CHAPTER
4:GITH AND
THEIR ENDLESS WAR
HE STORY OF
THE GIT H IS ROOTED IN A CRUELtwist of cosmic
fate. Inspired by the greatleader for whom the race is named, the
githrose up to overthrow the mind flayers
thatheld
them in servitude. But after they wontheir
freedom, t wo factions among the githdisagreed on what k ind of civilization theywould forge. That d isagreement quickly flared into open
hostility, and the two groups distanced
themselves fromone another to pursue their separate agendas.
T heyremain
bitter enemies today, each side willing to fight tothe
death whenever they cross paths.The githyanki were motivated by revenge and con-vinced that they deserved to
take whatever they wantedfrom the worlds they traveled.
Ranging out from thetitanic city ofTu'narath
on the Astral Plane, they sendraiders out to plunder the Material Plane and othe rworlds, bringing treasures
and slaves back to their age-less realm. At the same time, they hunt down and killmind flayers whenever
possible, as recompense for whatthe illithids did to them.The githzerai believed that the path to an enlightenedcivilization lay in
seclusion, not conflict. Their dedi-cation to the
principles of order is so strong that theycan manipulate the stuff of chaos and use it
to theirbenefit; thus, they have carved out a stronghold
forthemselves on the plane of Limbo that
is virtually im-per vious. Though the githzerai are pacifists
by nature,they share the githyanki's
racial hatred for mind fl.ayers,and from time to time they
send out squads to destroyillithid outposts.If the two races
were ever to team up against theillithids, a combined
force of gith could conceivably tipthe balance in
their favor. But as long as the githyankiand githze
rai stay at each other's throats, their goal ofultimate victory over their original comm
on enemy willlikely remain unachieved.GITHYANKI
S ince winn ing their freedom from the mind flay
ers, thegithyanki have
become corrupt raiders and destroyersunder the rulership
of their dread lich-queen, Vlaakith.They dwell
on the Astral Plane in the city of Tu'narath, ametropolis
built on and in the corpse of a deity.Vlaakith commands the loyalty of the
githyanki fromher personal stronghold, Susurrus,
a lso called thePalace of Whispers, which is locat
ed deep inside thefloating city. She sits on her Throne
of Bones, a mightyartifact fueled by the intellects
of mind flaye rs a nd elderbrains that were defeated
by her minions. It is craftedfrom mind flayer skulls
and extremities, and the cushions he sits on is made of leather produced from the cur
edremains of an e lder brain. A grand statue of Gith,
anobsidian monum
e nt over 100 feet tall, stands besidethe palace.CHAPTl:.R 4
J CITH AND THEIR ENDLJ::SS WAR