Lone Wolf and The Planes of Existence

[Anonymous]

the Pit of Eternal Pain is some form of banishment. If you think about it, the Agarash mythology is still unsettled. I mean, Shasarak agrees to take Agarash' place to avoid being killed by Grey Star. I imagine that leaving the Pit of Eternal Pain is a bit more complicated than merely having a Moonstone or anything of that nature.

The impression that I got, and this might be completely wrong, is that in order for Agarash to be freed, someone must take his place. In the book, Shasarak offers to do this when Grey Star whoops him (though, because the Door is destroyed before Agarash comes through, the net effect is that BOTH of them are now trapped there).

But, since Agarash is ALSO capable of taking control of Grey Star's mind in the Lissan Plain, and forcing him to enter the Door and take his place (if you screw up too badly), it seems that the only real requirement to free Agarash is for someone else, willing or no, to physically take his place.

So, if the Door in Lissan WAS an artificial Shadow Gate, then Naar should have been capable of opening the door to the Pit of Eternal Pain, then sending one of his minions, or just some random innocent dupe through to free one of his most effective lieutenants.

If you think about it, the only reason Agarash failed was due to the Elder Magi. And since they're gone now, one can only assume Agarash would be more effective than he was before...

You'd actually be right on target. The entire story seemed to revolve around Agarash trying to exchange places with Shasarak. It was just Shasarak's unwillingness to concede defeat to Grey Star that postponed it. I think someone of POWER has to exchange places with him, though. So Agarash can't just hypnotize some merchant fellow to step through the Portal of the Damned.

Here's my question: Ian Page developed aspects of Grey Star and Southern Magnamund--how much did he contribute to the concepts of the Moonstone, Shianti, Agarash and the like?

 

[Anonymous]

You forgot one very important Shadow Gate. The one used by the Shianti and the Ice Demons to cross over to Magnamund. Seeing as the Ancients battled the Ice Demons in Kalte I would assume that the Shadow Gate they used is in the north. Lone Wolf finding a bound Ice Demon in book 3
seems to support this.

 

[ParanoidObsessive]

You forgot one very important Shadow Gate. The one used by the Shianti and the Ice Demons to cross over to Magnamund. Seeing as the Ancients battled the Ice Demons in Kalte I would assume that the Shadow Gate they used is in the north. Lone Wolf finding a bound Ice Demon in book 3 seems to support this.

Actually, if memory serves, doesn't Lone Wolf actually FIND said gate in Caverns of Kalte, if you go the right way?

 

[Smiling Fox]

No, he did not find the gate, he just remembered a story heard about said gate. Also I think I have read something somewhere that stated that shadow gates were mobile in the southern hemisphere and stationary in the northern hemisphere of Magnamund. I think it was in a newsletter or something similar.

 

[North Star]

Well, we were theorising about it at TotS, if you'll recall. I don't remember the source though.

NS.

 

[DuskFox]

In PoT, Lone Wolf learns that the only way back to Aon is via a power greater than most humans possess - in other words, the Lorestones. If you break things down, Lone Wolf is unable to use the one-way Shadow Gate in reverse until he's straddling the line between Scion-Kai and Archmaster.

This jives with the Grey Star books, as well. In BtNG, Grey Star returns to Magnamund only after retrieving the Moonstone, which makes the Lorestones look like toys comparing relative power levels.

I dug what you had to say about the logistics of someone actually achieving the level of power needed to perform such a feat, and agree wholeheartedly--it’s a short list of names even if you draw from the history of all of Magnamund. This is not a journey to be taken lightly--if you’re not a prisoner being cast into the Daziarn as punishment, then you’re either going on a quest as a last-ditch effort to save the world (Grey Star), or you’re going by complete accident and would have preferred not to go at all (Lone Wolf).

Anyhow, I mostly wanted to compliment you on a very well-worded post. I thought it showed a lot of insight and understanding of the setting, and think you pretty much said what needed saying on the subject. Way to go, ParanoidObsessive.