Delulu realms

In 3e Bane is assigned the following classes:

•Wizard (10)

•Rogue (20)

•Fighter (15)

•Cleric (10)

and •Blackguard (10)

In 3e Bane also possesses a pet raven called 'Koravis', which caught my attention. Koravis is described as such:

"Koravis was the fiendish raven companion of Bane, the god of tyranny... Bane and Koravis could speak to each other and were connected by both an empathic link and a powerful blood bond, which enhanced the raven's might and skill whenever he witnessed any threat or harm to Bane. The raven's reflexes, will, and fortitude were also closely tied to those of the dark god."

For anyone who wonders about the source: It's "Faiths and Pantheons".

Quite the powerful little beast.

So I wondered why exactly Bane has a pet and how he got it. To figure this out I scoured his classes (yes, of every edition) and compared their different attributes to one another.

During this I stumbled upon a certain spell that fits Koravis quite nicely: Summon Monsters.

"This spell functioned just as all summon monster spells. It could summon a badger, dog, giant fire beetle, monkey, owl, or porpoise from one of the celestial planes or a dire rat, hawk, medium-sized monstrous centipede, small monstrous scorpion, small monstrous spider, octopus, raven, or small viper from one of the fiendish planes." -Summon Monsters as a lvl 1 spell.

Koravis is specifically called a fiendish raven. So that fits.

The only classes this spell is avaiable too, that Bane is attributed with, are wizard, blackguard and cleric.

The spell is also only avaiable to Chaotic Evil/Good or Lawful Evil/Good aligned characteres.

Bane, in every edition, is a Lawful Evil aligned god. So he could cast the spell without problems.

Then I tried to figure out which of his three classes was the one used to cast the spell, which is not easy due to the fact that it is a lvl 1 spell. So anyone with the most basic understanding of magic could summon a creature.

Which actually leads me to believe that Bane summoned Koravis when he was still a mortal. Bane, as a god, is someone who vies dor the greatest power. Why would he summon a mere raven? He could upcast the spell and actually, in so doing, gain a wider variety of creatures to call upon:

"It could summon a couatl, leonal, or celestial roc from one of the celestial planes; an elder elemental from one of the Inner Planes; a green slaad from the plane of Limbo; or a hamatula, fiendish dire shark, gargantuan fiendish monstrous scorpion, night hag, bebilith, colossal fiendish monstrous spider, or hezrou from one of the fiendish planes. It could also summon a monadic deva, firre, moon dog, quesar, sword archon, or ursinal from the Upper Planes or a farastu or Wastrilith from the Lower Planes." -Summon Monsters as a lvl 9 spell

Compared to the lvl 1 variant this is quite a difference. Especially if we look at the fiendish creatures that can be summoned.But Bane didn't choose a hezrou or hamatula, he choose a simple raven. That threw me off.

Given that it is a mere lvl 1 spell I believe Bane already had Koravis as a mortal. Which means I looked at the descriptions of mortal Bane in order to discern which class he made use of.

And in almost every text he is described as a dour Warlord. That is not the description of a wizard. Not really.

"The dark three — a shadowy assassin, the brooding necromancer, and the dour warlord — presented an offer to the dying priest-king, vowing to spare his life in exchange for his undying fealty and command of the Gray Pestilence." -Dragon Magazin 361

And here:

"This bizarre alliance was led by three equally improbable heroes hailing from lands beyond the Moonsea North: a shadowy assassin, a brooding necromancer, and a dour warlord." -Dragon Magazin 170

Why exactly can't Bane be a wizard as a mortal? Because of this:

"The first was a human slave warrior in the service of Maram whose skill and prowess was so puissant that he was known as the "Bane of the Ancients" on the world of Abeir. The second was Arabhal, who served the Crown-Sorcerers of Rdiuz as chief assassin and spymaster." -Rise of the Dark Three

Yes. All of you can say hello to Bhaal (who will also play a role). There is also this little part:

"The trio, who came to be known as the Dark Three, agreed to work together to defeath Mezeketh, which they did through a potent combination of clandestine investigation, brute force, and powerful magic, leaving his tower in ruins." -Rise of the Dark Three

And there is also this:

"Eventually they reached the object of their lifelong quest - the Bone Throne.

"I claim this throne of evil," shouted Bane the tyrant.

"I'll destroy you before you can raise a finger," threatened Bhaal the assassin.

"And I shall imprison your essence for eternity," promised Myrkul the necromancer." -History of the Dead Three

Allnof this just screams that Bane wasn't much of a magic guy. He is wildly accepted as a fighter (as mortal). Which makes sense. But there are two other classes I would grant the description of a warlord: Paladins and Blackguards.

But let's get first back to his cleric class. Because cleric does make more sense than wizard. As mentioned before, Bane was a slave to Maram. Who is Maram? Well, he is called an Elder Evil, a Primordial/Dawn-Titan and a Lost God. So a very powerful being.

Primordials are not gods, however, even though their powers rival that of gods. Whereas gods reside in the Astral Sea around Toril, Primordials hail from the Elemental Chaos around Abeir (Bane's home plane). They are polar opposites to one another and had a whole war going on before the Days of Thunder. The war was called "The Dawn War" for anyone who wants to read up on that.

Bane could have had functioned as a cleric to Maram. But I don't believe that.

"The only magic that worked normally on Abeir was that a creature could create on its own, such as the inherent elemental magic a primordial had in its body or a dragon's breath."

That also is one more reason why I don't believe Wizard was the class Bane used to summon Koravis. Cleric? No. Clerics are usually, specifically, servants of gods and although Maram calls himself a god, he isn't one. Primordials and Gods are two different races. You cannot be both.

“Maram of the Great Spear!” the startled Opanrael exclaims in a high whisper.

“Though that name is unknown to most living today, in centuries past its very mention would bring about an involuntary shudder and a momentary vision of unconscionable acts of violence and brutality. Maram is one of the Seven Lost Gods—a misnomer, of course, as he was in fact no god at all, but a prince of elemental evil, a primordial scion of the Elemental Chaos. The primitive tribes of the Moonsea North, human or otherwise, venerated the Lost Seven. In exchange, their debased sorcerers and shamans were granted power of raw elemental fury.

In the end, Maram was driven back to the Inner Planes, locked away from the mortal world by a powerful Imaskari ritual known as Divine Barrier.” -Dragon Magazin 170

For anyone wondering, yes. It were Bane, Bhaal and Myrkul that sealed Maram away in that ritual. And Myrkul, most likely, was the one to banished Maram.

Which leaves only the Blackguard class for Bane and Koravis. And Blackguard fits him quite well:

"They led armies of dread forces such as undead, fiends, and other extra-planar beings, often in the name of the more malevolent deities."

"...They acted as killers, led as commanders, and even served as agents for more forces that were even more malignant than they."

"Blackguards possessed a distinct auras of evil and despair, carrying blessings bestowed upon them by the forces of darkness."

While Maram's and Bane's relationship was that of a slave and a master, Bane was special compared to the other slaves. Callback to this"

"...whose skill and prowess was so puissant that he was known as the "Bane of the Ancients"..."

Bane is not his real name. It is derived from the title he earned in service to Maram. A slave earning a name is a proof of skill, renown and reputation no one can question. This means Maram knew him and was aware of him even before he managed to escape his direct control. So yes, Maram would definetly bestow powers upon Bane for two reasons:

1. To make use of a promising warrior and use him as a weapon. 'Sharpen him', so to say.

2. To have it easier to keep track of him. A slave that is known is someone who is recognized, which means they can't just disappear unnoticed.

Bhaal probably had a hand in helping Bane get away from Maram and his skills as a rogue (chief assassin and spymaster at that) would definetly come in handy if you want to "hide" from your slaver. They most likely made a bargain of sorts: Bhaal helps Bane escape Maram and, in turn, Bane starts working for Bhaal's employees (the aforementioned Crown-Sorcerers of Rdiuz).

So I believe/assume that Bane summoned Koravis as a mortal through a lvl 1 spell. Bane's blackguard lvl as a god is 'only' 10. He probably was a fighter at the same time and only had like two lvl's in blackguard with the rest in fighter. But those are mere speculations on my part.

Were am I going with all of this? During my research about Blackguards I stumbled upon this:

"Due to their proficiency with shadow magic, Blackguards were often found in the service of the deity Shar."

Primordials, like Maram, are usually associated with a element. For Borem (a primordial slain by the Dead Three) it was fire. Maram is not really given an elememt but I would dare take a bold guess and say it is darkness/shadows.

Not only would that fit with Bane's blackguard theme, but also with his affinity with darkness in general:

"Bane often manifested as eyes of red blazing flame surrounded by darkness, whether it was night or not. Another favored form was that of a black, taloned hand whose touch was like ice (and was, in fact, a chill-touch) reaching out of a cloud of darkness." -Faith and Avatars

"He appears to mortals in dreams as a powerful, shadowy figure..." -Faiths and Pantheons

Then there is also the whole thing of him being 'The Lord of Darkness', the 'Dark One, and so on.

If we replace Shar with Maram we can determine that one of the powers Maram imbued within him was the ability to use shadow magic.

Shadow magic, not to be confused with shadow-weave magic (Shadowfell) was derived from the Plane of Shadow, home to elementals associates with that element. In 3e the Plane of Shadow was part of the Elemental Chaos (in 4e many things changed but Forgotten Realms Lore often conteadicts itself so we have to work with what we are given). Maram was of the Elemental Chaos!

And there is one thing about shadow magic that make sit so incredibly dangerous: It corrupts practitioners who are unprepared or simply overwhelmed when using it.

And by corrupt I mean that not only the physical body is altered, but also the state of mind begins to suffer. Hells, even the soul can be weakened to the point that entities from the Plane of Shadow can take control over the practitioners body. It is not magic that you should just use.

If I am right and Maram allowed Bane to use shadow magic I would also assume that he made sure that Bane is protected from its harmful influences while simoultaneously never actually allpwing him to learn on how to control/handle it on his own without the protection/guidance of a more powerful being (Maram).

So the stage is this:

1. Bane, unwillingly, serves Maram as warlord and is imbued with the power to use shadow magic (Blackguard). He also gains the ability to summon a minor servant (Koravis). Maram protects Bane from the harmful influences.

2. Bane escapes Maram, most likely with Bhaal's help, and starts to serve the Crown-Sorcerers of Rdiuz. Maram withdraw his protection from Bane/can no longer reach him to protect him from the harmful effects of this magic.

3. Bane continues to use shadow magic and the first signs of corruption begin to be noticable (his hand blackens).

From where did I get that shadow magic blackens the skin if used too much/not correctly? Here:

"As some practitioners tapped into shadow magic they were confronted with their "shadow self", a reflection of their personality that existed in absence of their "true self". The shadow self of a person that was kind and loyal would appear as cruel and treacherous, often in the form of some monstrous humanoid creature."

I read this and was reminded of one of the most powerful practitioners of shadow magic that ever existed: Verraketh Talembar.

Verraketh Talembar was once a Talfir Monarch and possibly the most powerful mage they evwe produced. He was later called the 'Shadow King' due to the fact that his use of this magic corrupted him completely. Wanna know what his corrupted form looked like? Here:

"Muscles and veins writhed like serpents beneath his skin as dark and smooth as night. Its legs were thick as columns, ending in cloven hooves. It flexed it powerful arms; long, dark, talons sprang from its fingertips, a tail lined with saw-toothed barbs cracked like a whip in the air. Two batlike wings unfurled from its back. The Nightstone pulsed vividly in the center of its chest as hot and red as blood. Its face was that of a beast, fangs like obsidian knives protruding from its maw, oozing dark ichor."

There are multiple things in this passage that parallel Bane:

"...he is marked by his jet-black right hand."

"Another favored form was that of a black, taloned hand..."

"The Black Lord often warped his hands into talons..."

"This transformation was soften accompanied by his face warping into a bestial visage, his eyes lighting with living flame, and his skin transforming into blackened and charred leather stretched tight against his skull..."

"Bane often manifested as eyes of red blazing flame..."

No one can tell me that all of this is a coincedence. But if you're still not convinced, let me add this little detail:

"Shadow magic, also called cold magic or Talfirian magic..."

Shadow magic is often acvompanied by a freezing chill. And whose presence and touch is registered as cold? Banes.

"...taloned hand whose touch was like ice (and was, in fact, a chill-touch)..."

And he is also completely immune to cold damage to begin with:

Once again it just fits perfectly.

But there is even more! And it connects to Verraketh (the Shadow King of the Talfir) as well.

Do you all remember how Bane returned to life after he got killed by Midnight/Torm? He burst from the corpse of his son Iyachti Xvim:

"Those who let down their guard, however, did so rashly, and far too soon. On Midwinter night of 1372 DR, Xvim burst in a conflagration of diabolical green light. From the smoking husk of his remains emerged a newly reinvigorated Bane, his right hand ablaze with-green fire."

You know who did the same thing? Reviving himself by bursting out from a corpse? Yes. Verraketh:

"When Ravendas took up the Nightstone, she was killed by its magic, as she did not possess the ability of the shadow magic.

The Shadowking burst out from her corpse."

The Nightstone was imbued with the essence of Verraketh in a way very similar to how Iyachtu was imbued with Bane's essence.

It could, of course, be a mere coincedence. But it just makes sense too me that Bane, while obviously also relying on his divinity, also used some shadow magic to make this happen.

So. Were was I? Right, here:

1. Bane, unwillingly, serves Maram as warlord and is imbued with the power to use shadow magic (Blackguard). He also gains the ability to summon a minor servant (Koravis). Maram protects Bane from the harmful influences.

2. Bane escapes Maram, most likely with Bhaal's help, and starts to serve the Crown-Sorcerers of Rdiuz. Maram withdraw his protection from Bane/can no longer reach him to protect him from the harmful effects of this magic.

3. Bane continues to use shadow magic and the first signs of corruption begin to be noticable (his hand blackens).

So, Bane's hand starts to blacken, the magic corrupts him. Do you guys know who has ties to the Talfir? The people from whom Verreketh hailed? The ones that practice shadow magic through bardic traditions? Bhaal.

Bg3 tied Bhaal to the Talfir here:

"The Lord of Murder wasn't always a lord. He was once just a petty killer. When Bhaal first drew blood in a Baldurian back-alley, it dropped to the ground and lingered. When he ascended, this dried blood-drop grew, warped - and became sharp."

Heroes of Faerun tied him to it as well, mainly here:

"Scions of the Three are most common in Baldur's Gate, where the Dead Three lived as mortals before ascending to godhood."

Now, there are a few problems with those two sources, but I did mention that Forgotten Realms Lore often contradicts itself.

The Dead Three became gods before Baldurian was even born. They ascended before Baldur's Gate was turned from a simple fishing village into a proper harbor city.

And Bane doesn't even hail from Toril. He comes from a completely different world: Abeir. And Myrkul originated from Murghom, a ki gdom on tje other side of Faerun:

"Etched upon a mausoleum wall within Valhingen Graveward:

The necromancer was the most reserved of the three dark heroes, a gangling man of advancing years, speaking in a high whisper and largely keeping to himself. His emaciated form was shrouded within dark robes, the man’s cold eyes bespoke of malign intelligence and eldritch might. His given name: Myrkul Bey al-Kursi, Crown Prince of Murghôm."

It is plausible and very likely that Bhaal came from the fishing village that stood at the Chionthar River (the place where the Talfir settled) and lived there. The undercity does exist in Baldurs Gate and if Bg2 lore is too be trusted it is constructed of the ruins of Bhaal's old home (which is why he is so obsessed with Baldur's Gate; this place is his home). So yes. Bhaal most likely has a talfiric backround. Which means he is familiar with shadow magic, which further means he would know about the harm it can cause. He would also have heard about Verraketh Talembar. Because that monarch caused immense trouble.

If that is true and we consider the fact rhat Bhaal and Bane began to work together shortly after Bane escaped Maram (and he became vulnerable to the harmful effects of shadow magic (because he never actually learned how to control it, he was merely protected)) Bhaal would undoubtly notice the corruption that began to eat away at Bane's hand. He would recognize the signs.

Given that only Bane's hand is blackened (although there are like one or two other sources that claim his whole arm was black (don't ask me which, no clue where that was)) it is safe to say that he didn't practise shadow magic for a long time after he became vulnerable to its influence. Most likely because Bhaal warned him about the consequences. Given that those two admired each other it's very likely that Bane would heed his words.

As for why his hand remains black and he can't change it: Shadow magic corrupts the very soul. Maybe his soul is too damaged and he simply can't reverse the harm.

But yeah. I went on way longer then I intented too.