Lolth

"A lie always returns; be careful how you catch it"

- Tenant of Lolth

At A Glance
The Goddess of lies, secrets, and stealth, Lolth was a Neutral Evil deity who resided in the subterranean realm of The Underdark, an extra-dimensional plane that spanned the underground of the mortal plane. A master at cunning deception, craftiness, and treachery, her fraudulent deceptions tricked people into sacrificing souls to her greatness.

Cruel and domineering, she forced her will upon her followers and her enemies, a will that instructed the strong to subvert the weak in the most torturous ways imaginable. In the history of the Drow, Lolth was first encountered by Trakith Coggarm at the edge of a hot spring in The Underdark. Ready to defend his people, Lolth's power over lies and secrecy prevented the Drow refugees from casting spells or magic, hiding the energies from their minds. Realizing that the only way to stave off enslavement by the spider-goddess was by bartering passage with their souls, Trakith chose the lesser of the two evils (the other being Lolth's mad brother Torog) and stalled the immediate doom of the Drow by allying with Lolth.

She patterned her rule and the lives of her worshippers on a regimen of duplicitous acts and the venerations of spiders. The way that new-born spider broods tore each other apart to survive especially appealed to her. She promoted this by encouraging her worshippers to kill their rivals, keeping secrets, and ensuring that they were the stongest of the brood.

Age of Adventure
Lolth's influence on the mortal plane has been felt numerous times over history.
 * She subverted the first Drow to her will, blackening their skin and granting Trakith Coggarm (later "Naggaroth") immortality.
 * Lolth corrupted the Drow guide Avanae in Central Dominaria, turning her into the spider messenger Scuttle.
 * She continually did battle with her brother Torog in the halls of The Echoes, eventually being captured by her dark god-kin.
 * She imbued the Drow warlord Casshil Viyuka with her favour, seeking to spark a war with the Dwarves of Hammertask and release her from her prison.
 * She made a deal to save a group of adventurers' friend (Kogg Whiffton) from his enslavement by Torog in exchange for her freedom (which was then later given).
 * Receiving the tributes of Breysis Vilatul, Lolth blessed the Drow priestess with the strength to enact the re-unification of The Nine Clans (who were divided by Torog) in the town of Lithdorien (renamed Lolthlorien in the Goddess' name).
 * Lolth imbued the relic The Sunken Heart with her energy to again threaten the inhabitants of Hammertask and Torog's champion Shackle.
 * In the resulting civil war between The Nine Clans, a hole in the fabric of The Underdark to the mortal plane was ripped open by The Sunken Heart, connecting Lolthlorien with the mortal plane. Lolth appeared to oversee the battle, delighting in the carnage. In the end the Nine Clans stood unified but Lolth remained confident that they would break into war yet again, her influence staining their character.
 * At times, she has unleashed "The Silence of Lolth" throughout The Underdark, preventing the use of all magic and extra-dimensional travel.