Vault of the Drow

Greyhawk Realm

Vault of the Drow
The Vault of the Drow, illustrated by Adam Paquette, Into the Unknown, WotC (2012).
General information
Region:	Underoerth
Government
Ruler:	High priestess of the Fane of Lolth
Government:	Religious matriarchy
Alignments:	Chaotic evil
Demographics
Capital:	Erelhei-Cinlu
Races:	Drow, bugbears, demons, goblins, ghouls, illithids, troglodytes, trolls, vampires, yugoloths, others
Languages:	Undercommon, Drowic elven
Groups
Religions:	Dark Seldarine

Disambiguation: This page is about the cavern region in the underoerth where Erelhei-Cinlu lies. For the adventure of the same name, see Vault of the Drow (adventure)

The Vault of the Drow, illustrated in Dragon magazine #298 (2002), art by Christopher West.

The Vault of the Drow is an enormous cavern, containing the infamous city of the drow, Erelhei-Cinlu.

Description

"A gleaming but sinister gem, the Vault of the Drow is one of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring locations in the Underdark. Traveling to the great cavern is treacherous and extremely dangerous, a journey that only experienced adventurers should consider. Within its immense breadth, though, lies a place of great beauty and mystery. Only one known road gives access to the area. An approaching traveler is greeted by bizarre sights, accompanied by a chill breeze. Countless mauve, violet, and deep blue crystals sparkle like stars in the ceiling and walls of the vault. These formations are remnants of unfinished creation, suspended in the cavern since the days of the [earliest ages]. Below these faux constellations, growths of pale fungus shimmer with golden, sapphire, and ruby hues. A soft hum buzzes within the vault, the product of native cricketlike insects that inhabit the fungal patches. To those who can see into the darkness, the walls of the vault appear hazy and somewhat insubstantial. The road continues down into a gorge between steep cliffs. Crushed crystals faintly shimmering with blue light keep visitors from wandering off the path and falling into the darkness. From there, the road leads into an Underdark countryside that is filled with fungi of varying sizes, crystalline columns, and immense spans of lichens and molds."

Geography

Terrain and climate

"Deep beneath the mighty Hellfurnace Mountains lies the Vault of the Drow, an immense hemispherical cyst of Oerth’s crust over six miles long and nearly as broad. Its mineral-veined ceiling rises more than 1000 fathoms above its crystal-strewn floor; near the zenith of the dome is a huge mass of tumkeoite, which as it slowly decays and transforms into lacofcite glows like a ghostly, plum colored moon in the firmament of the Vault, while other phosphorescent nodes dimly gleam like stars in the same story heaven. The lights of this subterranean sky reflect in the dark waters of the Pitchy Flow and the Weeping Spring, and the image of the whole strange canopy is trapped and distorted within the Mere of Glooms.

Many passages and trails wind throughout the underworld but one road enters the Vault through a fissure in its southern wall. The road descends through a gorge about 200 yards wide, which gradually become broader as it goes north. A full mile from the entrance, an ancient stronghold called the Black Tower stands four stories high, watching over the Underdark road. The tower’s foundations rest upon a steep-sided mound of stone, its massive walls worn smooth by the passing of ages, almost fused with the natural rock platform upon which the tower was built.

A narrow incline leads up to the Black Tower—all visitors are required to report there, for it serves as a checkpoint and customhouse for foreigners entering the Vault. All non-drow are questioned regarding the purpose of their visit, and those deemed acceptable are issued a cloak of silk dyed an unnatural shade of green, which they must wear to identify themselves as aliens in the drow homeland. Interlopers who lack the special cloak soon find themselves killed or enslaved by the many drow patrols that range the Lower Vault.

An enormous natural antechamber to the Vault opens perhaps two miles west of the Black Tower. Its entrance is walled and gated, with six strong towers along its length. Behind this wall is the fortress of the military sisterhood of the Vault, a society of female drow warriors sponsored by each of the eight noble houses but who swear allegiance only to Lolth. Nearly two and a half miles to the northeast of the Black Tower is a walled compound that serves as a stronghold of the military brotherhood of the vault, a society of male drow warriors in service to Lolth, which is financed by the sixteen merchant clans who dwell in the Lower Vault.

The strongholds of these merchant clans are walled villas scattered throughout the Lower Vault. Disturbing forests and thickets of fungi grow between the sixteen merchant villas here, all on the floor of jagged rocks and jutting formations of crystal. To the north, by the banks of the Pitchy Flow, the black-walled city of Erelhei-Cinlu stands as a gateway to the Upper Vault. A plateau occupied by eight noble estates stands across a leering span called the Flying Bridge on the other side of the river. Further still is a guarded passageway leading to the temple chamber of the Demon Queen of Spiders, called Lolth’s Egg. The enormous red and green ochre cavern holds an accused pagoda-like spider temple, the infamous Great Fane of Lolth."

Administrative divisions

Lower Vault

where Erelhei-Cinlu resides, as well as merchant clans' villas, fighter schools' strongholds, the Black Tower, and other features like fungi forests, etc. are all located.

Upper Vault

where the noble drow houses' estates reside, as well as the infamous Fane of Lolth.

People

Main article: Drow

Population and demographics

Drow 40%. troglodytes- 15%, bugbears 12%. others (surface dwellers and undead) 10%, mind flayers 4%, trolls 4%, yugoloths 4%, kuo-toa 3%, demons 3%, xvarts 8%, deep gnomes 1%, orcs 1%, gith races 1%

Religion

• Lolth
• Keptolo
• Kiaransali
• Vhaeraun
• Zinzerena

Notable individuals

Main article: Notable drow

Society and culture

Main article: Drow society and culture

Heraldry

Main article: Drow Heraldry

Publication history

The Vault was originally published in 1978 in the Vault of the Drow (adventure) by Gary Gygax.

References

Bibliography

• Bonner, Logan, Matt Sernett and Jeff Morgenroth. Into the Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2012. Item code 39865.
• Greenwood, Ed. Drow of the Underdark. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1991. Item Code:9326 (FOR2) ISBN: 1-56076-132-6
• Gygax, Gary. D3 Vault of the Drow. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1978. Item code TSR9021.
• Marmell, Ari, Anthony Pryor, Robert J. Schwalb and Greg A. Vaughan. Drow of the Underdark. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2007. Item code 95726.
• Weining, Frederick. "Vault of the Drow". Dragon #298. Bellvue, WA: Paizo Publishing, Aug 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
Black Tower (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Defensive Structure, Tower,	D3 Vault of the Drow (adventure)	11
Black Tower (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Defensive Structure, Tower,	Dead Gods	82
Black Tower (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Defensive Structure, Tower,	Dragon magazine #298	73
Black Tower (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Defensive Structure, Tower,	Into The Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook, D&D 4e	67, 68
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	D1 Descent into the Depths of the Earth	7, 11
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	D1-2 Descent into the Depths of the Earth	1, 11, 18, 23
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	D2 Shrine of the Kuo-Toa	2, 9, 10
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	D3 Vault of the Drow (adventure)	All
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	Deities & Demigods (1st & 2nd printing), AD&D 1e	107
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	Deities & Demigods (3rd+ printing), AD&D 1e	92
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	Dragon magazine #241	43
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	Dungeon magazine #070	62
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	From the Ashes: Atlas of the Flanaess	72
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	Living Greyhawk, Living Onnwal Gazetteer, D&D 3.5e	5
D3 Vault of the Drow	Adventure	Located in: Hellfurnaces,	World of Greyhawk boxed set (1983)	30
Eldar Elemental God, Temple of (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Temple,	G3 Hall of the Fire Giant King	9, 10
Eldar Elemental God, Temple of (Vault of the Drow)	Building	Temple,	GDQ1-7 Queen of the Spiders	87, 125
Vault of the Drow	Place		Q1 Queen of the Demonweb Pits	2, 3
Vault of the Drow	Place		Reference	SEE ALSO Erelhei-Cinlu
Vault of the Drow	Place		Sea of Death	94, 95, 236
Vault of the Drow	Place		WG12 Vale of the Mage	7
Vault of the Drow	Place		World of Greyhawk boxed set (1983)	30
Vault of the Drow	Place		Against The Giants: The Liberation of Geoff	42
Vault of the Drow	Place		LT2 Crypt of Lyzandred the Mad	IC, 33
Vault of the Drow	Place		D1-2 Descent into the Depths of the Earth	1, 2, 11, 18, 23
Vault of the Drow	Place		D2 Shrine of the Kuo-Toa	9
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dead Gods	74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 80, 81, 82, 83, 85, 86
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dragon magazine #209	13
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dragon magazine #230	10
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dragon magazine #298	7, 73, 74, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 83, 84, 85, 86
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dragon magazine #300	90, 91, 92, 93
Vault of the Drow	Place		Into The Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook, D&D 4e	3, 67-69
Vault of the Drow	Place		Dungeon magazine #070	62
Vault of the Drow	Place		From the Ashes: Atlas of the Flanaess	72
Vault of the Drow	Place		Greyhawk Adventures	43
Vault of the Drow	Place		GDQ1-7 Queen of the Spiders	2, 3, 53, 55, 56, 61, 65, 70, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 112, 121, 125
Vault of the Drow	Place		Living Greyhawk Gazetteer	18
Vault of the Drow	Place		Player's Guide to Greyhawk	7, 24