really neat. Yeah sure, its not specially FR and to some that might as well mean its trash fanfiction, but between the creatures and more and a few of the changes (namely making the Shadar-Kai former humans) were really cool. Making Monks a psionic class was a brilliant choice nobody appreciates, because im seemingly the only one who played 4e.
I played every edition as they came out, and I didn't jump ship to Pathfinder (I might have if my group was interested, but, we were fine with 3.0, 3.5, 4 and now 5), the defined roles in the party (and the monsters) was fun and easy to work out, the simple rules for Minions were excellent and the fact you could organise your special actions using cards? Brilliant.
AJ Pickett
So *THATS* how you became a brilliant D&D Encyclopedia Cosmica...
Do this for four years, you will be just like me :)
I personally love 4e, but I know we are a small group.
Disclaimer this is aimed at WoTC not 4E. WoTC did throw out the baby with the bath water when the wrote 4E. They completely rewrote the lore of every world, wiping out whole established campaign settings. Killing off a lot of deities. FR went through it's 4th meltdown in the books.(why does TSR/WoTC feel the need to burn the world down every time a new edition comes out? That is so annoying.) Lots of people and gods died when the spellplauge happened. Greyhawk and Dragonlance disappeared. Forgotten Realms wasn't just made the default campaign setting, but the only campaign setting. All existing lore and origin stories where completely rewritten. For example Lolth's betrayal of Corellon didn't happen in the dawn war, but after a personal squabble between him and grumsh. This is how Grumsh lost his eye. Mechanic wise 4E was a complete rewrite. WoTC one of their exes verbally trashing 3.5 at Gen Con as part of the 4E roll out, shutting down of all support of 3.5. Removing all their. 3.5 free maps and pdfs from their site. Sending an army of lawyers after every site that supported 3.5 and for a while the it was not possible to legally purchase 3.5 pdfs. (If my information source is accurate) WOTC basically shit on 3.5 and its players. Every convention I go to im the only one running a 3.5 game. I'm constantly getting asked why I haven't moved on to 4E.. Pathfinder 5E Pathfinder 2.
Games are supposed to be fun. 3.5 is my fun. If 4E is your fun go for it. No one should play a game they dont enjoy just because every else is into it. I dont enjoy 5E or 4E.
So many khornate daemons lol. Great video AJ
Matthew Merrell This video offends Slaanesh!
Mr L 👍
Blood for the Blood God!
This video is great AJ, I study some lore too and found this story quite similar, you might find this interesting.
TRANSLATION : D&D TO MESOPOTAMIAN
Lattice of Heaven - Multicellular Cells
Arathys - Queen of Orion
Moradin - Anu?
Corellin - Enlil?
Obrynths - Phage
Far Realm - Folded dimensions within atoms
Lakal - Sophia
Tharazdun - Enki
The Abyss - Sophia's Disease
Queen of Chaos - Phage Matriarch
He Who Was - Marduk (imprisoned Tharazdun)
Crystal Prison - Earth
Godess's of the Quom - Namlu'u
Rune of Stone Eternal into Spawning Stone - RNA to DNA
Outsiders - Spirits stuck in 'between lives areas'
Io - Engineer of Atoms (Owlzebra)
Giants & Titans (Arathys) attack Dwarves (Moradin)
Age of Strife - Time of conflict after infection leading to Dawn War (War in Heaven) ; approx 30m years
Primordials - Common flora & fauna incarnations
Archons - Created by Moradin to fight Arathys & Queen of Chaos
Pantheon - DNA itteration of RNA multicellularity
Carceri - Nibiru
Athys - Tiamaat (old Earth)
Aladrin - Old Empire / Deep State
Lolth - Ishtar
Azomdeus - Azazel
Jinn - Cherubs
The Seventy - Galactic Council of Worlds
Portfolio of Gods - Soul (genome)
@@حَسن-م3ه9ظ I had watched the work of Wes Penre, he no longer makes videos. I think they knew each day is an entire lifetime, but we go to sleep and visit other worlds, so we do not live one lifetime but many throughout our life
I'd also like to se videos on the Great Artifacts. The Rod of Seven Parts, Orbs of Dragonkind, and so on. There where a bunch that I have no idea where they came from, or why they were created.
Done and Done :)
I like all the horodric art scattered in the video. Seems to fit for some reason
I know right? Decard is my Spirit animal.
have you heard the Deckard Cain rap? you might get a kick out of it if you haven't already ruclips.net/video/7HfmB4r2Fco/видео.html
This is a BIG subject! Thank you
Thanks AJ i was going to sleep, better put the kettle on.
Excellent. Wouldn't it be wild if some future dystopia found all this lore as the most reasonable and appealing records of "ancient beliefs?"
_this is just Western Hinduism, right?_
The mighty nein is going through sone theresdune stuff right now, i couldnt find anything on him until i found this video.
Check some of my recent videos (Astral Dreadnought in particular) for more Tharizdun info.
@@AJPickett actually i found your therizdun and astral dreadnaught right after this...probably had to do with spelling!
This video will be used for my Necromancer AL character as he discovers secrets of a Land of undead sealed away in Deaths Reach🤔☠️💯
Woooo! Good luck.
Thanks for the Io drop this actually helps with the Io lore me and my dm have been working on
The chained God did nothing wrong he was right in the long run and the over God can do nothing about it all hail the Elder Elemental eye
My understanding was that the shadowfell didn't exist at this point? Am I wrong in that?
If I am, how does this align chronologically with the creation of the shadowfell
The Shadowfel was created very recently in DND lore. I think it was in 4e with the Spellplague that the Negative Energy Plane collapsed and then reformed into the Shadowfel.
@@kyleharrell4853 I had heard much the same, something about Shar binding the Shadow plane with the Negative Energy Plane.
it may be AJ mis-spoke, or with all the creation and destruction of alternate multiverses, not to mention apparently conflicts warping time itself… what’s an extra Shadowfell or two? At least it’s not a Shadowdark.
Hehehe the closed captions keep talking about lettuce. Lol the plane of McKennas. Ooh it said letters one time, it’s fun to watch it take a whack at some of these names.
You should see it trying to comprehend a Newfoundland accent. I can see the AI having a stroke.
Dying to know your source material. I'm crafting a campaign around the princes of elemental *good*, seeking to balance their brethren & restore neutrality by claiming (adventurer) champions. Want to stay as close to canon as I can.
Love your stuff. I'm curious, what are some of the sources you used? Stuff like he who was, the forgotten sanctuary and the super weapons that were locked away. I knew quite a bit of the stuff mentioned but there was alot that I had not encountered before and would love to read up on it. But super great video. And idea on the dawn cataclysm?
Can we get some stats and a picture of Miska the wolf spider
I've got an idea for my next D&D campaign!
Love these videos. It's hard to keep track of everything though. Any chance you could make a video specifically focusing on the primordials?
Clearly Tharzun wasn't mad before grabbing the Shard, but was he Evil, or did the Shard cause that change also? It's not clear to me if he was. And what was his Sphere of Influence before hand?
Oh he was evil already for sure.
3:28 this is the pic u flashed a few times (noticable to most) in the pale night video
The primordial crushed under celestia, where did you find that info? Trying to find it myself
Someone should make the Dawn War into a TV show ;] Game of Thrones has nothing on this.
True but production quality would be an issue, compare the books of ASOIAF to the GOT tv show. it's the whole reason why dune is being remade now. don't get me wrong, it was good, just nowhere near as good and as artistically fidel as it could've been.
great vid. lost a comment, but the theme was basically two chinese kungfu masters fighting in a china shop... not so successful in doing much damage to each other, but the china shop... well, is a metaphore for reality. each piece is a law of physics, or a concept of thought, or your intire planet... and you can't put a hand on either of them to so much as slow them down... fun times XD but this makes me think of a bunch of freed genies going up against a god in a plot... not to kill them, just to bind them in a light house or something permanently. forcably granting boons to the crews of ships all "do want fries with that." untill they escape, thoroughly maddened by the indignity and so decided to start an appocalpyse. *pictures an efreet & a dao using their vast wealth to by a genie lamp & sadistly rubbing it through magic to activate it alone in a hall of mirrors* which hmm now that i think on it, it links back... these vids are great inspiration, as always.
This seems to blend a lot of lore from different settings (or maybe those settings blend them). Like FR lore has Shar and Sune doing a bunch, and of course Erathis isn't a deity there, and Asmodeus is different than mentioned here. The beginning Tharzidun/Obyriths/Demons remains the same, and a lot of names remain the same. Erathis and Asmodeus makes this seem 4e specific.
This makes no mention of say Dendar, Miska, or the primordial Ubtao betraying them and helping the Gods to end the war. Which may be just FR specific.
Correct! Dendar swallowing the sun of Toril is not, as far as I am aware, actually part of the Dawn War, as it happened during the Blue Age of Abeir-Toril. I do mention Miska the Wolf Spider, and yes, Untao was worth a mention, quite right.
Yeah for FR the Blue Age and the Shadow Epoch are part of the Dawn War. Dendar swallows the sun (ending the Blue Age and starting the Shadow Epoch), and the *end* of the Dawn War is partially signaled by the recreation of the sun after the Gods win, beginning the Days of Thunder.
EDIT: To be clear on why it's part of the Dawn War. Dendar, a primordial, swallows the sun as it a favored creation of the god Selune. And also because he's a dick.
Personification of all dicks in the multiverse.
Brother like I said I love your vids!
Wait! So the Greek, Egyptian and Norse gods are in D&D?
If so then how come no one makes a vid on any of them!
Because people more or less know about them. They are multi-spheric pantheons, meaning they are worshipped on multiple crystal spheres, but with differences here and there.
In most places in Faerûn they are really not prevalent, so people just tend to ignore them.
@@MythosTheSophist thanks for the reply!
What the dickens is the Green Path? I know the River Styx and Oceanus and the Color Pools in the Astral, but my internet searching brought nothing.... a Tree on the Great Wheel? Or...?
The elven fey path connection
@@AJPickett Ah thank you!
@@AJPickett I keep running into walls finding these Green Path Fey Connections. Where do they go and from? (I love your content, syk!)
Wait, the over god fought a 1 on 1 fight and died?
Also all the dragons joined the side of the primordial at first? No good/bad dragon differences?
Finally what's with these super monsters imprisoned in Carceri? I've never seen super weapon monsters in any D&D books I encountered.
I'd love to know what books any of this stuff is at to see info on all these Primordials and Gods. Also the first I've really heard jack on the planes of heaven let alone it being dropped on a primordial.
I remember another story where Asmodeus was originally 1 of 2 who had a hand in creation of some sort fought and lost falling to the bottom of hell and it's original body feeding off the souls of non worshipers who arrive at the bottom or his haters who's souls have nowhere else to go.
Need more info in what the Lattice was.
Finally I recall reading somewhere that its believed some of the layers of the abyss are defeated realms by those alien beings that were dragged into and merged with the abyss so some of those unknown races from other worlds or what's become of them can be found in the abyss.
While this says it's just layers somehow created by the shard burrowing?
I think your confusing the over God "Ao" with the original dragon God "Io" who was defeated and split into bahamut and tiamat.
I do agree that the story of asmodeus being one of the creator entities now living in bator does contradict alot of what is said here but dnd lore is retconned and changed all the time. So choose which ever you prefer.
As for the abyss I dont see why both the version you spoke of and the version presented in the video cant coexist. It was started by the shard and the realms you speak of could've been added after its initial creation.
@@thumbsup1214 asmodeus is actually a dragon who had no wings who lived before all was made along with another dragon who had wings thay both formed a circle by having the others tale in its mouth and when thay both pulled apart the winged dragon ahirmen flew up and lived in the heavens that where he stays and the other with no wings fell down all way to bottom of abyess right at bottom in what's known as the serpeants tail
Will you be doing anything on the Elemental gods of Faerun or the Princes of Elemental Good?
If Imix was destroyed, then why is he in Princes of the Apocalypse?
Because he was secretly a marvel super hero all along?.... I don't know :)
Wow, this is amazing! However, it is so convoluted and complicated do you have a timeline or references to help understand all this?
THANK YOU
I really appreciate the detail you add to all your videos. I do have a question. Which would you say is the true origin of Asmodeus? A) The Twin Serpents B) The Pact Primeval C) He-Who-Was ; or do you believe it to be an amalgam of all 3?
Unknown. He could be a primordial or Spell weaver for all we know.
This is a tough video to follow
I noticed several things
1) kord ) dead worlds )no mention of Oeth still existing. Also 4E has 0 source material for Greyhawk. Did they use the dawn war as a means to kill off Orerth and Krynn?
I don't think so. Since 4e did have Living GreyHawk events. so the GreyHawk setting is still likely a thing in 4th. they just never used it.
@@flameknightdragon it really burned me how 4E defaulted so completely to FR as if the other realms didn't even exist.
@@NessaEllenesse 4e's base setting was a new one not FR. 5e has made FR the base setting and in 3ed greyhawk was the default setting
Well, in his “Gord The Rogue” books, Gary Gygax destroyed the world of Greyhawk. That’s one ending for that world. Although I’m such a fan of old D&D any campaign I run is in Greyhawk.
Again great video's! i'm working with lifetime friend on a book which started about 18 years ago.. tho due both of our vivid ''imagination'' dreams and / of past life events.. this book.. has yet to be completed. as almost each day more knowledge info and lore, to this origins is added.. ( we would be about 5 books worth..however. there is so much... that we have not yet found a stable support to solidify this story.. in which we both connect. now i was so glad that you shared the name of: *The living Gate*
sadly i was unable to quite get it.. and so my search into this further led to mostly mispelled attemps.. to find this name again..
as to it's Creation.. could you if there is enough to find regarding this. regarding the living Gate and all that dwells within in more depth details.....?
again wonderful video! entertaining and educational!
Thank you again for each of your video's !!!
2:08 so mortals could conceivably take their power that they're sending through worship to these so-called gods, pool it into something kind of like a mythallar, and share it? ha, reverse the polarity on the soulmonger so instead of feeding on soul energy it amplifies and reflects it
I've been playing with the idea of a divine caster that pulls from within.
If you’re familiar with the Shaman class from Pathfinder 1st, they’re something of that sort. The spirits aren’t gods, but they aren’t primordial either. They’re a mental construct shared between the believers and powered by the power of the individual. It’s like a cleric of an ethos instead of a god.
How did Asmodeaus "seize" his lords divinity waaayyyyy back in the day, but other sources state he didnt become divine until he absorbed Azuth after Mystra died???
Also, how was Bane "known by another name", but as a mortal before he became divine(unless im missing something) he was known as Bane??
Geez, if i'm not mistaken about something theyre messing up their continuity worse than DC and Marvel (comics) before they do a reboot.
Too many writers NOT paying attention to what came before(at least, that was DC and Marvels problem).
Its all fiendish spin and propaganda man, don't believe a word of it.
@@AJPickett Lol...... sounds about like the politics here in the states.
Right and left. 🤣😁
no, no, I am pretty sure Asmodeus is a big evil winged snake who had a brother good winged snake and they fought, but Asmodeus fell down into hell, now he is healing his wounds, also his true name is Ahriman.
@@archam777 Agreed, can't trust Professional Politicians of either political group. Both are making a mess of the country.
@@dragonrenver Arihman didn't have any wings.
That's why he fell........ But I have to go with what the fastidious Mr Pickett said, "it's all fiendish propaganda, don't believe a word of it." 😂🤣
Could it be possible to do a god of war move with a bbeg who seeks to destroy the gods and free all from godly intervention by teaming up with primordials to bring about a second dawn war?
Sure, DM that campaign!
@@AJPickett do you have any suggestions for who my bbeg should seek out and offer this deal to? What primordials or old ones should he seek to ally with?
@@kylerblack5189 Don't know if you're still seeking answers but I'd say Obyriths are definitely a potential Ally for this BBEG though I'd imagine they'd be scheming behind the back.
Dendar is a very famous and important Primordial, as is Borem, Atropus the World Born Dead could be interesting as well. Telos is another somewhat well Known primordial.
@@gamercore5216 thank you very much! I’ll definitely look into these!
@@kylerblack5189 A bit late, but...
Tharizdun.