Shade (Dungeons & Dragons)
Encyclopedia
In the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy
role-playing game
, shades are humanoids who have merged with the essence of the Plane of Shadow. In Third Edition, a shade is created by applying a template to a humanoid creature.
#126 (October 1987).
The shade appeared in second edition in Dragon #213 (January 1995). The shade appeared in the Forgotten Realms
setting in Powers & Pantheons (1997), and reprinted in Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Four (1998).
The shade appeared in third edition for the Forgotten Realms
setting as a template in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
(2001), and as a player character
race in Races of Faerûn
(2003). and Dragon #307 (May 2003). The shade creature appeared in Dragon #322 (August 2004).
The shade appeared in fourth edition for the Forgotten Realms
setting in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide (2008).
campaign setting
, many Shadovar (citizens of the City of Shade) are shades. They are a group of Netherese wizards who fled Faerûn
for the Plane of Shadow before Karsus
's Folly. The City of Shade was one of five cities to survive the cataclysm.
The famous assassin
Artemis Entreri
absorbed the life force of a Shadovar shade using his vampiric dagger. Due to this absorption, Entreri's skin has taken on a grayish hue and his aging has slowed if not stopped altogether.
Erevis Cale
, the butler of the Uskrevan family, was transformed into a shade in the Erevis Cale Trilogy. Drasek Riven also became a shade in The Twilight War trilogy after obtaining a piece of Mask
's divine essence of shadow
.
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, shades are humanoids who have merged with the essence of the Plane of Shadow. In Third Edition, a shade is created by applying a template to a humanoid creature.
Publication history
The shade first appeared in first edition in the original Monster Manual II (1983). The shade was further developed in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#126 (October 1987).
The shade appeared in second edition in Dragon #213 (January 1995). The shade appeared in the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
setting in Powers & Pantheons (1997), and reprinted in Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Four (1998).
The shade appeared in third edition for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
setting as a template in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting is a role-playing game sourcebook first published in 1987, detailing the Forgotten Realms setting, containing information on characters, locations, and history as well as setting-specific rules for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
(2001), and as a player character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
race in Races of Faerûn
Races of Faerûn
Races of Faerûn is an optional supplemental sourcebook for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons.-Contents:...
(2003). and Dragon #307 (May 2003). The shade creature appeared in Dragon #322 (August 2004).
The shade appeared in fourth edition for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
setting in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide (2008).
Description
Shades grow more powerful in areas of darkness or shadows, including the ability to leap from shadow to shadow, to create shadowy duplicates of themselves, and even become entirely invisible. They can also decrease the amount of light in an area, and can see through darkness, even of the magical variety.Shades in the Forgotten Realms
In the Forgotten RealmsForgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
campaign setting
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
, many Shadovar (citizens of the City of Shade) are shades. They are a group of Netherese wizards who fled Faerûn
Faerûn
Faerûn is a fictional subcontinent, the primary setting of the Dungeons & Dragons world of Forgotten Realms. It is described at a relatively high level in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting from Wizards of the Coast, and various locales and aspects are described in more detail by separate...
for the Plane of Shadow before Karsus
Karsus
Lord Karsus is an arcanist in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. He was the Netherese creator and caster of the Karsus's Avatar spell that triggered the Fall of Netheril.-Early life:...
's Folly. The City of Shade was one of five cities to survive the cataclysm.
The famous assassin
Assassin (Dungeons & Dragons)
The assassin is a playable character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It first appeared in 1975 in the Blackmoor supplement, as a thief sub-class. It next appeared in the first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons again as a thief sub-class...
Artemis Entreri
Artemis Entreri
Artemis Entreri is a fictional character in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Entreri is depicted as a ruthless assassin and the arch-enemy of Drizzt Do'Urden, the protagonistic dark elf. He is the creation of author R. A...
absorbed the life force of a Shadovar shade using his vampiric dagger. Due to this absorption, Entreri's skin has taken on a grayish hue and his aging has slowed if not stopped altogether.
Erevis Cale
Erevis Cale
Erevis Cale is a fictional character in the Forgotten Realms series of books, which are published by Wizards of the Coast and based on the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game...
, the butler of the Uskrevan family, was transformed into a shade in the Erevis Cale Trilogy. Drasek Riven also became a shade in The Twilight War trilogy after obtaining a piece of Mask
Mask (Forgotten Realms)
Mask is a fictional deity from the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms campaign setting. His portfolio includes Shadows and thievery. Mask is a Neutral Evil Intermediate Power whose symbol is a black velvet mask tinged with red...
's divine essence of shadow
Shadow
A shadow is an area where direct light from a light source cannot reach due to obstruction by an object. It occupies all of the space behind an opaque object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, or reverse projection of the object blocking the...
.
Shades in other media
- Shades appear in the computer role-playing game Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of UndrentideNeverwinter Nights: Shadows of UndrentideNeverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide is an expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights developed by Floodgate Entertainment and BioWare, and published by Infogrames Entertainment . It was released in June 2003...
. - Shades are also a profession in the MMORPGMMORPGMassively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
Anarchy OnlineAnarchy OnlineAnarchy Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game published and developed by Funcom. Released in the summer of 2001, the game was first in the genre to include a science-fiction setting, dynamic quests, free trials, and in-game advertising. The most ground breaking feature in...
that was released along with the Keeper profession with the Shadowlands expansion pack. - Shades are also a playable character race in the MMORPGMMORPGMassively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
ShadowbaneShadowbaneShadowbane was a free fantasy computer role-playing game created by Wolfpack Studios and published on March 25, 2003 by Ubisoft for Windows and Mac platforms. Originally commercial and subscription-driven, Shadowbane was launched in March 2003, and was the creation of text-MUD veterans J...
.