Ambassadors of Despair Trivia Quiz

Answer: Strahd von Zarovich

In the beginning Strahd von Zarovich was a successful field general who was respected for his strategic genius and his prowess with the sword. Although it was never made clear which plane he called home, we know that one of his homeland's rituals was the 'Land's Bonding', in which Strahd would let his blood drop onto the ground while announcing "I am Strahd. I am the land. I, Strahd, am the land." - thusly creating a mystical connection between land and ruler.
Shortly after conquering Barovia and ruling his new land from Castle Ravenloft, Strahd fell into a deep depression, nurtured by his jealousy towards his younger brother Sergei's youth, and the beginning fear of his own mortality.
It was during that bleak personal crisis that Strahd fell in love with a young beauty called Tatyana. This affection, however, was not mutual; instead, Tatyana became engaged to Strahd's brother Sergei.
Driven by deep jealousy, Strahd decided to accept a pact with death itself, granting him life and youth eternal. On the night of Sergei's and Tatyana's wedding, he killed his younger brother and tried to win his beloved's heart. To no avail: Tatyana flung herself from Castle Ravenloft's battlements and died on the rocks beneath the old fortress.
Strahd von Zarovich was then shot and fell into darkness while the Mists of Ravenloft closed in around him. When he arose from the dead, these Mists had already sealed shut the realm, and Strahd von Zarovich had turned into Barovia's vampiric ruler.

Apart from the usual rule and source books, the story of Strahd von Zarovich can be read in P. N. Elrod's novels 'I, Strahd - The Memoirs of a Vampire' (1993) and 'I, Strahd - The War Against Azalin' (1998). The Devil Strahd is also featured in James Lowder's 'Knight of the Black Rose' (1991).

Answer: Azalin Rex

Azalin Rex was born as Firan Zal'honan in the land of Oerth on the Greyhawk plane. He was an ambitious and ruthless wizard who studied his Art without conscience or remorse. Using his already vast potential he transformed himself from a mortal man into the undead lich Azalin Rex, thus considerably increasing his power. After having been lured into a trap by opposing forces, Azalin fled from his attackers and hid in a bluish glowing mist - the Mists of Ravenloft had imprisoned him.
Azalin Rex arrived in Barovia, homeland of the domain lord Strahd 'the Devil' von Zarovich. At that time, Azalin's first and only goal was to flee this realm of darkness and return to his home on Greyhawk. He subsequently formed an unholy and instable alliance with Strahd. Together they devised a powerful ritual called 'Requiem' which, they hoped, would allow them to escape the Mists of Ravenloft. But, alas, the ritual failed.
Blaming their failure on the vampire, Azalin finally quit the uneasy alliance with Strahd and entered the Mists on his own behalf, only to emerge in the newly formed domain named Darkon. Being the new domain lord, Azalin's first undertaking was to build an army of undeath and start waging war on his hated former ally Strahd von Zarovich. Since the end of that first war, Azalin Rex is constantly either trying to escape Darkon or waging wars against neighboring domains. Noteworthy among these may especially be the 'Dead Man's Campaign', a series of no-mercy wars between Darkon and Falkovnia.

The story of Firan Zal'honan can be found in the (old) Greyhawk source books. The arrival of Azalin on Ravenloft and his interaction with Strahd may be read in P. N. Elrod's 'I, Strahd - The War Against Azalin' (1998). Further information on Azalin as Darkon's ruler are supplied in the source books of Ravenloft.

Answer: Loren Soth

The dark story of Lord Loren Soth began immediately prior to the Cataclysm on the Dragonlance plane. At that time Lord Soth was a highly honored Knight of the Rose, the highest order of the Knights of Solamnia. He was married and ruler of Daargard Keep in northern Abanasinia.
Unfortunately, Loren Soth fell in love with an elven cleric named Isolde with whom he started an intimate relationship. Parallel to his adultery, his wife gave birth to a son. Because his son was deformed Soth accused his wife of disloyalty and, in his ire, killed both wife and son. After getting rid of the bodies Soth married Isolde, despite having been found guilty of murdering his former family by the Knights Council.
Despite all these failings as a Knight of Solamnia, Paladine gave Soth a chance for redemption: Lord Soth was granted the one chance to prevent the Cataclysm from happening. He started travelling to Istar to stop the upcoming death of thousands, but once again he failed. Incited by his travelling companions Soth believed Isolde was being unfaithful to him. He returned to Daargard Keep to find Isolde holding their newborn child in her arms. At the moment the Cataclysm struck Istar, the chandelier of Daargard's hall fell and flames engulfed Lord Soth's second wife and second son. Despite Isolde's heart-rending pleas to at least save their son from the fire, Lord Soth turned away and let them both burn to death.
The fire spread quickly and soon the whole of the keep was aflame, consuming with it Lord Loren Soth and his few remaining knights. When he opened his eyes the next time, Soth had become the Knight of the Black Rose, death knight of Daargard Keep.

The whole story of Lord Soth can be read in Margaret Weis' and Tracy Hickman's 'Dragonlance Chronicles' (1984 - 1985) and their 'Dragonlance Legends' (1986). Really worth reading are also James Lowder's 'Knight of the Black Rose' (1991) and 'Spectre of the Black Rose' (1999).

Answer: Raistlin Majere

Raistlin Majere was the most infamous and powerful wizard of Krynn on the plane of the Dragonlance. He was the twin-brother of Caramon Majere, their elder half-sister being Kitiara uth Matar. Contrary to Caramon - who was always muscular, strong and good-looking - Raistlin was a very sickly child. Despised and feared by the other children, he grew up lonely except for the presence of his caring brother.
It soon became clear that what Raistlin lacked in physical strength he more than made up with his talent, intelligence and ambition.
Found and mentored by the Wizard of the White Robes Antimodes, Raistlin was sent to the wizard's academy of Poolbottom. Despite (or because of!) being constantly harassed by his fellow mage apprentices, Raistlin finished this school at the top of the list. He was later known to be the youngest wizard ever to be sent to the Tower of High Sorcery in Wayreth.
During that lethal testing Raistlin made his first contact with the evil archmage Fistandantilus. Unbeknownst to Par-Salian, the High Master of the Tower, Raistlin made a pact with the evil entity, thusly gaining the strength to pass his test. He chose donning the red robes indicating - for now - his neutrality in the world.

The whole of Raistlin Majere's travels and adventures is very complex, extraordinary interesting and beautifully written. Therefore I will refrain from giving a further (too short and lacking) summarization here.
Instead I highly recommend reading the 'Dragonlance Chronicles' (1984 - 1985), the 'Dragonlance Legends' (1986) and the 'Dragons of Summer Flame' (1995), all written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. If you will still need more information and background concerning Raistlin after that, I can further recommend reading 'The Soulforge' (Margaret Weis, 1998), 'Brothers in Arms' (Weis / Don Perrin, 1999), as well as the 'Dragons of the Hourglass Mage' (Weis / Hickman, 2010).

Answer: Lord Ariakan

Lord Ariakan was the son of Dragon Highlord Ariakas and the evil sea goddess Zeboim on the Dragonlance plane.
Following the War of the Lance, in which his father was killed by the Heroes of the Lance, Ariakan was imprisoned by the Knights of Solamnia. He learned their ways and their strict rules as set by Vinas Solamnus in the Code and the Measure. After his escape he started adapting those rules and formed the highly efficient, lawful evil Knights of Takhisis, mirroring their good counterparts of Solamnia.
Before the Summer of Chaos began, these Knights of Takhisis found and re-enlisted many of the previously defeated armies of the old Dragon Highlords. Bound by their own code of honour, under the strict command of Lord Ariakan, this force of evil overwhelmed Krynn within only weeks. For the first time ever even the Knights of Solamnia's most praised bulwark - the High Clerist Tower - fell while men of faith defended it.
Just when Ariakan believed himself on the height of his power, the forces of Chaos the Godfather struck with fire and shadow. The High Clerist Tower fell once more, and Ariakan with it.
It is said that his mother, Sea Queen Zeboim, took his lifeless body with her and sheltered his soul in her eternal realm.

Lord Ariakan's whole story can be read in 'The Dragons of Summer Flame' by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (1995).

Answer: Kitiara uth Matar

Kitiara uth Matar was the daughter of Gregor uth Matar and Rosamun Majere, and the elder half-sister of Raistlin and Caramon Majere. Kitiara always had a fierce temper, she was ruthlessly ambitious and a highly skilled swordswoman. She was originally part of the group that later became known as the Heroes of the Lance. But, instead of joining her former friends, she decided to make her fortune as one of the evil Dragon Highlord's mercenaries.
Quickly impressing her superiors with her formidable power, Kitiara raised in rank until she was chosen to be the Dragon Highlord of the Blue Dragon Army; she became the most powerful general after Takhisis' Chosen, Highlord Ariakas himself.
After the Queen of Darkness lost the War, Kitiara retreated in order to rebuild her army's strength when suddenly a new opportunity presented itself. Kitiara learned of her brother's plan to defeat Takhisis in the Abyss. She allied with Raistlin Majere and Dalamar the Dark, and led her armies against Palanthas in what is now known as the Blue Lady's War. With the help of yet another powerful ally - Lord Soth, Knight of the Black Rose - Kitiara was almost successful. But, as evil turned in upon itself, her plan was thwarted by the dark elf Dalamar who betrayed and killed Kitiara uth Matar just when Raistlin Majere was on the brink of returning successfully from the Abyss.

The whole interesting story of Kitiara uth Matar can be read in Weis / Hickman's 'Dragonlance Chronicles' (1984 - 1985), 'Dragonlance Legends' (1986), as well as in 'Darkness and Light' (1989) by Paul B. Thompson and Tonya R. Carter. What may or may not have happened to Kitiara's immortal soul can be found out in James Lowder's 'Spectre of the Black Rose' (1999).

Answer: Cyan Bloodbane

The story of Cyan Bloodbane is closely interwoven with King Lorac Caladon of the great elven kingdom Silvanost. During the time of the Lost Wars the young elven magic-user Lorac saved a dragon orb from one of the falling Towers of High Sorcery. He kept it hidden and unused in the treasury of the Tower of the Stars for several centuries.
Then the War of the Lance started, and Silvanost was threatened by the advancing Dragonarmies. King Lorac thought to be strong enough to use the dragon orb in order to defend his kingdom, but he underestimated the powerful artefact.
Working through the dragonorb the Great Wyrm green dragon Cyan Bloodbane subjugated Lorac, and imposed his will on the king. Using the close connection between king and land, Cyan turned beautiful Silvanost into a land of living nightmares, where trees wept blood and feral undead roamed freely.
The hold of Cyan on Lorac was finally broken by the arrival of the Heroes of the Lance; young Raistlin Majere (with the help of Fistandantilus) defeated Cyan and Lorac, and gained command of the dragon orb. Silvanost was free once more and the process of the land's healing could begin.

Cyan Bloodbane is considered to be the oldest and biggest green dragon of Krynn during the time of the war, and second only to Lord Ariakas' mount - a huge red dragon. Cyan's story can be found in the 'Dragonlance Chronicles' by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (1984 - 1985).

Answer: The Nefarious Trio

The Nefarious Trio consisted of three nycaloth yugoloths called Aulmpiter, Gaulguth and Malimshaer. These three were known as battle generals and leaders of the Army of Darkness.
In the beginning the archwizard Aldlas Sodhese wanted to find and study the so called Nether Scrolls, the source of all ancient and most powerful Netherese magic. To help him in this endeavor he summoned the three nycaloths and went with them into the elven woodlands surrounding Myth Drannor where he believed the scrolls to be. After Sodhese was found and destroyed by elven bladesingers, the Nefarious Trio was captured by the archmagic of elven sorcerors. Aulmpiter, Gaulguth and Malimshaer stayed imprisoned for several centuries before they managed to escape.
Driven by an intense hatred for those that had held them prisoner for so long, the three generals started gathering their forces. What they finally had rallied under their banners may be considered to be one of the hugest armies to have ever marched on Faerūn. An estimated half a million goblins, orcs, trolls and demons, divided into three legions, had amassed on the borders of the kingdom of Myth Drannor.
Although the elves fought bravely, in the end they did not stand a chance against the Army of Darkness led by the Nefarious Trio. The beautiful Elven nation of Myth Drannor fell into darkness and was utterly wiped out.

The whole sad story of Myth Drannor and the Nefarious Trio can be read in the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons adventure 'The Fall of Myth Drannor' written by Steven Schend (1998). This is a 2nd edition supplement but if you can lay your hands on it somehow, I highly recommend doing so - the adventure is really worth playing!

Answer: Matron Malice Do'Urden

Matron Malice Do'Urden had six children: the sons Drizzt, Dinin and Nalfein, and the daughters Vierna, Maya and Briza. House do'Urden was the eighth house of the drow city of Menzoberranzan in the underdark of Faerūn on the Forgotten Realms plane.
Cold-blooded and ruthless in her ambition - as all females in that matriarchy are - Malice was working her way upward through the houses of Menzoberranzan, when fate played a cruel trick on her. Contrary to all expectations, her son Drizzt turned out to despise the evil that is inherent in all drow societies. He openly rebelled against his family and the drow's way of worshipping the evil deity Lolth.
As she was held responsible for her son's blasphemous actions, Malice Do'Urden needed to kill Drizzt in order to regain the favour of Lolth. Unfortunately, even the most powerful and blackest sorcery available to Malice proved insufficient. Drizzt escaped his mother's wrath and fled the underdark.
Even as Malice realized her final failure, House Baenre - first and most powerful house of Menzoberranzan - sent its warriors with steel and magic, and eradicated the once proud House Do'Urden.

The story of Matron Malice Do'Urden can be read in R. A. Salvatore's 'The Dark Elf Trilogy' from 1998.

Answer: Szass Tam

Szass Tam is considered to be the second most powerful lich on Faerūn on the Forgotten Realms plane, bested only by his own mentor and teacher Larloch the Shadow King.
Originally, Szass Tam was one of the highest ranking Red Wizards of Thay, highly specialized in the school of necromancy. After leading a coup de grace against the Zulkir of Necromancy Nyressa Flass, Tam was elected to become the new head of his order. When he still wanted to rise in power within Thay open war broke out. Zulkirs of the other schools of magic allied against Szass Tam and his vast army of undead minions. Thay itself and its inhabitants suffered deeply during these times of civil war, which could have only one result: As ever more soldiers and civilians fell prey to the war, Szass Tam's army of undeath swell in numbers - raised by the lich's black necromancy. Szass Tam emerged victorious and afterwards held Thay tightly in his skeletal grip. Apart from Tam's immense magical prowess he is said to have one of the greatest collection of magic items on Faerūn stored in his vaults; prominent among this treasure are the artefacts Death Moon Orb and Thakorsil's Seat.

Szass Tam's rise to power can be read in the terrific trilogy 'The Haunted Lands' by Richard Lee Byers: 'Unclean' (2007), 'Undead' (2008) and 'Unholy' (2009).