House Baenre
House Baenre is a fictional clan of dark elves in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting, created by R.A. Salvatore.
First House of the Underdark drow city of Menzoberranzan for as long as any can remember, House Baenre is a family of powerful schemers and manipulators which has recently suffered some severe setbacks in its domination.
The Baenre family has been a bastion of power in Menzoberranzan for over 2500 years. Fiercely devoted to the drow goddess Lolth, as most Houses of Menzoberranzan are, House Baenre is currently led by Matron Mother Triel Baenre, a shrewd priestess of Lolth who succeeded her slain mother Yvonnel.
Yvonnel Baenre/Old Matron Baenre
Yvonnel Baenre, called for centuries simply Matron Baenre, embodied the House in the city of Menzoberannzan with an uncanny strength bred from deceit and ambition. Still, in the Underdark where the most evil of creatures lie, there are none who would not shudder at the fury of the "Spider-Kissers" being turned on them. However, a series of events has damaged the House's reputation. The drow ranger Drizzt Do'Urden caused great problems for Yvonnel Baenre, and sent her daughter Vendes to the afterlife. Drizzt's friend, Bruenor Battlehammer, slew Matron Baenre during the assault on Mithril Hall.
Triel Baenre
Matron Triel Baenre is Yvonnel Baenre's first daughter. Shrewd and ambitious though she is, Triel did not expect to be landed with the role of House Matron so early. Paranoid about her height (Triel is short, even by drow standards), she fills her mother's role but not her throne (literally; during the Starlight and Shadows series, she even sets about trying to add a foot pedastal to the very throne). However, Triel is shrewd and calculating, and a powerful vessel for Lolth's Will, despite her often flippant attitude toward her goddess, her favor with the Spider Queen is the envy of the Drow. She has guided Menzoberranzan through tough times and continues to do so in the presence of looming catastrophe. She has a draegloth son, Jeggred, who acted as her bodyguard and obeyed her every command. He was slain in Lolth's realm, the Demonweb Pits, by Quenthel Baenre in the book Resurrection, the finale to the War of the Spider Queen series.
Gromph Baenre
Gromph is the Archmage of Menzoberranzan; Master of Sorcere, the arcane school; and first son of Matron Baenre, which makes him the most powerful male in the city. Gromph is approximately seven centuries of age; he appears young, however, as he has a magical amulet containing a piece of a unicorn's horn which prevents him from aging. He wandered for some time and adventured before becoming the "leashed" Archmage of the Council of Eight (the eight ruling houses), according to a decree by Lolth. It is only logical for the Council to keep close watch on the wizards, who are their only real challengers for power, as Archmage Gromph has many responsibilities in the City of Spiders. Foremost, he must energize Narbondel, the huge "clock" of Menzoberannzan. Gromph is one of the few males of the city who has power enough to have almost anything he desires, including the respect of females. Liriel is his daughter by one of his discarded lovers, making her claim to Baenre heritage shaky (since Menzoberranzan is a female-dominated society, parentage is traditionally traced through the mother, not the father.)
Some consider Gromph the greatest archmage in all the Realms; Elminster, however, is more
than eleven centuries old and
Recently, and disturbingly, Gromph disappeared at a time when the city most needed him. He was attacked and imprisoned in a magical sphere by an exceedingly powerful lichdrow named Lord Dyrr, the true ruler of House Agrach Dyrr. He managed to escape the sphere by manipulating an illithid named Sluuguth, killing the illithid soon afterward. Gromph went from that point on to help secure the city from the many magical fires that were burning it to the ground.
Gromph, in the later War of the Spider Queen hexad of books, with the help of Triel, kills the lichdrow Dyrr and destroys his phylactery.
Liriel Baenre
Liriel Baenre (created by Elaine Cunningham)—the beautiful, flippant, and sardonic daughter of Gromph— originally belonged to House Vandree, before her talent for arcane magic was discovered by her father. Taken into the ranks of the Baenres, Gromph still sought to keep her separated from the influence of his sisters and mother, and he sent her to stay with a minor House to hone her magical talent rather than study to be a priestess. Liriel grew independent and soon found the restrictions of Arach-Tinilith, where she was subsequently enrolled, too binding. Using a book given to her by her father, Liriel travelled to the surface lands where she met drow followers of Eilistraee, the Dark Maiden of benevolent drow. Caught up in the plots of the Vhaeraunite merchant-turned-mercenary band the Dragon's Hoard, Liriel—a powerful mage, warrior and ex-priestess of Lolth—led a struggle against them with the help of her friends—a human barbarian named Fyodor of Rashemen, the mutant two-headed deep dragon Zz'Pzora, and the Eilistraeean forces of Qilué of the Seven Sisters.
Settling for a life on the surface, Liriel found herself hunted by her House and father. She travelled across the ocean with Fyodor, who became her lover and friend, and a pirate named Hrolf, who took her in as a daughter. Liriel's adventures caused drastic consequences for all drow, including the return of her aunt Quenthel to her old House, as well as allowing drow magic to function on the surface.
Quenthel Baenre
Quenthel, third daughter of Yvonnel Baenre, High Priestess of Lolth, second only to Matron Mother Triel Baenre as Menzoberranzan's most powerful priestess. Rose through the ranks as High Priestess quickly with Lolth's favor. Returned from death by the will of Lolth after being slain by Drizzt Do'Urden during the end of the drow invasion of Mithral Hall, and has been reinstated as Mistress of Arach-Tinilith, the priestess school of Menzoberranzan. Her house attempted to cover up her absence by claiming she had gone on a mission, and kept the secret from many. Until now, the only male to have known about her death is Gromph Baenre, when he admitted to his sister Triel that he had found out. She and Triel's draegloth son, Jeggred, teamed up to uncover the mystery of Lolth's Silence. After the Silence of Lolth was uncovered, Quenthel was ordered to return to Menzoberranzan by the reborn Mother of Lusts and continue heading her faith in that city as Mistess of Arach-Tinilith.
Jarlaxle Baenre
See Jarlaxle Baenre.
Other members of House Baenre
Andzrel, a cousin of Triel and the current weapons master of House Baenre, may be a mere shadow of Dantrag or Berg'inyon with his blade, but he knows his way around a melee.
Dantrag, amber-eyed former weaponmaster for House Baenre. He wielded two enchanted swords, one of them of drow make, one of them named Khazid'hea, forged in the lands above and possessed of its own personality. Dentrag also had a pair of bracers that increased the speed of his hands, allowing him to defeat many of his opponents by simply striking so fast they could not move fast enough to effectively counter. He was considered second only to Zaknafein, Drizzt Do'Urden's father, and thus longed to defeat Drizzt, Zaknafein's son and protege, to emerge from under Zak's shadow. He challenged Drizzt in single combat in the tunnels above Menzoberranzan. Initially, his superior speed gave him the advantage, but Drizzt's superior skills and insight allowed him to win even against this disadvantage, figuring out the weaknesses in Dantrag's seemingly undefeatable fighting style (for example, he realized that Dantrag's magical speed meant that Dantrag lacked a certain level of control, and could not improvise in the middle of one of his moves.) After killing Dantrag, Drizzt took possession of the bracers, while Catti-brie took Khazid'hea.
Berg'inyon, the youngest son to Yvonnel, was a classmate of Drizzt in Melee Magthere, who he was constantly ranked below much to his dismay and to his mother's anger. He commanded House Baenre's lizard riders after the death of his elder brother, Dantrag, and became weapons master as well. After the drow retreated from their assault on Mithral Hall, due to the instability that would likely plague House Baenre after the disastrous failed conquest of Mithral Hall (and the likelihood that Triel would soon give birth to a son she would groom to replace Berg'inyon as the weapons master, which among the drow would likely mean Berg'inyon's death,) Jarlaxle convinced Berg'inyon to join Bregan D'aerthe. When Crenshinibon began to cloud Jarlaxle's thinking, he joined Rai-guy Bondalek, and Kimmuriel Oblodra in their attempt to usurp control of Bregan D'aerthe. When he, Rai-guy and Kimmuriel confronted Jarlaxle, Artemis Entreri and their temporary allies in the lair of a red dragon in an attempt to steal Crenshinibon before it was destroyed and to kill Jarlaxle, Berg'inyon chose to fight Artemis Entreri in single combat, due to the assassin's reputation as Drizzt's equal (the fact that Drizzt was considered a superior fighter ever since they had met had long grated on him). Entreri proved more skilled and slew Berg'inyon.
Vendes, the now-deceased daughter of Yvonnel Baenre. Vendes was the House's master torturer, and earned the nickname "duk'tak" (executioner). After she finished with her victims they were turned to stone and displayed around the house. Drizzt Do'urden killed her while escaping from House Baenre's captivity.
Bladen'kerst, daughter of Yvonnel Baenre and younger than Triel. Sadistic, unpredictable and uncontrollable, she was slain by the dwarves of Mithril Hall during the invasion.
Sos'Umptu, the quiet and unambitious sister of Triel and Quenthel, tends the Baenre chapel.
Merith, a psychotic ex-commoner, was adopted for her clerical talent. Arguably as sadistic as the late Bladen'kerst, she knows nothing of intrigue and protocol.
Zal'therra is a priestess and Triel's cousin. She also commands the Army of the Black Spider.
Jeggred, a draegloth, stands by his mother Triel's side as bodyguard, and in the face of Lolth's Silence, has joined his aunt Quenthel in her search. He kills Ryld Argith (as ordered by Danifae) and is eventually sacrificed by Quenthel to the reincarnated Lolth.
Nauzhror, Triel's first cousin once removed. He is pudgy and a Master of Sorcere who sports a large beard, grown with a hair growth cantrip. He was archmage during Gromph's brief absence.
Prath, a student of Sorcere and a nephew and apprentice of Gromph.
Vrellin, One of Triel's nephews. Unusual for the fact that he wears no armor in battle, only a hand crossbow strapped to his left wrist, loaded with magical, exploding bolts.
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