Eilservs

Greyhawk Organization

Eilservs
Rune of House Eilservs, Drow of the Underdark, TSR, 1991
Alignment:	Chaotic Evil
Type:	Noble house
Leader:	Eclavdra
Members:	Drow
Symbol:	Bronze or copper staff
Headquarters:	Ghetto of the Dead

House Eilservs, in 592 CY, is ranked seventh among the noble houses of Erelhei-Cinlu.

Headquarters

Eilservs controls the Ghetto of the Dead in the city proper, although they have their own estates across the Pitchy Flow.

History

House Eilservs is ranked first among the houses in 576 CY. Having long believed that the Vault of the Drow needed a single queen to rule it, the ruler of the house, Eclavdra, believes she is best suited to become that queen. The High Priestess of Lolth, Matron Charinida, disagrees, believing the presence of a queen will undermine her own position as the ultimate arbiter of disputes and actions of the dark elves. Charinida therefore supports the other houses in denying Eclavdra's claim. In response, Eclavdra renounces Lolth and takes up the worship of the Elder Elemental God, allying House Eilservs with House Tormtor in defying the other families. There is not, at first, a war in the Vault of the Drow, but Eclavdra's actions cause a cold war of sorts filled with simmering hatred. Eclavdra's plot to establish a puppet kingdom on the surface of the world ruled in the name of the Elder Elemental Eye is thwarted and House Eilservs is forced to retrench. Adventurers from the surface world follow Eclavdra's trail back to Erelhei-Cinlu and assaults not only the Eilservs Estates but the Fane of Lolth itself. With nobles of the house held hostage and the wealth and pride of the house shattered, Eilservs falls victim to its rivals and is driven from the city. Many flee to the lesser drow city of Angrimm, which is subsequently overrun by the true ghouls of the White Kingdom. Eclavdra herself disappears, and many assume her to be dead, though it seems she becomes a servant of Graz'zt for a time.

In the Eilservs' absence, its ally House Tormtor starts a war with the other houses, announcing it has renounced Lolth once again in favor of the newly militant goddess Kiaransalee. The civil war spreads death and violence throughout the Vault of the Drow, and only ends when Eclavdra reappears, having reembraced the faith of Lolth. Eclavdra somehow convinces Lolth to intervene directly to end the war and, at the end, House Eilservs is reinstated in its old position, though it is reduced to the status of seventh among the eight houses. Eclavdra is made Lolth's ambassador to Iuz, though she is Graz'zt's ambassador simultaneously, with both demon lords fully aware of her status as a double agent.

In 592 CY, Eclavdra returns to her position as head of House Eilservs, having betrayed Graz'zt as part of her bargain with Lolth. It is then that Eclavdra begins her plan to challenge Matron Charinida for leadership of the Great Fane of Lolth, the highest position a priestess of Lolth can hold on Oerth. Charinida had ruled for over two centuries, but her position has been weakened when she takes sides during the civil war, a decision that only prolongs the war and diminishes her authority. Eclavdra strikes swiftly and, by 597 CY. she succeedes in her gambit.

Fourth edition

In the fourth edition sourcebook Underdark (Jan 2010), Eclavdra recently died of apparent poisoning, and it is rumored she dwells in the Ghetto of the Dead in a state similar to a lich. Underdark notes that the youthful matron Na' Dhaunxutal replaced her as ruler of House Eilservs. However, Monster Manual 3 (June 2010), published the same year but after Underdark, contains Eclavdra's full game statistics, and presents Eclavdra as living, and as a powerful leader and servant of Lolth. However, this is most likely a result of simultaneous development of the projects and the publisher's release schedule, rather than indicating timeline events.

References

Bibliography

• Baur, Wolfgang. "Kingdom of the Ghouls" Dungeon #70. Renton, WA: TSR, 1998.
• Cook, Monte. Dead Gods. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 1997.
• Gygax, Gary. Descent into the Depths of the Earth. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1978.

———. Vault of the Drow. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1978.

• Gygax, Gary, David C. Sutherland III, David Cook, and Jeff Grubb. Queen of the Spiders. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1986.
• Heinsoo, Rob, and Andy Collins. Underdark. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2010.
• Marmell, Ari, Anthony Pryor, Robert J. Schwalb, and Greg A. Vaughan. Drow of the Underdark. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2007.
• Mearls, Mike, Greg Bilsland, and Robert J. Schwalb. Monster Manual 3. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2010.
• Weining, Frederick. "The Vault of the Drow." Dragon #298. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, 2002.

  Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic	Type	Description	Product	Page/Card/Image
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Artifact of Evil	93
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Artifact of Evil	93
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	LT2 Crypt of Lyzandred the Mad	33
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	D1 Descent into the Depths of the Earth	9
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	D1-2 Descent into the Depths of the Earth	10
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	D3 Vault of the Drow (adventure)	12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Dead Gods	75, 78, 80, 82, 83
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Dragon magazine #298	74, 76, 84, 86
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Dungeon magazine #070	49
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	GDQ1-7 Queen of the Spiders	4, 44, 48, 52, 76, 80, 81, 83, 85, 86, 87, 92, 120
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, D&D 3.0e	126
Eilserv (House of Drow)	People Group	Clan,	Sea of Death	85, 235, 237
Feeniar Eilservs	Non-player character	drider, [C7],	Dungeon magazine #070	53, 54