I have questions that there probably aren't any actual answer for, but I figure that if the answers can be discerned at all my best chance is with Canonfire.
How old is Iggwilv in CY 460 when she first appears in the Perrenlands? Her physical description seems to vary so much (crone, blonde maiden, dark haired demon seductress, etc.) that I can't draw a fair conclusion. I get that she is suppose to be Baklunish due to her history with Ket. Is that fairly accurate? Is it possible that she ever had "true" feelings for Graz'zt or is that simply romantic swill?
I am intending on running a time travel adventure where my PCs encounter her before her rise to power. What's your take on her before her rise to infamy. I'm figuring on using her blonde maiden form for a romantic interlude with a PC who loves romantic challenges. Kinda like Annican Skywalker before Darth. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I recall reading an article about Lerrek (now a lich in the Vesve I think) also dealing with the birth of Drelzna. If anybody can point you in that direction, it will help.
What first attracted you to the collossally powerful Abyssal prince Graz'zt, Ms Iggwilv?
She may have desired him for his power and charisma, but genuine love does sound like romantic pig feed.
I can't recall if there's a canon bio of Iggwilv that includes her place of birth or history before she conquered Perrenland. Presumably she must have been young and innocent at some time - but I don't really see her as being a female Anakin. To wildly speculate about her upbringing - I suspect she learnt her evil early on - she was either brought up bad or experienced a lot of bad stuff that made her that way or perhaps was just selfish and greedy for power from the get go.
In Living Greyhawk Gazetteer there are only a few references to her...
Ket
"...Through most of the fifth century CY, Ket was at peace with her neighbors, though border disputes with Bissel and skirmishing with the Paynims was not uncommon. The rising power of the archmage Iggwilv in the region caused the mullahs great concern, and the Ketites forged an alliance with the mountain dwarves of the lower Yatils in an effort to restrain her influence. The alliance proved successful, and even after Iggwilv’s demise there was considerable goodwill between the dwarves and the peoples of Ket...."
Perrenland
"...Perrenland was threatened by a force of overwhelming evil, in the person of the Archmage Iggwilv and her armies of evil humanoids. Attacking from her base in the legendary “Lost Caverns” in the Yatils in 480 CY, Iggwilv enslaved Perrenland from 481–491 CY. Its citizens were subjected to violence and robbery; the nation was looted, and ships on Lake Quag sunk at will. Minions of the witch probed into nomad lands as well, finding some allies but even more foes. In the canton of Clatspurgen, the monastery-fortress of St. Cuthbert in Kershane Pass was the center of opposition to Iggwilv, holding the great valley through which the Velverdyva leaves the realm.
At last, a great demon prince that Iggwilv had sought to control escaped confinement, and the witch was brought low. Her armies fell into disorder, and Perrenland threw off their yoke and destroyed the nonhuman legions. Even to this day, certain valleys in the southern cantons retain an evil tinge from the brief years of Iggwilv’s reign, as their residents assisted with Iggwilv’s directives. The nation recovered from this war and a two-year famine that followed, but it has retained a deep fear of Iggwilv. The knowledge that the demonic empire-builder Iuz is Iggwilv’s son has haunted the sleep of many Perrenders, and recent rumors that Iggwilv has returned to Oerth have sparked public panic..."
I'd search these forums (above left). I recall some discussions about her being related to Baba Yaga.
Off-topic:
I'm Russian, and know Baba Yaga ( in Russian it means "Grandma Yaga" in the infant fairy tales) from early childhood. By my opinion she is not a good person for D&D, it's the same as to make Santa Claus ruler of Verbobonc.
I think there is a lot of stuff like that in D&D. If it is offensive or just cannot be reconciled, it should be ignored in personal campaigns.
Way too many sacred spirits have been diminished and/or named evil by subsequent generations that follow a different faith, only to be dropped almost hap hazardously into the game . Dispater, the devil, was once a pagan, God (Dis) the Father (Pater). Goblins, leprechauns and many other trace their roots to gods.
Santa Clause too (yes, Virginia). I would not want him in my campaign, unless partially disguised, and certainly not evil, even if it were canon and can be supported by “historical” evidence, such as this http://www.av1611.org/othpubls/santa.html
FWIW, for purposes of my 175 CY campaign, I decided that Iggwilv hadn't been born yet: I didn't want her to be an ancient, immortal-ish figure in GH who had been around for centuries and/or millennia and who knew all of the secret movers and shakers (a la Elminster and other such figures from the Realms).
edit: there's also some recent additions to Iggwilv's background from Gary Holian's article in Dragon (?), and from the Dungeon adventure "Fiend's Embrace" although I don't recall if either dealt with her birth, offhand. _________________ Allan Grohe (grodog@gmail.com)
http://www.greyhawkonline.com/grodog/greyhawk.html
Thanks for the responses. I really appreciate them all.
Here's my take on things for my campaign brewed to the taste of my PCs:
A magical accident sends our heroes to the past (about 400 CY). Amongst their number is s dashing and charming lathario. He is less focused upon the crisis of returning home but has instead become infatuated with a young blonde maiden of wealthy origins. She hails from a lesser noble merchants family of Bissel currently residing in Ket.
She has been apprenticed to a resourceful female mage that specializes in merchantile world (money, information, connections, rare items, etc.). The mage is formerly of Greyhawk and a former apprentice of Zagig. She fled Greyhawk after acquiring a banned arcane text from Zagig's Castle (it eventually falls into Iggwilv's hands -- I wonder what it is?).
The girl who becomes Iggwilv (name pending and suggestions welcome) learns well and, as expected, is in the process of surpassing her mentor in skills and charm. At the time our hero meets up with her, Iggwilv's heart isn't quite so black.
How will the Hero react to the discovery of who she is? Hes' a romantic sort and may not get the clue in time. Does he surrender to love and history? Does he try to save her disregarding fate? Or is he actually the catalyst for her evil evolution? Annikan's path to Darth Vader... kinda.
I know this may not be for everyone, but my group is heavy into roleplaying interpersonal issues and plumbing their backgrounds in relation to the World of Greyhawk and its icons. I'd be curious to get your suggestions and general feedback.
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