Soap was a cleaning substance created and used throughout the realms, even though was sometimes hard to find. When lathered it created foam that removed dirt and smell from skin, clothing, adventuring gear, or hair.[23]
“
Until you've been bathed by a cheerful, skillful, beautiful maid who wears white gloves as she soaps you, you haven't lived.
”
Description[]
Soaps were often molded into bars[25] and scented with aromatic oils[1] or herbs like chamomile.[3]
The daily soaps from Selgaunt popular in the 14th century DR came in 4 ounces (0.11 kilograms) bars of several varieties: plain lye for 1 cp, mild for 1 sp, and scented for 1 gp. There were many available scents, but most popular Sembian imported ones were Moonshae Spring, Elven Wild, Unicorn's Horn, and Shining Sea.[8]
Usually soaps were created using tree oils, but goblins of Grodd used fungus of similar properties to create soaps, detergents, scented perfumes and aromatics.[20]
Usage[]
Soaps were useful in everyday life for their cleaning properties, as well as during adventuring. Soap and wine could be used to dissolve slime produced by aboleths that gets lodged in creatures' throats if inhaled.[26]
Due to its high oil content, soap could be used as lubricant or for temporary waterproofing or sealing.[23]
Soap was often a standard piece of equipment found in healing and medical facilities.[27]
Special type of leather conditioner called saddle soap was used in the Dalelands together with leather oil.[28]
Priests of Azul used pumice soap to scrape themselves clean as the part of their faith's rituals.[18]
Soap bubble-wetted piece of paper was one of the material components for the lighten load spell.[29] A small piece of soap was the material component for the very rare remove smell spell[30]. Cleanse spell could be cast using a piece of soap.[31] And a soap bubble or a blown egg shell were needed to cast the sound bubble bardic spell.[32]
Availability[]
- Arabel's Cheth Zalbar was a merchant that traded in perfumes, lotions, soaps, and dyes circa 1367 DR.[1]
- Calimport's guild House of the Veil Gizara, was the Headquarters of the Aromatic Order of Perfumists, Apothecarists, and Soap-Makers.[9]
- Castle Naerytar's Cult of the Dragon residents circa 1480s DR used soaps and scented waters.[14]
- Durpar was a nation of traders that crafted many goods, including soap, and sold them across the Realms.[19]
- Mantol-Derith, a trade outpost in Underdark had soap among its many trade goods that were used and passed through.[17]
- Maztican priests of Azul used painfully abrasive pumice soap to ritually clean themselves, displaying their skin abrasions proudly.[18]
- In Melvaunt, Moonsea region, soap was part of the scions' kits they assembled prior to heading out to Thar circa 1372 DR.[6]
- Newfort's small training post, Narm's Exchange, bought locally produced goods, including soaps, and sold them at Sundabar circa 1372 DR.[5]
- Ravens Bluff's Chandlers' Guild represented crafters and sellers of various goods, including soaps.[7] In that city's Open Air Farmers Market, one could find soap for sale from the merchant Omelia Trom that were made by her mother-in-law.[33]
- Suzail's citizens commonly produced and used soaps. One variation of an enchanted item keychain of domestic propriety used by many maids of Suzail, could summon a soapy cleaning brush.[2]
- Svardborg in Thrym was inhabited by the frost giant who stockpiled trade goods, including crates of soap.[15]
- Undermountain civilized residents such as werebats, used soap and stored bars.[16]
- Waterdeep residents used a lot of soap, often scented. The city's Launderers' Guild used copious amounts of soap in their daily business.[4]
- Waukeen's Rest inn in the Western Heartlands provided its guests with camomile-scented bars of soap.[3]
Beyond Toril, soap could be found in Strahd von Zarovich's Domains of Dread[25] and the demiplane of Grodd.[20]
Notable Owners[]
- Martine, an experienced ranger and a Harper who kept her personal items and treasures in her enchanted rucksack, Smerznik's Super Satchel. One of the items she always kept in the Satchel was soap.[34]
Appendix[]
Trivia[]
- Bedine folk of Anauroch knew a way of creating soaps and considered the recipe to be a grave secret only known to their people. If a traveler were too mention they knew how to make soap, Bedine human would simply murder them to keep the "secret".[10]
- When Elminster Aumar introduced an exotic delicacy from another world, called root beer float, Dalamar of Krynn aggravatingly compare its taste to that of soap.[35]
- Ghul-kin of Zakhara adored all perfumes, pleasant aromas, scented waters, and scented soaps. The creatures often used them to cover their own ghoulish stench.[36]
- Wizard lice, tiny parasitic creatures, were impervious to soap and could only be removed by a cure disease spell.[37]
See Also[]
Appearances[]
- Adventures
- Nightmare Keep • Caravans • Four from Cormyr • Into the Dragon's Lair • Sons of Gruumsh • Hoard of the Dragon Queen • Storm King's Thunder • Out of the Abyss • Curse of Strahd • Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage • Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
- Referenced only
- A Dozen and One Adventures • Shadowdale: The Scouring of the Land
- Novels
- The Ring of Winter' • The Council of Blades • The Crimson Gold
- Video Games
- Baldur's Gate III
- Gamebooks
- Referenced only
- Knight of the Living Dead
- Board Games
- Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Begins
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Ed Greenwood, Julia Martin, Jeff Grubb (1993). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 2nd edition (revised), A Grand Tour of the Realms. (TSR, Inc), p. 47. ISBN 1-5607-6617-4.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 John Terra (November 1997). Four from Cormyr. Edited by Kim Mohan. (TSR, Inc.), p. 126. ISBN 0-7869-0646-4.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke, et al. Baldur's Gate III. Larian Studios.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Ed Greenwood and Steven E. Schend (July 1994). “Adventurer's Guide to the City”. City of Splendors (TSR, Inc), p. 47. ISBN 0-5607-6868-1.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Ed Greenwood and Jason Carl (July 2002). Silver Marches. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 82. ISBN 0-7869-2835-2.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Christopher Perkins (September 2005). Sons of Gruumsh. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 28. ISBN 0-7869-3698-3.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Ed Greenwood (October 1998). The City of Ravens Bluff. Edited by John D. Rateliff. (TSR, Inc.), p. 83. ISBN 0-7869-1195-6.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Jeff Grubb, Julia Martin, Steven E. Schend et al (1992). Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue. (TSR, Inc), p. 101. ISBN 0-5607-6327-2.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Steven E. Schend (October 1998). Calimport. (TSR, Inc), p. 48. ISBN 0-7869-1238-3.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Ed Greenwood (November 1991). Anauroch. Edited by Karen S. Boomgarden. (TSR, Inc.), p. 44. ISBN 1-56076-126-1.
- ↑ Pauli Kidd (November 1996). The Council of Blades. (TSR, Inc.), chap. 13, p. 241. ISBN 978-0786905317.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Voronica Whitney-Robinson (September 2012). The Crimson Gold. (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 6. ISBN 0-7869-3120-5.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Rick Swan (1994). Al-Qadim: Caravans: Campaign Guide. (TSR, Inc), p. 15. ISBN 1-56076-903-3.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Wolfgang Baur, Steve Winter (August 2014). Hoard of the Dragon Queen. Edited by Miranda Horner. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 56. ISBN 978-0786965649.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Christopher Perkins, et al. (September 2016). Storm King's Thunder. Edited by Kim Mohan, Michele Carter. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 165. ISBN 978-0-7869-6600-4.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Christopher Perkins (November 2018). Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Edited by Jeremy Crawford. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 78. ISBN 978-0-7869-6626-4.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Christopher Perkins, Adam Lee, Richard Whitters (September 1, 2015). Out of the Abyss. Edited by Jeremy Crawford. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 141. ISBN 978-0-7869-6581-6.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Douglas Niles (August 1991). “Voyages to the True World”. Maztica Campaign Set (TSR, Inc.), p. 26. ISBN 1-5607-6084-2.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Scott Bennie (February 1990). Old Empires. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 9. ISBN 978-0880388214.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Sean K. Reynolds, Steve Miller (2000). Into the Dragon's Lair. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 52. ISBN 0-7869-1634-6.
- ↑ Jeff Grubb, Julia Martin, Steven E. Schend et al (1992). Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue. (TSR, Inc), p. 66. ISBN 0-5607-6327-2.
- ↑ Jeremy Crawford (September 2019). “Rulebook”. Dungeons & Dragons Essentials Kit (Wizards of the Coast), p. 43. ISBN 978-0-7869-6683-7.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 slade et al (June 1995). Encyclopedia Magica Volume III. (TSR, Inc.), p. 1126. ISBN 0-7869-0187-X.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (January 1993). Volo's Guide to Waterdeep. (TSR, Inc.), p. 32. ISBN 1-56076-335-3.
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Christopher Perkins, Tracy Hickman, Laura Hickman (March 2016). Curse of Strahd. Edited by Kim Mohan. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 215. ISBN 978-0-7869-6598-4.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood, Julia Martin, Jeff Grubb (1993). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 2nd edition (revised), Shadowdale. (TSR, Inc), p. 81. ISBN 1-5607-6617-4.
- ↑ Rick Swan (1991). Nightmare Keep. (TSR, Inc), p. 19. ISBN 1-5607-6147-4.
- ↑ Richard Baker, Eric L. Boyd, Thomas M. Reid (July 2007). Shadowdale: The Scouring of the Land. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 30. ISBN 07-8694-039-5.
- ↑ Cook, Findley, Herring, Kubasik, Sargent, Swan (1991). Tome of Magic 2nd edition. (TSR, Inc), p. 59. ISBN 1-56076-107-5.
- ↑ Mark Middleton et al (March 1998). Wizard's Spell Compendium Volume Three. (TSR, Inc), p. 744. ISBN 978-0786907915.
- ↑ Scott Bennie (February 1990). Old Empires. Edited by Mike Breault. (TSR, Inc.), p. 78. ISBN 978-0880388214.
- ↑ Mark Middleton et al (March 1998). Wizard's Spell Compendium Volume Three. (TSR, Inc), p. 837. ISBN 978-0786907915.
- ↑ Joseph Wichmann (November 1988). “The Living City: Open Air Farmers Market”. In Jean Rabe ed. Polyhedron #44 (TSR, Inc.), pp. 23–24.
- ↑ Dale Donovan, Paul Culotta (August 1996). Heroes' Lorebook. (TSR, Inc), p. 70. ISBN 0-7869-0412-7.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (August 1993). “The Wizards Three: Three Wizards Too Many”. In Roger E. Moore ed. Dragon #196 (TSR, Inc.), p. 84.
- ↑ Jon Pickens ed. (1995). Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Two. (TSR, Inc.), p. 63. ISBN 0-7869-0199-3.
- ↑ Monstrous Compendium included in Tim Beach, Tom Prusa and Steve Kurtz (1993). City of Delights. (TSR, Inc). ISBN 1-56076-589-5.