Jaezred Chaulssin

The Jaezred Chaulssin was a secret patriarchal organization based in Chaulssin primarily consisting of skilled shadow dragon-blooded drow assassins bent on ending the drow race’s slavery to Lolth.

Objectives
The Jaezred Chaulssin’s objective was to free the drow from Lolth’s and her priestesses’ oppression. Their chosen way of doing so was to violently tearing down the system that allows her theocracy to exist. They fully understood that doing this would cause a power vacuum that would make their people suffer weakness and enslavement for a time measured in centuries, but were wiling to risk it for their „salvation“. Their goal was not of altruistic nature as their goal involved becoming the guiding force in reconstructing a society and then the rulers.

Activities
The Jaezred Chaulssin were an assassins’ guild. They took jobs in the field of spying and assassination. The guild generally tried to be hidden and managed to remain out of sight and mind of Lolth’s clergy despite dealing numerous successful attacks against the church.

While they have completely destroyed Ched Nasad during the Silence of Lolth, and they caused a carnage on the graduation ceremony of Arach-Trinilith by unleashing demon hordes on the students in 1469 DR, such overt action are rare. Their modus operandi was to first infiltrate minor noble houses, for example the cell in Menzoberranzan is headed by Nimor Imphraezl who poses as Nagyon Nurindyn of House Nurindyn which holds the 48th rank, the third from the bottom of nobility, and then actually taking control over them. After securing a foothold, they started boiling up the populace’s dissatisfaction of commoners, minor nobles but in general males, whose maltreatment up to sacrifice is Lolth’s dogma and thus law in drow cities. They also infiltrated male dominated groups to teach rebellious ideas, in the case of Menzoberranzan, examples of such male dominated groups include Melee-Magthere, Sorcere and even the Council of Spiders, a Lolth-loyalist faction in Sorcere. Spreading rumors and doubts about the society in disguise on the streets was also common. An interesting infiltration was the one employed by the shadar-kai and half-drow members. It involved selling oneself into slavery to a noble house to become a favored servant while simultaneously sowing dissent inside the house and urging the house to ally with the Jaezred Chaulssin-controlled house/fosterage to give the guild a direct link to their enemy.

The goal is to create a climate of dissatisfaction and anger as well as opposition groups in the rulership’s belly that allows violent revolts that leads to successfully tearing down Lolth’s theocracy.

Magic and Skills
All members of the Jaezred Chaulssin had some sorcerous and/or roguish abilities. Generally, they were particularly trained in abilities that required some stealth, like hiding, sneaking, disguising, or lying and seeing through lies or arcane abilities. As an organization dedicated to the destruction of a religious organization (Lolth’s church) and themselves of a religious bend some learned deeper knowledge in matters of religion. Most learned the skills of assassination and their unique training made their assassination abilities more dangerous than those outside of their guild.

When it came down to magical abilities, they seemed to have favored illusion magic, particularly those with ties to shadow. Favored were spells like ebon eyes that allowed them to see in magical darkness, those of protective nature as shadow phase, of travel like shadow walk, or additional help like spectral dragon, which was more powerful if cast by creatures wth ties to the Plane of Shadow, in general though, there seemed to exist the tendency to favor spells that allowed a wide variety of options. Starting with shadow evocation and shadow conjuration or shades that allowed to mimic other spells to project image or simulacrum that created a second (illusory and only of the caster in the former’s case) body that could be used for just about anything to shadowgloom that had the option of either to create an area where sunlight doesn’t affect those within or an image of a humanoid of the caster’s choosing.

The Jaezred Chaulssin, drgonblood or not, were drow and understood themselves as such, so they used magical tools used by other elves like boots of elvenkind or drows like piwafis.

Their profession as assassins drove them to use armors with the shadow and silent moves properties to augment their abilities in stealth, assassin’s daggers to raise the effectiveness of their killing strikes while using rapiers of puncturing to lower the abilities of their victims to survive such strikes and capturing enemies was made easier by the use of dimensional shackles which prevented their captives from teleporting away. The trollgut rope was also in frequent usage for its versatility.

One thing though, which couldn’t be forgotten about them was their ties to the Plane of Shadows. This tie was exploited by the invention of the dragonspectre flute, a flute that allowed the user in exchange of temporary or rarely permanent loss of vitality to create a spectral dragon, which can only be used by creatures with ties to the Plane of Shadow as well as the ring of shadows which was basically a ring that turned the user invisible but in the hands of a person with ties to the aforementioned plane also allowed travel through the shadows and even to go ethereal.

Base of operations
The Jaezred Chaulssin were "based" in the ruined drow city of Chaulssin, from which they got their name. However, they also infiltrated minor houses in many drow cities, which they used as bases of power, called fosterages, and places to raise their young. These cities were, namely, Ched Nasad, Dusklyngh, Eryndlyn, Jhachalkhyn, Karsoluthiyl, Maerimydra, and Sschindylryn and, as of 1469 DR, Menzoberranzan. Apart from these, they kept six minor bases in settlements like Skullport or Sshamath that were not (primarily) ruled by Lolth but allowed drow to walk freely.

Their main base in Chaulssin is called the House of Hidden Masters, once the city’s temple of Lolth, now the lair of the guild master Mauzzkyl Jaezred.

They practically control the city of Jhachalkhyn and are the strongest individual power in Ched Nasad through controlling the males of the leading house Teh’Kinrellz who had power rivaling and/or exceeding the females' power.

Members
The Jaezred Chaulssin was primarily made up of drow with shadow dragon blood, namely the following types:


 * zar'ithra (shadow draconic drow)
 * zekyl (half-shadow dragon drow)
 * draa'zekyl (drow-dragon) (the eight Patron Fathers)

The zeri'ithras' draconic blood gave them keener sight, strong, durable and intimidating bodies, protective scales and a degree of resistance against paralysis, and sharp claws while their ties to the Plane of Shadow gave them faster movement, a tolerance for cold, aptitude for stealth, skulking away into shadows and at least one (mostly magical) skill (such as better reflexes, resistance against non magical attacks, some innate spells like that of fear, illusion or even traveling to and away from the Plane of Shadow or a tendency to be lucky). Stronger ones had a tendency to have more of these skills.

The zekyls were the most numerous members of the Jaezred Chaulssin and their more concentrated dragon blood compared to the zeri’ithras gave them even stronger, but not more durable, bodies, even stronger scales, a keener mind, an outright immunity to paralysis as well as keener senses (they actually could sense things without seeing them) and the ability to breathe shadowy fumes that sapped the abilities of their targets (they were immune to their own and each others' breathes themselves). Unlike other half-dragons of their size, the zekyls sported wings that allowed them to fly. They could fly faster than they could walk.

The draa’zekyl formed the leadership of the Jaezred Chaulssin and were zekyls who have divided their drow and dragon heritage through magic originally from Clan Malaug. They were shadow dragons that were also drows and could take either form. Through growing and aging they gained more power and abilities of dragons, apart from their draconic sharp senses, physical and mental strength also their magical abilities, they could strike fear, blend into shadows, create illusions, shield themselves from divination, teleport, create an area that is favorable for creatures with ties to the Plane of Shadow, gain a resistance against magic as well as non magical physical attacks and the spell casting ability. As all other dragons, they were able to attack with a magical breath. Theirs was a stronger versions of the zekyls’. Unlike with other shadow dragons, those who dies at the hands of the draa’zekyls’ breath didn’t remain dead but rose as spectral creatures tied to the will of the draa’zekyl that killed it. The draa’zekyl transformed many former denizens of Chaulssin into these undeads including their former slavers in Chaulssin, their dragon parents of Clan Jaezred.

While shadow dragon-blood-holders were the vast majority of the guild’s membership, membership itself was tied to their readiness of bringing down Lolth’s rule and (loose) adherence to Vhaeraun’s faith but not to racial or ethnic affiliation. The initiation ritual usually took place as a sacrifice of the heart of a priestess of Lolth, killed by the initiate, to Vhaeraun

They always employed shadar-kai, a race in perpetual danger of dying on the spot, in a state of borderline to actual slavery in exchange of aid in keeping them alive. At latest in 1469 DR, shadar-kai comprised a not unimportant part of the membership as did drow with no dragon blood. Half-drows have also become members of the guild by that time.

The Jaezred Chaussin were followers of Vhaeraun, but over a few centuries they began emphasizing their faith less and less in order to evade the possibility of open war with Lolth. Still, the death of Vhaeraun in 1375 DR, alongside the Spellplague, was such a heavy setback for them that they were forced to rebuild their strength for an entire century. Their numbers have dropped from about 800 before the Spellplague to about 140 in 1469 DR.

Leadership
All members of the leadership are drow-dragons who held at least some aptitude for assassination.


 * Mauzzkyl Jaezred: Patron Grandfather (Chaulssin). Born in 27 DR, he was great wyrm drow-dragon sorcerer and assassin who appeared as a healthy but aged drow. He was the founder of the Jaezred Chaulssin.
 * Durrelon Claddmtor : Patron Father (Dusklyngh).
 * Ilphtrin Imphraezl : Patron Father (Sschindylryn).
 * Quildan Oussgyhm : Patron Father (Karsoluthiyl).
 * Tomphael Arkenrret : Patron Father (Eryndlyn).
 * Vesz'zt Auvryana : Patron Father (Maerimydra) was unique in that he was a vampiric dragon.
 * Xorthaul Barriath : Patron Father (Jhachalkhyn). He was the head priest of Vhaeraun in Chaulssin
 * Zammzt Everharn : Patron Father (Ched Nasad).

Other

 * Antrysn Barriath : Anointed Blade (after 1373 DR). He was a sorcerer and assassin with a nasty temper. He had dark-scaled skin covered in arcane rune scars and kept his entire body smooth-shaven. He was murdered by his rival, Nimor, but his father Xorthaul raised him from the dead and he became Anointed Blade after Nimor's failure in Menzoberranzan.
 * Nimor Imphraezl : Former Anointed Blade (until 1373 DR). He lost his position of Anointed Blade after he failed to conquer Menzoberranzan during the Silence of Lolth.

Organization
The Jaezred Chaulssin were led by a council. The council was headed by the Patron Grandfather Mauzzkyl Chaulssin. Including the Patron Grandfather, there were eight Patron Fathers of the Jaezred Chaulssin who formed the leader ship. Each of the Patron Fathers was a draa’zekyl and also the leader of a major fosterage.

Members of the guild were called Velves („Blades") and served the Patron Fathers. They were ranked from First to Eighth Blades and they needed permission from their superiors to take on risky jobs such as assassination. The First Blade, Ust’Velves, counted three members, the next Second Blades, ‚‘Draat’Velves, counted five and so on until the Seventh Blades’ fifteen members and the Eighth Blades had no upper limit in accepted numbers. Rising in rank was done by beating a higher ranking member. It is not clear whether „beating" had to involve killing but it was at least accepted as in the case of Nimor Imphraezl killing his by-that-time-superior Antrysn Barriath to get his position.

An exception to this rank system was the Ortho'Velve ("Anointed Blade"). This position was filled with one individual at all time and was only accountable to the Patron Grandfather, in other words he outranked not only the other Blades but also the Patron Fathers save the guildmaster whose will he carried out.

Founding
In 734 DR, warned by Vhaeraun, the denizens of Chaulssin, who have overthrown and killed their shadow dragon slavers, escaped to the Plane of Shadow. They fled from the armies of Menzoberranzan who tried to kill them. The reason for the war was religious. After the drow from Chaulssin, who sported many half-dragons among them, freed themselves from slavery without Lolth’s help, Menzoberranzan sent emissaries to the Chaulssinyr demanding obedience to Lolth which they rebuffed which resulted in the Spider Queen’s decision to punish them.

Once their city Chaul’mur’ssin was established on the Plane of Shadow, the Chaulssinyr had the enmity of other groups, for example the Shadovar but mainly from Clan Malaug. The Chaulssinyr still felt the desire to return to Toril.

In 792 DR, the church of Vhaeraun found out that the city’s leadership was honeycombed by malaugrym. These infiltrators were found out and killed in one day but at heavy cost, both in the sense of lives but also in the sense of organization for the city’s leadership was no more. The void of leadership was filled by the church and in response to the casualties House Jaezred, the forebears of the Jaezred Chaulssin, was founded. At that time, their role was to reveal, locate and kill infiltrators who can change form as the malaugrym.

A stalemate followed in the following years, during which the Chaulssinyr studied and learned from their enemies. They finally managed to steal the game changer. The secret to divide their drow and dragon heritage and thus gain the full abilities of their dragon parents but also the ability to change into an individual drow form. The credit was House Jaezred’s assassins’ and the power and prestige they gained through it threatened to throw their city into internal strife between them and the church of Vhaeraun. To avoid this and to distance themselves from the church, the assassins decided to fulfill the Chaulssinyrs’ dream of going back to Toril and to use their powers to undermine Lolth’s rule over the drow.

Plane shifted House Jaezred set up their main base in their former home of Chaulssin, in 1136 DR, and established the House of the Hidden Masters and came to be known as the assassins’ guild Jaezred Chaulssin from this point onwards.

The Jaezred Chaulssin tried to infiltrate a total of seven drow cities namely Ched Nasad, Eryndlyn, Jhachalkhyn, Karsoluthiyl, Maerimydra, and Menzoberranzan and created fosterages there through posing as minor nobility. Menzoberranzan was the only one that resisted infiltration which is why Dusklyngh was chosen instead. In addition, six minor fosterages were formed in cities like Skullport or Sshamath that were not (primarily) ruled by Lolth but allowed drow to walk freely.

In 1241 DR, Clan Malaug kidnapped the pregnant mate of the Patron Grandfather. The Jaezred Chaulssin were able to kill the kidnappers but the female drow-dragon vanished. The missing offspring was discovered in 1358 DR north of Amphail under the name Nurvureem but the Jaezred Chaulssin opted to just watch and wait to see if she became a threat.

The Silence of Lolth
Between the years 1372 DR and 1373 DR, Lolth stopped granting spells to her priestesses. The time is known as the Silence of Lolth. The priestesses, who were unprepared for the sudden loss of spells but whose power and rule was dependent on Lolth favoring them and intimidating the others into servitude, were put into disarray.

The Jaezred Chaulssin chose to strike and implement their plans to take down a number of Lolthite cities, namely Ched Nasad, Dusklyngh, Eryndlyn, Jhachalkhyn, Karsoluthiyl, Maerimydra, and Menzoberranzanl.

Through a series of smaller strikes in the cities Dusklyngh, Jhachalkhyn and Karsoluthiyl, the Jaezred Chaulssin created a power vacuum that mainly male merchants filled who then funneled money back to their „opportunity givers“.

In Eryndlyn, they urged the Vhaeraun followers and Ghaunadaur followers, who were already working together after Selvetarm’s avatar’s rampage during the Time of Troubles, to throw away their reluctance, due to their combined number being the equivalent of their enemy’s, to bring the Lolth followers down and caused a civil war that ended in the death of almost every priestess of Lolth.

They provided the stonefire bombs that led to the destruction of Ched Nasad by incinerating the calcified webbing on which the city was suspended resulting in the destruction of the entire city. Their work in Maerimydra and Menzoberranzan was a failure. The former was surprisingly taken by followers of Kiaransalee led by Irae T'sarran.

In the latter the Anointed Blade, Nimor Imphraezl, brought together a number of allies, including Crown Prince Horgar Steelshadow's duergar army of Gracklstugh, the Scourged Legion of Kaanyr Vhok, and the drow House Agrach Dyrr led by the Lichdrow Dyrr. He secretly led them in a siege on Menzoberranzan. Although his forces succeeded in defeating the city's Army of the Black Spider, the siege ultimately failed when Lolth returned and the Silence of Lolth ended, allowing the city's priestesses to turn back the invaders.

Post-Spellplague
The Spellplague and the death of Vhaeraun in 1375 DR was a setback for the guild that forced them to rebuild their strength over a century. Their numbers have dropped from about 800 before the Spellplague to about 140 in 1469 DR.

Chex Nasad’s ruling council was obliged to make concessions to the Jaezred Chaulssin. Said ruling council itself was considered an abomination by the one of Menzoberranzan because the males of the leading House Teh'Kinrellz, controlled by the Jaezred Chaulssin, had power rivaling and/or exceeding the females' power.

The Jaezred Chaulssin managed to finally infiltrate Menzoberranzan. Under the leadership of Nimor Imphraezl, they set their eye on Tier Breche, the city’s educational institution, or more precisely on the death of Arach-Trinilith’s priestesses who lead entire Tier Breche. Apart from one open attack that consisted of unleashing demon hordes on the graduation ceremony and causing casualties and damage to the temple in 1469 DR, their primary modus operandi was to foment opposition groups in the male dominated Sorcere, the mage-school, Melee-Magthere, the warrior school, as well as teaching Menzoberranzan’s males, commoners and minor nobility the idea of rebellion against the oppressive priestesses and their matriarchy. Their goal was to incite a violent rebellion on a scale that would destroy the city’s rulership.

At latest in 1479 DR, the Jaezred Chaulssin took assassination jobs from their former enemies the Netherese. While they were considered allies, the assassins’ guild was apparently in danger of being subsumed by them.

Appearances
War of the Spider Queen series:
 * Novels:
 * Dissolution
 * Condemnation
 * Insurrection
 * Extinction
 * Annihilation
 * Resurrection