Drow (pronounced either /draʊ/, rhymes with "now", or /droʊ/, rhymes with "throw") is a mythical elf-like creature in Scottish folklore which lived in caves and forged magical metal work. Scottish folklore is the myths and legends historically told by the people of Scotland. ...

Etymology

Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1970) states: "Drow, n., [scot.]." The word is a variant of the Scots term "trow", which itself derives from the Scandinavian word "troll". The original Scottish Gaelic word is pronounced "dtrow" with a soft "dt" sound, and the original pronunciation sounds similar to "troll." The word is also found in Cornish and Welsh, with slight pronunciation differences. The race itself seems based on another dark elf, specifically the Dökkálfar of Norse mythology. For other uses, see Troll (disambiguation). ... For the Cornish-English dialect, see West Country dialects. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... In Norse mythology, the svartálfar (black elves) or dökkálfar (dark elves) are supernatural beings (Old Norse vættir, wights) that are said to reside in the underground world of Svartálfheim. ... Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian peoples, including those who settled on Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ...

References to drow in games & literature

Dungeons & Dragons

The drow, as they appear in Dungeons & Dragons, were created by Gary Gygax, who stated that "Drow are mentioned in Keightley's The Fairy Mythology, as I recall (it might have been The Secret Commonwealth--neither book is before me, and it is not all that important anyway), and as Dark Elves of evil nature, they served as an ideal basis for the creation of a unique new mythos designed especially for the AD&D game." ("Books Are Books, Games Are Games" in Dragon Magazine, Nov. 1979, #31. This establishes Gygax's source for the term as Thomas Keightley's The Fairy Mythology, Illustrative of the Romance and Superstition of Various Countries (1828; aka The World Guide to Gnomes, Fairies, Elves and Other Little People). They were first mentioned in the Dungeons & Dragons game in the 1st Edition 1977 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual under "Elf", where it is stated that "The 'Black Elves,' or drow, are only legend." This article refers to the fictional elven race from Dungeons & Dragons. ... “D&D” redirects here. ... Ernest Gary Gygax, 2004 Ernest Gary Gygax (born July 27, 1938 in Chicago, Illinois) is best known as the author of the well known fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), co-created with Dave Arneson and co-published with Don Kaye in 1974 under the company Tactical Studies... Over the years, there have been a number of different versions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, all of which are still played. ... Current Monster Manual (v3. ...

Other games

The Baldur's Gate series of computer games features drow as enemies and NPCs, as well as part of the game being set in the drow city of Ust Nautha. The drow cleric of Shar, Viconia, features in Baldur's Gate, and Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn as a party member and, in the second game, a possible romantic interest. In the Baldur's Gate series#Throne of Bhaal expansion, her alignment can be changed from neutral evil to true neutral if she is in a romance with a PC. The Eilistraee-worshipping drow male Solaufein plays a minor role in the second game, but his role can be expanded into a romance with a mod. Drizzt Do'Urden has a cameo in both Baldur's Gate and Shadows of Amn, Jarlaxle Baenre has a cameo in Shadows of Amn, and they and the male dark elves Maznafein and Jalynfein also appear in the 1994 IBM-PC CD game Menzoberranzan. Title screen of Baldurs Gate, the first game in the series. ... An NPC from the video game The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. ... Shar, Mistress of the Night, Nightsinger, Lady of Loss, or The Darkness is a fictional deity in the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms campaign setting. ... Title screen of Baldurs Gate, the first game in the series. ... Title screen of Baldurs Gate, the first game in the series. ... Solaufein is a minor character found in the computer game Baldurs Gate II: Shadows of Amn, the second installment of the Baldurs Gate series. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

In Icewind Dale, a drow named Nym steals dwarven weapons and artifacts and sells them to the goblin and orc armies attacking the elven fortress, the Shattered Hand. Since the armies are armed with dwarven weapons, the elf leader Larrel assumes the dwarves betrayed them, and ends the alliance between the two. Thus, Nym is single-handedly responsible for the fall of both the dwarves and the elves in the Dale. Nym can be found in the Svirfneblin village in the tunnels of Lower Dorn's Deep, where he will sell a number of magical artifacts and weapons to the player. Nym also appears in Icewind Dale II, where he appears to be in league with the Legion of the Chimera. Icewind Dale is a computer role-playing game (CRPG) developed by Black Isle Studios. ... In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, svirfneblin, or deep gnomes, are a sub-race of gnome. ... Example of a character screen. ...

The original campaign and first expansion of Neverwinter Nights do not deal much with the drow but the second expansion, Hordes of the Underdark, does so extensively. Neverwinter Nights 2 continues to expand upon them in their story, as well as allowing drow and other Underdark races as playable characters. This article is about the 2002 computer role-playing game. ... A brief skirmish in Luskan Neverwinter Nights (NWN), produced by BioWare and published by Infogrames Entertainment (now Atari), is a third-person perspective computer role-playing game that uses the Third Edition of the Dungeons & Dragons rules (with minor changes). ... Neverwinter Nights 2 (NWN2) is a computer role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Atari. ...

Drow also appear in Atari's Demon Stone in the form of Zhai, the half drow player-character, and another appearance of Drizzt Do'Urden. Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone is a video game that was released in 2004 on many consoles, including the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. ...

In the Hungarian role-playing game M.A.G.U.S., "obsidian-elves" appear as a deadly and evil race, which are similar to the drow. These lonely predators live in deep caves and hunt passionately almost everything, searching for challenge and danger. They are vile and ruthless to the core, but usually leave humans alone, letting them pass unharmed in their caves, as these dark elves don't accept mortal beings as worthy prey.

The Night Elves in World of Warcraft were based off of the drow, but only keep the skin-tone and gender roles. ÔNight Elves are a fictional race of elves in Blizzard Entertainments Warcraft series of computer games. ... World of Warcraft (commonly abbreviated as WoW) is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Blizzard Entertainment and is the fourth game in the Warcraft series, excluding expansion packs and the cancelled Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans. ...

Novels

Elaine Cunningham Elaine Cunningham (born August 12, 1957) is an American fantasy and science-fiction author, especially known for her almost poetic literary style and her contributions to the Forgotten Realms campaign world, including the realms of Evermeet, Halruaa, Ruathym and Waterdeep. ...

• Starlight and Shadows

Gary Gygax Elaine Cunningham (born August 12, 1957) is an American fantasy and science-fiction author, especially known for her almost poetic literary style and her contributions to the Forgotten Realms campaign world, including the realms of Evermeet, Halruaa, Ruathym and Waterdeep. ... Ernest Gary Gygax, 2004 Ernest Gary Gygax (born July 27, 1938 in Chicago, Illinois) is best known as the author of the well known fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), co-created with Dave Arneson and co-published with Don Kaye in 1974 under the company Tactical Studies...

• Artifact of Evil
• Come Endless Darkness
• Dance of Demons
• Sea of Death

R.A. Salvatore R. A. Salvatore is a science-fiction and fantasy author best known for his Star Wars and Forgotten Realms novels. ...

• The Dark Elf Trilogy
• The Icewind Dale Trilogy
• Legacy of the Drow
• Paths of Darkness
• The Hunter's Blades Trilogy

Lisa Smedman The Dark Elf Trilogy is a prequel to the very successful Icewind Dale Trilogy by R. A. Salvatore. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Legacy of the Drow is a fantasy series. ... Paths of Darkness is the fourth series of novels about the character Drizzt DoUrden written by R. A. Salvatore. ... The cover of The Thousand Orcs, featuring Drizzt. ... Lisa Smedman is a science fiction and fantasy writer, a game designer and a journalist. ...

• Sacrifice of the Widow

Assorted authors

• War of the Spider Queen
  • Overseen by R.A. Salvatore
• The Shattered Land and The Gates of Night by Keith Baker.

The War of the Spider Queen is a series of novels set in the Forgotten Realms setting, with 6 books: Dissolution (2002) by Richard Lee Byers Insurrection (2002) by Thomas M. Reid Condemnation (2003) by Richard Baker Extinction (2004) by Lisa Smedman Annihilation (2004) by Philip Athans Resurrection (2005) by... R. A. Salvatore is a science-fiction and fantasy author best known for his Star Wars and Forgotten Realms novels. ... Keith Baker is a freelance writer of Dungeons & Dragons material and is most well known for his setting, Eberron, which won the Wizards of the Coast Fantasy Setting Search. ...

Video games

• Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance
• Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II
• Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
• Eye of the Beholder
• Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
• Forgotten Realms: Menzoberranzan
• Icewind Dale
• Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark
• Neverwinter Nights II
• Pools of Darkness
• Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes (As "Dark Elves", although not entirely synonymous with Drow)
• Kingdom Under Fire: The Crusaders (As "Dark Elves", although not entirely synonymous with Drow)
• Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach
• Champions of Norrath (As "Dark Elves", although not entirely synonymous with Drow)
• Champions: Return to Arms (As "Dark Elves", although not entirely synonymous with Drow)
• Defense of the Ancients (As Traxex, the Drow Ranger)
• Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor
• EverQuest
• EverQuest II