Sevenstrings

The Sevenstrings are an offshoot of the Harpers[1] of the Forgotten Realms.

History

The Sevenstrings were founded by a Gnome named Colmarr Greatorm. When he was still a Harper Agent in good standing, Colmarr was sent to coax a hermit woman named Evanar from her place of retreat deep in the forest, so she would be available to give birth to children prophesied by Mystra, goddess of magic. Colmarr was struck to the core by Evanar's grief at having been forced to live well beyond her natural span, just so she could continue to keep giving birth to prophesied children, and her having been shackled to return to Toril no matter how far she fled.

Based on Evanar's journals of her planar travels and research, as well as a book of lore she bestowed on him, Colmarr learned of the many-worlds interpretation[2], and came to a new conviction. Rather than wage endless battles, it would be better for the Harpers to create portals that would allow every faction to travel to a Toril all its own.

Colmarr quietly seceded from the Harpers and started gathering followers of his own, petitioning several gods to sponsor his new movement, just as other gods had blessed the Harpers and an earlier offshoot known as the Moonstars[3]. His faction was composed of various creatures, some of whom would be considered monstrous, but who were all united by the promise of worlds all their own, just as their divine sponsors were enticed by the notion of worlds where they would receive sole worship. The newly-minted Sevenstrings worked on creating their portal in seclusion, but drew the attention of the prior two factions, who wildly misinterpreted their purpose, believing the Sevenstrings to be a Qabal intent on opening a doorway into some unsuspected layer of the Lower Planes.

The Sevenstrings were attacked by a combined force of Harpers and Moonstars in their headquarters. An errant spell struck their portal, causing a malfunction that sucked the last surviving Sevenstring agents into the Demiplane of Dread. Those who survived the faulty transfer found themselves stranded in dreary Lamordia.

Current Sketch

The Sevenstrings have continued their work.

As a Dread Possibility, one faction is still extant in the vicinity of Toril, although they now have their headquarters in a hidden demiplane. This faction has grown hostile towards the Harpers and Moonstars alike, and has gone out of its way to stop Harper agents from reaching Evanar and fulfilling more of Mystra's prophecies regarding the woman they consider their true founder.

The Sevenstrings' elder faction continues to operate from the Core, gathering lore and technologies which they seek to incorporate in their new portal. While the Demiplane is easily as intolerant of their non-standard members as the people of Toril, they appreciate the varied sources of information they can tap due to the various origin worlds of the Domains that make it up. Even Lamordia offers fine scientific advances, which was a contributing factor in the Sevenstrings' decision to make their new headquarters and start work on a new portal there.

If the Sevenstrings can manage to get their portal working, they plan to turn the Demiplane of Dread into a central hub for their planar travels, as well as a safe ground against the enemies they left behind. The Sevenstrings are woefully unaware that they have already made powerful enemies, such as the Syndicate of Enlightened Citizens (which would oppose their combination of science with magic); Inza Kulchevich (who hates the message of hope they ultimately represent); Azalin Rex (who might be interested in their portal if they can make it work); and Meredoth (who would be happy to take their amassed lore and add it to his spellbooks).

Due to the machinations of the interested Darklords, the Sevenstrings have been infiltrated by a Kargat agent, and one of their members has been transformed into a Lebendtod.

Modus Operandi

The Sevenstrings are scholars of both magic and science, and combine the two through research and experiments in order to achieve their goals. The creation of items is one of their defining traits, and they are constantly labouring on a new portal - one which includes elements that went into the creation of the World Engine, as they have gotten their hands on an old record of Mu's notes.

As a Dread Possibility, the Sevenstrings' portal is slowly growing closer to awareness and self-awareness. In the end, it may turn out to be something very different from what it was meant to be.

While the Sevenstrings prefer to deal with and recruit fellow Outlanders, they sometimes accept natives of the Demiplane of Dread; as a group they are not inclined to using Necromancy to extend their existence, and so must find and train new recruits, just as they are constantly seeking new knowledge of magic and the sciences to achieve their goal.