Underdark

The Underdark is the vast network of underground caverns and tunnels underneath the surface of Abeir-Toril. It is home to a host of evil beings driven deep into the caverns at the end of the age of demons.

Inhabitants
The Underdark is extremely dangerous, especially to those not native to it. There are the usual dangers associated with caverns: claustrophobia, occasional poor air circulation, and getting lost. There is no light except for occasional patches of fluorescent fungus; most Underdark inhabitants either have highly developed senses other than sight or have developed infravision. Food can be extremely difficult to find, and much of the natural vegetation is poisonous.

In addition to those dangers, the Underdark also is the home of many predators and often-hostile races, including:


 * beholders
 * derro (insane humanoids)
 * drow (dark elves)
 * duergar (gray dwarves)
 * dwarves
 * illithids (mind flayers)
 * kuo-toa
 * svirfneblin (deep gnomes)

Domains
The Underdark is not one giant cavern under Faerûn, but rather, many giant networks of caverns and caves. As a result, it is not always possible to travel from one end of the Underdark to the other. The Underdark is divided into several domains that are similar to continents of the world above. While it is possible to travel from one place to another within a domain, seperate domains tend to have very few passages linking them. The major domains of the Underdark are:


 * The Buried Realms
 * The Darklands
 * The Deep Wastes
 * The Earthroot
 * The Glimmersea
 * Great Bhaerynden
 * The Northdark
 * Old Shanatar

Official Material

 * Underdark
 * City of the Spider Queen
 * Races of the Northern Underdark
 * The Daemonfey
 * More of the Underdark and the Vast!
 * The Steaming Demon
 * House Baenre
 * Tlincallis
 * Ice Spire Mountains
 * Organizations of the Underdark
 * The Underdark Below the North
 * Underdark Campaigns
 * Underdark Dungeons
 * Drizzt Do'Urden's Guide to the Underdark, Eric L. Boyd, TSR, 1999.
 * Drow of the Underdark, Ed Greenwood, TSR, 1991, ISBN 1560761326.
 * Menzoberranzan, Ed Greenwood, Douglas Niles, and R. A. Salvatore, TSR, 1992, ISBN 1560764600.
 * Underdark, Bruce R. Cordell, Gwendolyn F. M. Kestrel, and Jeff Quick, Wizards of the Coast, 2003, ISBN 0786930535.

Portals

 * The Winding Serpent A yuan-ti network of portals
 * The Dark Maiden's Portal
 * The Ched Nasad Portal
 * The Portal of the Demonweb Pits
 * The Portal of the Dead Goddess
 * The Shadow Path: A Portal Network
 * Garbage disposal portal and its ecology
 * The Illithid Gate

Personalities

 * Alak Abaeir, drow assassin
 * Thordek Stonebreaker, duergar cleric of Moradin
 * Akordia Pharn, mother of Eclavdra Pharn
 * Teliene Coloara, the illithid slayer
 * Juz'la, tainted one
 * Liriel Baenre
 * Gorlist
 * Vala Hune

Specific prestige classes

 * Prime Underdark Guide (image)
 * Drow Judicator

Specific templates

 * Mineral Warrior