Secret Obelisks throughout D&D Adventures

[@Jorphdan]

06/15/2022 UPDATE VIDEO - kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6K0q2SbZ5uEmZo

[@Jstar843]

Ooh, I actually know what Tezca-Zyanya means! Tezca is from the Aztec language and means “mirror”. Zyanya is from another Mesoamerican language (Zapotec) and the meaning is usually given as “always” or “eternal”. So the meaning of Tezca-Zyanya would be mirror-eternal. Not sure if this has any significance or if they just picked two Mesoamerican names (since couatls are based on Mesoamerican myth, coatl being the Aztec word for snake). I will say mirrors are very significant in Aztec mythology being associated with dark sorcery and the god Tezcatlipoca (the enemy of the snake god Quetzalcoatl, so an odd name for a couatl to have). One more thing: Aztec mirrors were made with obsidian, a shiny black rock, so that might connect to the monoliths too.

[@nrais76]

Almost positive this name is intentional. Not necessarily its oddness, however.

[@paulmeahan3667]

I know it's been a year, but I am just revisiting the obelisks with the recent Vecna stuff and the new Bob World Builder vid, and this comment is incredibly helpful. I really like the Mesoamerican connection to obsidian with respect to the mirror and the black obelisk materials in many published adventures. The conspiracy deepens!

[@donniehoffman4738]

This would tie in with the Asmodeus-Jazerian connection

[@catdragon1313]

@@paulmeahan3667 glad it’s not just me, I had the same thought!

[@rohanswinsburg4604]

I have a theory that Wizards is foreshadowing something big with Asmodeous and that Errata at the end only helps that theory. Asmodeous has been mentioned in many campaigns in 5e and Chris Perkins also seems to be a fan of him. In old dnd lore, Asmodeous's true name is Ahriman and his true form is that of a giant snake that has been wounded since the beginning of the Multiverse. It was said that the souls of the faithless were taken to the ninth layer of Hell (Nessus) and slowely devoured by Ahriman in order to heal his wounds. The fact that the sentence about what happens to the souls of the faithless was removed makes me think that wizards might be trying to bring back that old lore. In that lore, Ahriman and Jazirian (god of the Couatls) are twins (or close enough), and the fact that some Obelisks have Couatls trapped inside might be hinting to Jazirian? idk, these are just ideas :)

[@davidrose7938]

Agreed. 👍

[@Heroism4499]

why aren't you Heart-ed?

[@maximilian7858]

maybe asmodeus is finally healed and that's the catastrophic event and the reason why we have to use the obelisks

[@southanime]

I think it can also be a 5e version of Die, Vecna Die

[@freakyskull516]

there is also the interesting lore of racial gods and how asmodeus became the racial god of tieflings. now fun fact tieflings can happen when any other race mate with a tiefling and they can also come from bloodlines being cursed in infernal pacts. this means that eventually tieflings will outnumber all other races that sweet +2 charisma also helps.

[@TheCrimsonElite666]

Since The Wild Beyond the Witchlight has two NPCs that are from Tal'Dorei, I think we can now count the two black obelisks from EGtW, as Exandria is now an official setting.

[@25usd94]

Nice

[@hparkes93]

There is an obelisk in wildemount. it's in a cave near the aeor crash site

[@dutchwhofian3234]

there is also one in one of the adventures

[@zeusdemi6858]

Wildemount is a totally different world though, and while Matt Mercer has a Netheril esque ancient high magic civilization, it doesn't connect to the Obelisks in Faerun

[@hparkes93]

@@zeusdemi6858 You're right they are completely different worlds. However, I mention it because Jordphan had it on his list of books where one doesn't appear. Plus Vecna plays a big part in CR lore, if he went abotu stealing these towers who's to say where he left them.

[@dutchwhofian3234]

@@zeusdemi6858 the text says vecna brought them all over the universe, vecna is a god in wildmound

[@jkl1110]

@@dutchwhofian3234true but vecna was mortal in this one.

[@cianoneill1133]

Dont know if they count as obelisks, but in curse of strahd, outside of old bonegrinder there are 4 stone megaliths with vague origins

[@DevilmanEnvoy]

There are also another set of megaliths in the ruins of berez, I don’t know if there are is a third, but maybe like the 3rd of the life gems it’s hidden and up to the DM to place it there.

[@denieruleo]

The third set would be Yester Hill.

[@Azetchki]

Sadly no. Those are reference in The lore as old fanes From the faith Of the people who lived in Barovia before Strahd invaded.

[@SantiagoSanchez-tc7yq]

Yeah, Curse of Strahd is odd on its relationship to the other campaigns, idk if the obelisks permeate there too, since Barovia is a portion of the Shadowfell and not the Material Plane.

[@lorvincent]

“There are secrets out there begging to be rediscovered. We just need to look in the right places.” -Teferi, planeswalker

[@alexeisenhauer5874]

In the 1987 AD&D module “needle” I believe the Chak might be the first Inter planar commercial traders - who plant and use obelisks to transport back to their home. Just another interesting use of obelisks.

[@SeraphimKnight]

Erasing thousands of years of history would be a ballsy move from WotC.

[@freakyskull516]

divergent timelines spell plague line VS netherese line

[@joluoto]

Ballsy yes, I don't think people will mind wiping away the Spellplague, but I think people might be upset with a thousands of years reset. Since I don't care about the Forgotten Realms much, I won't really care about this. Sword Coast being gone could be a good thing, it's boring.

[@MrRobGresham]

And now we know they have the balls.

[@johndavidson2365]

I never left 2.5 edition so, meh.

[@geekmoviehouse]

So I did a little digging and also found obelisk in Elder Evils 3.5. Dealing with Heralds of Kyuss.

[@karpmageddon4155]

So the Obelisks can basically act as a Flashpoint Paradox to bring us into 6E. Sounds cool! 🤓

[@Jorphdan]

Flashpoint yes lol!

[@digunder14]

@@Jorphdan with vecna as the doctor mannhatan that basically steals 20 or so years from everyone's life and results in an altered version of the present if undone

[@VaderViktor]

With Hasbro possibly no longer having WotC soon, 6e sounds plausible. I don't know though, 5e is what brought a lot of people in.

[@Phattmatt2772]

Does my Batman get guns? I hope he gets guns.

[@codebracker]

Could be 5.5e

[@SilverSeraph379]

Jordphan, please do a vid with as much lore on Netherese, cause with Icewind Dale, everyone who activates the obelisk is gonna want to play in that setting

[@Jorphdan]

On it! :)

[@navidryanrouf441]

@@Jorphdan if it is a lot of info, make it a multi part series such like ur spelljammer series.

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

@@navidryanrouf441 And/or like his Eberron vids.

[@Hollowbarista]

@@Jorphdan video ready yet? Temporal war incoming. "Don't be concerned with 'when'!"

[@OhThatRobin]

I always wondered what these obelisks were and Rime of The Frostmaiden was very exciting for me at the end :000

[@chrisframe2227]

Wow!!! My mind blown. Just watched this recently and then Wizards calls them out today as a focal point in the future of the game. 🤯

[@barrystone2200]

what if the reason the wall is removed from the script is because it holds the faithless, which we know the people of netheril were. that would be where their souls are if you were to need to search for one in particular, like maybe a certain chronomancer?

[@bluecat1462]

I’ve see the PuffinForest video and I clicked on this so fast.

[@JeronisLeror]

Between Aoer crash site adventures and Aoerian Hunters in the section about the Aoer Crash site in Wildemount. It tracks, given the Vecna connection.

[@gamercore5216]

Yeah, tho it should be mentioned that Matt's world isn't Forgotten Realms

[@pablofreitasmachado8076]

6e with the Netherese would be awesome.

[@nicolocorbellani9807]

They could even make new 10,11,12 spells , how cool would be making a netheese flyng city

[@JeronisLeror]

Or a 5e expansion.

[@pablofreitasmachado8076]

both of these ideas also sound absolutely delightful

[@JeronisLeror]

@@pablofreitasmachado8076 well, think about the actual difficulty level of Rime of the frost Maiden in comparison to the actual levels of the characters. I think even some 15 level characters would have issues with fighting that 3form boss, which would mean dot-dot-dot the start of may be an Epic campaign section? Characters haven't been able to be more than level 20 since 4E. Going back in time to when 10th 11th level spells existed, especially with the rules we currently have about epic spells from 3.5, they have a lot to draw from in order to create a vast array of infinitely more powerful spells than what 5th edition currently has. It's a double-edged sword. The continued power creep of the modules will get more and more complicated, but in exchange we get back epic tier spells as well as 10th and 11th level spells. We already know how much they can fit into one year of 5e, at least four modules, if they're really pushing it. It's 8 years before Karsus' folly. The new Magic the Gathering supplements and Forgotten Realms lore novels are supposed to be tied in together. 1 + 1 is, they are effectively restoring access to a good chunk of the Multiverse, Spelljammer and Planescape while turning some beloved characters into Planeswalkers for marketability.

[@darklordmathias9405]

@@JeronisLeror How would this work from a lore standpoint, considering the in-world limitations on magic? I mean, while I'd enjoy using a spell to turn myself into a deity, I doubt that would be good for the game health, since everyone and their mom would jump on the bandwagon.

[@joec9693]

So those random Obelisks that appeared in Utah and then Romania and then suddenly vanished this past week? Does that mean we are in a DnD world? Has a giant Eldritch monster escaped? That would really explain 2020

[@darklordmathias9405]

I'm sorry, what happened now...?

[@NSG0079]

So 6th edition will essentially be "Dungeons & Dragons: A Realm Reborn"?

[@BIZEB]

There is an obelisk in Tyranny of Dragons, more specifically the DDEX1-01 from Adventurer's League, in the city of Phlan.

[@PatRiot-le7rd]

Isn't it in Dues for the Dead DDEX1-04?

[@O4C209]

I feel there have been a lot of references to Asmodeus and Vecna. I've been assuming something with them two had been brewing.

[@tabarnacus5629]

They're the Washington Monument pulled out from different timelines hence why it feel like there's more than one.

[@wanderinghistorian]

alexkansas reference?

[@dezlock]

The Saga of the Worm adventures from Adventurers League starting with Window to the Past is filled with obelisks. They contain avatars of the god Kyuss.

[@moonringXD]

Maybe the obelisk are created by the spellweaver and are using the trap creatures as battery to help them go back in time to save there empire? Also excellent video! you should do this more often!

[@furrdazzler]

Holy shit how have i only just heard about these Obelisks and ive been playing for 2 years, great video man

[@Kugo]

I LOVE SPOILERS

[@Jorphdan]

You're in for a treat 😜

[@kitparsons6680]

What is Kugo doing here lmfao

[@loonylenny]

@@kitparsons6680 on the Goons podcast he said he plays dnd. still odd to see him here

[@fishinatube9028]

Reminds me of the spellweavers. They wanted to do something big and magic, but it had a large chance of failure. They created an artifact that could rewind time if they failed. They did fail, and the artifact was scattered. Now spellweavers seek to reset the universe.

[@Ender13123]

As far as I can tell, besides completely new Worlds (Dark Sun, Greyhawk, ect), their biggest expansions for adventures would be to have one in the Outer and Inner Planes, Realmspace, and the Far Realm. The Planes and Realmspace could come out in either order, but a Far Realm adventure I believe would tie all the settings together and be the final "Endgame" of DnD.

[@AndICanTalk2]

I don't know about the reboot theory, but I do love the whole obelisk idea. When I read it, upon getting Rime, I was so torn as to whether I wanted my players to activate it or not. It is one of the craziest things I have seen in any of the adventures I have ever seen. So fun!

[@venzoorkiin1867]

FINALLY SOMEONE TALKING ABOUT THE GODDAMN BLACK OBELISKS, THANK YOU !

[@valsoriswilthrin2289]

There is an obelisk is the Wildmount adventure "Unwelcome Spirits" in B6 of the Brokenveil Marsh

[@nicka3697]

That's two then with the obelisk near Aeor on p125

[@SantiagoSanchez-tc7yq]

I found both of those two, not sure if they count as the black obelisks or just regular props.

[@Mazurecki56]

It's Necrons, and the obelisks made of noctilith were erected to thwart the use of the Warp by the Old Ones, and stop the spread of the Eye of Terror. That's my headcanon, at least.

[@theoreticaltrap992]

I think that’s very close to what’s going on. The obelisks are keeping out whatever the dnd equivalent of “the Warp”

[@DevilmanEnvoy]

In the new Tasha book, there’s a section on “Far Plane Incursions” I don’t that has happened in 5e so far. Maybe in the future?

[@dynestis2875]

@@theoreticaltrap992 that would be the Far Realm then, right?

[@spaceranger7683]

It's probably just the set-up for the next edition-switching cataclysm. 6E revisions will be attributed to some group using the obelisks to their full potential and switching up the classes abilities yet again.

[@rachelevil]

Definitely gonna start chucking some obelisks around my homebrew setting now

[@ShoLombard27]

In old lore didn't the souls go straight to Asmadeus, maybe they are going back to that. I think MrRhexx mentions it in his Asmadeus vid

[@DevilmanEnvoy]

IIRC it’s supposed to be souls that aren’t promised to any other being.

[@digunder14]

not all of them, but a suspicous amount of them did

[@justinwalters4957]

Kind of surprised I don't see any mention of the Arcane Age material from 2nd edition. I think it far more likely that they are looking to create multiple timelines + spelljammer to create a truly ginormous multiverse as a way to essentially create multiple settings within a shared universe so as to avoid fracturing the player base like TSR did when they went nuts making all these different self contained settings. Great video, nice catch.

[@venzoorkiin1867]

Also, if i am not mistaken, in one of the endings of the neverwinter nights games, the Wall of the Faithless is destroyed

[@buriedtoodeep1508]

Sure am glad all my D&D is another universe entirely!

[@formerctgovernordannelmall1452]

Oh my god, Thumbnail Jorphdan became unhinged, put on a tinfoil hat, and is now coming right at you with the Jamiroquai Slide. Watch out!

[@stevenphillips5323]

The Obelisks are a great concept. Just what Forgotten Realms needs, another world apocalyptic event....

[@blueperry5409]

Oldest obelisk is in I9 Needle - 1st edition module - part of a portal to another world IIRC. If they do reset it would most likely to be to Gray box Era, 1356 DR, not Netheril, would be a situation like the end of the VG Pools of Darkness where everything reverts back to before the quest began and only you and Elminster remember or even know anything happened. Amused me to be thrown back to Netheril, since my oldest character was a Jhaamdathan Psion/ cerebromancer who was visiting Netheril in years right before the fall, after the fall he was Imprisoned (spell) and only escped in 1358 when magic warped during the time of Troubes, so It would be possibe for him to go back and create a paradox by this adventure.

[@nicholaspaul7000]

Love this combination of lore and conspiracy theory!

[@heyprill9649]

Now I wish there was a Jorphdan university discord so the lore and community could all connect in one place. Loved this video.

[@biteso2333]

Time to bust out the tinfoil hats bois! Also I like netherese lore. Icewind dale is one of my favourite adventures! Also i would like to point out Chwinga. They appear in tomb of annihilation and rime of the frostmaiden, and one of the starter adventures aludes to them having weird power.

[@LeganArabach]

Bit of a stretch, but the Standing Stones in Saltmarsh might be related. The description reads: "Two enormous runestones stand on this island. In ages past, a siren was chained to the stones here and sacrificed by an evil human tribe as an offering to the sea. Since then, the fishing in the region has flourished. The siren’s spirit was captured in the stones, and her captivating song continues to echo through the weave and draw fish to the area. The siren’s sisters and allies, among them a powerful djinn, have scoured the planes in search of her spirit for centuries."

[@dynestis2875]

*These Obelisks may have something to do with...* - Vecna _(Stole one of these obelisks, is probably smart enough to reverse engineer them and basically reset the universe to a point where he can become a god)_ - Asmodeus - The Far Realm / Kyuss _(nautiloids showing up in more recent campaigns and some obelisks in a certain adventure contain avatars of Kyuss)_ - The (Spell) Weavers _(They built these obelisks as a failsafe to revert time in order to avoid a cataclysm)_

[@cyntogia]

The removal of the wall of the faithless is probably more in line with people who play d&d instead of anything to do with an in game reason.

[@1971Lonestar]

I agree, it could be as simple an edit for wanting to appease Atheists.

[@Nemo12417]

I thought I read somewhere that Acererak did create the obelisk in Tomb of Annihilation, but when he did so, he was fully aware of the other obelisks scattered across Toril.

[@bluedragonguild]

With the Frostmaiden obelisk, our group did the thing that can happen. It was the best seeing everyone face!

[@brandonmurphy3613]

Might the weavers be the spell weavers ? Reversing time to avoid a cataclysm seems very them. Also very powerful arcane casters , could be they originally developed them before the netherese learnt of them.

[@somerandomschmuck2547]

That was my thought, that the obelisks were part of the plan to reset the universe to how it was during their preferred version of it.

[@johannmueller9660]

The Wall of the Dead was Taken down after Kelemvor becomes God of the Dead. This is explained in the the Avatar trilogy plus the follow up novels. I read them when they first came out in 1989 when the Tables of Fate are stolen, and the God are forced to Walk the Earth. It's a great story, but what i found most intriguing is the very last line in the third book, Waterdeep - Io the Overgod, goes off alone and says, "Master. It is done." My personal take thought is that he's speaking to the Dungeon Master [i.e. the Authors: Troy Denning, Scott Ciencin, & James Lowder.] but that's just me. LOL

[@therandomninja5]

I’m interested to see what happens. I’m running Rime Of The Frostmaiden now & I’m anxious about my players doing this. My thoughts: 1 I’m keen on having mysteries and things pop up through multiple campaigns, but 2 it would be nice to know WotC’s intent with them. I love speculation and having the freedom to make it our own thing as DMs, but I also would like the official reasoning so I can either lean into that or be able to adjust mine properly. They’re definitely going to do something big for the anniversary. What, I don’t know. But I’m excited to see.

[@theunhappygamer1744]

I think it makes more sense that the entire Netheril empire will be transported into the present age.

[@seanpinkey2188]

My theory is a higher race ( like 5th dimensional creatures) put these beacons (Obelisks) out as a means to be a placeholder for a significant Moments In Time. Think a bookmark within spacetime that allows an omnipresent view, like VR for the creators of the Spheres of Realmspace. Same folks that made the Spellguards for each Sphere? Maybe it's been the Space Hamsters all along... nevertheless makers Forgotten to the Realms of men and beasts. This makes me ask two questions (from a DM's perspective): 1) How to discourage mortals from pushing over said obelisk? A: Anyway you can. 2)How do mortals cope with the aftermath if they unlock its secrets? A : Anyway they can Great job, I'm glad you finally did this video. But there's still... much more mystery to come..... Shhh...

[@WildVii]

They won’t make a new edition of D&D until 5e stops being profitable. Period. Who knows what the next 4 years hold, but if profits remain high there isn’t a reason to make a new edition. Still this would be a rad way to end 5e.

[@thetaleofdrizzt2041]

There is one in critical roles explorer's guide to wildmount

[@JohnThurner]

The Twenty Stones of Thruun are unrelated. Thruun is a six eyed immortal beast devoted to Malar that is trapped in the Twenty Stones of Thruun. He gets released in a 4e adventure called King Of The Wolves from Dungeon Magazine #220 (available on archive org) by the leader of the Reghed Wolf Tribe after Malar promises to protect his people from a particularly harsh winter in exchange. The adventure isn't canon though, since an NPC that appears in Rime Of The Frostmaiden is executed in the adventure.

[@Jorphdan]

Excellent, thanks for the info!

[@pepsifacts7724]

Seeing how this can become a major plot point for the changing from 5e to 6e, there is a chance that 10th level and higher spells can return. But I doubt they will since it runs the risk of making casters the only good classes like in the previous editions. Also since this can be a can cause of a world-changing event it is almost a guarantee that Mystra gets fucked over in some way.

[@lucasbrant9856]

I think shes used to that by this point. She dies every other edition.

[@Draenal]

On the contrary, in Netherese society, everyone studied magic. They would have a basis for given martial superhero capabilities to balance them out a bit.

[@YahagiSheibi]

Yeah, a Quarut comes after the party stopping them from changing time.

[@liondovegm]

casters are the only good classes, especially now that GISH is the standard in 5e.

[@markcampbell4080]

A worldbook for playing in the time of Netheril would be amazing. 10th level spells were in common use during that age.

[@sbfcapnj]

At least two black obelisks in the classic 3.5 adventure Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil. I just finished a six-month long campaign with my group. We played through using a 5e conversion guide. Definitely reminds me of them.

[@CatMunroe71]

After reading the fourth book about the Avatars, it revealed that Kelemvor thought the Wall of the Faithless was an unfair and cruel fate and decided to stop doing that. He instead made them permanent residents of the city.

[@ninjatom9]

YES NETHIRESE D&D LET'S GOOO! This is a very cool research project Jorphdan, I hope your theory is right. My question is, who made the one outside the Tomb in Tomb of Annihilation? And where would that reset to? Before the downfall of Omu? Before the spellplague?

[@BiPolarUrsus]

I think the reason they changed that one line is. If you roll back time that far back. What happened to all those people's souls? They just become a wall? Its a way to just say "yeah all those baby's that are technically dead now, they didn't turn into the wall, thats too messed up." Also, to roll it back just on Toril, would that affect the other planes? I mean, it would right? If Azuth was never born, how could Asmodeus, steal his divinity and become a God himself? Honestly they could kinda do anything at this point. Edit* spelling and grammar.

[@rohanswinsburg4604]

Actually I hear that the obelisks only act on certain areas. Like in theory an obelisk could be used just to reset time in a certain region (or even city, I guess), and the rest of the world/multiverse would remain unaffected. Idk how canon this is. I heard it from a secondary source.

[@DarthenosC9]

This might be late new by now, but in the current critical role campaign, the protagonists encountered an obelisk that is similar to the Necromantic Standing Stone. It wasn’t able to be moved (since only 1 pc attempted, the 60 str requirement was probably not met) and dealt pulsing waves of necromantic damage when the players cast spells on it. The area was surrounded by snow, so it’s possible that there were more stones for the other schools of magic, but the party moved past this part, and it’s mostly conjecture. Just thought it was interesting. Also, this was discovered around ruins of Aeor (Which seems to be a race inspired by the Netheril, which also has parallels to their fall).

[@Jorphdan]

interesting thanks for info!

[@gijs631]

The 5e Defiance in Phlan module has a number of peculier obelisks made of black stone.

[@dhaas4698]

It appears that this video has aged quite well

[@DFranco83]

I imagine the last part about faithless is just a way to not offend atheist players/dms. I figured since they did some touch ups to Curse of Strahd to change up some parts.

[@elf-lordsfriarofthemeadowl2039]

ironically, yeah. Considering how difficult it is to get atheist players to roleplay in a world where everyone has a patron diety. Gotta remind them that it's not christianity- there's a god for everything (almost).

[@tripatomz3441]

The changes in C.o.S were due to TV he terms being tied to a derogatory term for gypsy's whitch I can kinda get why they changed it. But I doubt this was done for the same reason as atheism is a choice and not as persecuted or looked down upon as some ppl have been for there race and heritage

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

It's dumb. D&D is fiction, anyone who can't separate a fiction from reality probably shouldn't play in the first place.

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

@@tripatomz3441 Actually, the Roma (Gypsies) really don't care what they're called. Got a bunch of friends in Eastern Europe that confirm this. Honestly, someone got offended on another's behalf on this one.

[@DFranco83]

I should have also added SFW, So Ffffing What.

[@bitkower]

There isn't explicitly an obelisk in Lost Mine of Phandelver, but I think it is worth remembering that Old Owl well is the ruin of an ancient watchtower built by Arthindol the Terraseer near the Netherese settlement of Quesseer which served as a trading hub for the Netherese between the humans of Illusk (now Luskan) and the elves of Illefarn, centered in their capital of Aelinthaldaar (now Waterdeep), and probably also the elves of Eaerlann in the Delembyr Vale and High Forest, until Illusk was destroyed around -2000 DR. That and considering the ruins of Xinlenal, the first Netherese flying city, are in southeastern Neverwinter Wood, it's not hard to imagine there could also have been an obeslisk there, perhaps under Old Owl Well and perhaps that is what the Red Wizard is looking for.

[@sambojinbojin-sam6550]

Could be the third campaign setting. Darksun, Planescape, and *the Old Empire*. Low magic, space magic, and super-high magic, all neatly covered.

[@bewaretheteddy436]

The theory about 2024 is HUGE. Blew my mind. I'm running RotF for my players and trying to work out how to extend the campaign past the end of the module. I've been reading up on Netheril and its history on the off chance my players play with the obelisk in Ythryn... It would be super fun to revisit a time where infamous Netherese archmages like Aumvor, Ioulaum etc are present prior to Karsus' folly.

[@happygoluka9367]

Idk If someone has said this before but the standing stone effects for Descent to Avernus actually correspond to the wild magic table in the PHB. Confusion, magic missile, summoning a monodrone, turning blue with the effect needing to be removed by remove curse, a swarm of animals that are an illusion(it's butterlfies in the PHB), gaining +2 AC, seeing invisible creatures(not true seeing but it's close), and dealing necrotic damage(but it's a lifesteal effect for you, dealing damage to everyone else) all appear in the PHB for the table. Of course this could just be generic effects for each school of magic and they're pulling from the same ideas but some of them are very specific so I wonder if it's connected.

[@Jorphdan]

oh wow, good catch. Thanks for the info!

[@happygoluka9367]

@@Jorphdan If a secret society and the netheril had the means to roll back time and erasing history, plus with karthu's folly, they probably had the means to change magic itself. or maybe it's just how magic schools express themselves basically. Turning blue as the default transmutation effect might be liked with mystra herself, summoning a modron is interesting and makes me think of the Modron March. The march goes through every plane so maybe they helped put the obelisks throughout the planes. the fact that multiple obelisk can teleport too is cool. Magic missile as the basic evocation spell makes sense and seeing the unseen as divination is pretty basic. The last thing that's super interesting to me is the de-aging of people by the obelisk, as that's a feature in the wild magic table as well, which again is probably just a basic form of chronomancy. But if the runes on the obelisk have each for each school of magic AND Chronomancy does that means chronomancy might become it's own school, like Dunamancy??. currently it's that or it's transmutation but having a school for space(transmutation) and for time to represent space-time would be cool and make sense.

[@amandawray08]

Came here after the recent DnD Direct. Jorphdan! You mad man!!! I wonder if there have been more obelisks since this was posted?

[@Jorphdan]

Planning and update video soon!

[@adolchrystin]

I think they are doing something with Asmodeus, since he is in many books too. He is ploting something.

[@quinnmattes8622]

It may not tie in at all but the second edition adventure Desert of Desolation had a stone obelisk that had strange writings on it with a temple of Set hidden underneath it so maybe this runs across multiple editions

[@daniell1483]

I was unaware of these obelisks, thanks for making this informative video.

[@genghisgalahad8465]

A month late, 0:15 seconds in, and avoiding spoilers but man are you onto something BIG, Jorphdan!! Totally my mystery jam! I think you have the scoop on something BIG and long coming! Gonna bookmark this video for that! In any case, this plants a seed for something big in a DnD campaign somewhere!

[@williamfawkes8379]

I think you missed the meaning of "faithless," its being used in its old fashioned meaning, which is to say that it pertains to those who have no honor. If someone gave their word, and then chose to betray their oath, they would be deemed faithless. I have seen it used in many fiction novels in this way, and it was certainly a thing that Tolkien provided influence on, i.e. The Way of the Dead. It is an archaic usage because in societies before stable modern methods of record keeping, a persons word was so much more important a thing, as it was unlikely that there would be any other way to insure that something was true. To act in good faith, is what the faithless have failed in. It could be that the sentence was removed due to the very reason that people think that it pertains to atheism, and Wizards is afraid to be seen as condemning that choice in personal beliefs.

[@misterjoshua5720]

In AJ Picket's video on the LeShay, he mentions that the LeShay's timeline no longer exists. Could they be the Weaver's that Vecna mucked with?

[@northeastoperations]

I love puffinforrest and I totally recognized the obelisk you were describing there. :)

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

Oh my. Time shenanigans. That could have several implications tied to it.

[@jordanw2009]

definitely one in Wildemount near the aeolian crash site in the frozen north

[@theocurry1234]

SPOILERS: As someone else mentioned The Lost Mine of Phandelver has obelisk adjacent lore - specifically at Old Owl Well which was "built thousands of years ago by a long-vanished empire" and is a crumbling watch tower. A Thay mage (Hamun Kost) is researching it looking for the name of the builder who ends up being Arthindol according to the original adventure written in 2014. Arthindol aka Terraseer or T Source was a mysterious oracle of the Netherese who encouraged expanding westward, and originally built Old Owl Well to spy on elves and access a nearby cache of chardalyn (crystals that could hold spells inside) which eventually ran out. In 2023 (after this video was made) the adventure was rewritten as Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk and now included....AN OBELISK lol. This time however when discovering who built Old Owl Well for some reason the answer that is given is Dresina which does not seem to have any lore attached that I can find. This new adventure has psyonic goblins trying to put together a shattered Netherese Obelisk at the behest of Mind Flayers. With the way the initial lore began to go down one path only to be cut off and mashed together with elements that did not really seem to make much sense story wise, I'm creating my own homebrew based on the beginning of the adventure that will have the Netherese shades using the obelisks to attempt to return their empire to its past glory as the lore states they began to do after the fall and once some returned from the shadow realm.

[@rinkes13]

I remember that Nightstone was captured by cloud giants in acquisitions incorporated PAX West 2016 (timestamp: 2:18:16) and in the holiday special. But I don't know if its canon. Hopefully this helps.

[@WildVii]

They had standing stones/menhirs in Curse of Strahd. Apparently they can aid a Druid if they use Wild Shape.

[@digifreak90]

One thing I'd like to point out is that, if you trigger the magical effect of the Obelisk in Icewind Dale, it takes the world back to before the events of Karsus's Folly. Food for thought.

[@fallonplays6526]

Outstanding work, I have noticed the obelisk but never put it all together, enjoyed this very much

[@robshift]

In the 4th edition adventure Sceptre Tower of Spellgard there is a circle of black obelisks that stand reversed on their points. This circle is located on the western edge of what was once the Netherese empire.

[@thenorskk]

This is such a fucking amazing video. Thank you for putting the time and effort for making this. This appeases the lore hound in me, but I can't help but want more, lmao.

[@danielknapp159]

I think perhaps this can be expanded to explain the disjointed and contradictory nature of certain lore. As well as the fact that characters who have definately killed certain named enemies can meet other characters who have done the same. Perhaps time suffers some sundering or cataclysm due to these obelisks being used indefinitely at some time in the near future. (As of the 1490s) with time distortions getting more frequent and powerful the closer to this event in time we are. This would expand on or replace the alternate universe reasoning for countless versions or the same adventures being possible. We had a magical sundering, perhaps next is a time sundering.

[@elink2k1]

I was an old DM... who was fascinated with Vecna and Acererak. I wondered about ancient places buried under the desert of Anauroch and the ruins of the High Forest. Now I'm getting back in and there is an internet full of all the bits and pieces and they point to things. What was the old Greyhawk story about forming a circle of magic to repell the gods... that was Vecna? The Dire Woods is a ring of trees and involves magic and gods and liches and avatars and immortals and the elves that made the Netheril possible. The High Forest is the key... or should be. I actually put 7 pillars in the Yawning Portal surrounding the opening to undermountain and my players are discovering falling towers with these same similarities. I've also combined these sites with the Rod of Seven Parts... the eighth part has been missing and therefore it could never be assembled. Once assembled it can be used to control time. This is my big picture that no one is ever going to play all the way through but I am linking all these sites from all the books together to create the story.

[@jon_no_handle]

DDEX 1-1 the first adventure in the Tyranny of Dragon's Adventurer's League season has obelisks in a secret Black Fist prison beneath the old church of Bane.

[@superbacabros5998]

Great video man, love the idea of a crazy reset like that. Add some new classes in 6e that have faded away over time, like the Netherese society did.

[@David_Apollonius]

You might want to check out the Shattered Gates of Slaughtergarde. It's not good, but it has black obelisks and a similar story.

[@David_Apollonius]

Now that I've seen that video again, I just have to clarify this. Shattered Gates takes place in the 3.5 Greyhawk Light setting, not the Forgotten Realms. (It just uses the gods from Greyhawk, but that's it.) There's a valley filled with black obelisks that were used to "turn back" a demonic invasion 800 years prior to the start of the campaign. The campaign is a dungeon crawl that's about the remnants of a fortress (Shatterguard) that was transposed from an unnumbered but named layer of the abyss. (the Mountains of Sorrow Beyond Measure) The obelisks are still there, even though they have been used. The demonic army hasn't been sent back in time, but merely banished back to the abyss.

[@M3TAN0IA]

That Rime of the Frost Maiden excerpt... is huuuuuuge

[@HAOSxy]

coming back to this video to announce that there is indeed an Obelisk in SPELLJAMMER. More precisely, it's found as an Asteal Plane encounter.

[@TheUnhousedWanderer]

According to another KZbinr, these obelisks have something to do with Vecna. It makes sense, considering how popular Stranger Things made him.

[@Jorphdan]

Yep!! kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6K0q2SbZ5uEmZo

[@Deepstab1]

To me its related to the planeswalkers, DnD has been steadily meeging with MtG and that quest will truly merge the two worlds instead of just one existing next to the other

[@alexavila7245]

The new Shattered Obelisk module to continue the first published 5e adventure seems like it might finish what 5e started…

[@Kooster69]

The deleted sentence about the Wall of the Faithless sounds kind of like the Great Wall in DC Comics. In DC Comics, characters--mostly the New Gods--become part of the Great Wall after they pass away. If Hasbro's lawyers were freakin' out, then Hasbro might be thinking that they'd be sued by DC Comics with the DnD Wall of the Faithless sounding too much like DC Comics' Great Wall.