: Just how loyal are Shades? Since they must be given some
: form of sentience by the Fallen Lords to fulfill their
: duties- and they have memory (such as when Sinis(?)
: converses with Alric in Out of the Barrier), I assume
: they are capable of 'emotions' such as greed and envy.
Remember too that some Shades, like Turquine, volunteer for the transformation; this indicates that they expect to survive with mind intact (though somewhat warped by the "indescribable tortures of the Fallen," no doubt.)
I'd imagine Shades are just as varied psychologically as evil living mages. They may serve their masters out of honest loyalty or brainwashing; out of fear of discipline; out of greed for the political/magical power they're offered; because there's no other employment options for an infamous undead fiend; or any combination of these.
: Are they unswervingly loyal to their creators? My one
: example of one 'turning' would be Phelot when he turns
: on Shiver. But he was originally The Deceiver's shade,
: am I right? It was ol' Myrdred up North at the game's
: outset, was it not? Or at least his underlings.
: The one argument against this loyalty would be Phelot's
: alignment, however brief, with Shiver. If he was so
: loyal, wouldn't he have sought out his master after he
: was trapped in ice up at Seven Gates? Or did Myrdred,
: being the cunning rogue he is- 'plant' Phelot so he
: could have an inside eye when and if Soulblighter
: returned?
Phelot had always been Shiver's servant, I believe. Remember, he was responsible for the massacre at Avon's Grove, which is near Crow's Bridge (close enough for soldiers there to be gossiping about it) and therefore near Madrigal. At the time of the massacre, Madrigal was under siege by Shiver.
Phelot had probably been very loyal to Shiver; she seemed to place great trust in him. Could be he helped Soulblighter track down her spirit and reincarnate it. But loyalty doesn't count for much when you're dealing with The Deceiver. Probably Myrdred used the Binding Dream on Phelot when he "sorely injured him" just before A Murder of Crows.
: I'd assume Soulblighter surviving would have been common
: knowledge to the 'still living' Fallen Lords
: (Bonesplitter and the fleeing Myrdred, for example).
Hm. Why would it be? They were busy running away/dying/being trapped in icy rivers; Soulblighter was already off to the East, perhaps after his failure at the Devoid. Would they have had a chance to talk?
--SiliconDream
