Meet the Captives: Playing a Drow in After the Fall

The fall of Holoth didn’t just claim lives — it shattered the very identity of the drow who survived. Once proud and powerful, the drow of Holoth now find themselves prisoners in their own city, forced into a desperate existence under the Coalition’s watchful eye. The brutalist structures of Hopeholme now overshadow their former home, and what remains of their culture is tightly controlled — twisted into a shadow of what once was. For the first time in a major campaign, you’ll be playing a drow navigating a fallen society, caught between occupation and opportunity.

Yet despite their circumstances, the drow endure — and now, for the first time, you can step into their world as one of them.

In Rise of the Drow: After the Fall, you begin your journey playing a drow or drider navigating life under occupation. This is not a story of defeat — it’s one of survival, resistance, and transformation. Amid the ruins of a once-great civilization, you’ll forge your identity, reclaim lost power, and determine what it means to be drow in a world that seeks to erase you.

Will you quietly accept the Coalition’s rules, working from within to survive? Will you strike from the shadows to undermine their control? Or will you use deception, alliances, or manipulation to rise above your captors and reclaim your place in the Underworld?

The path forward is perilous, but one truth is clear: the drow are not broken — and your story is just beginning.

Learn more about the full campaign in our Rise of the Drow: After the Fall.

Want more character-building ideas? Check out Drow Party Dynamics for running complex intrigue in your campaign.

Need inspiration for your session? Explore our Mini-Dungeon Tome II filled with drow-themed one-shots.

Choosing Your House: A Crucial Step When Playing a Drow

In Rise of the Drow: After the Fall, your character’s house is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. Each house offers distinct strengths, goals, and relationships — both with other drow and with the Coalition forces occupying Hopeholme.

While House Gullion lies in ruins and others were shattered during the Fall, several powerful houses remain — some newly formed, some restructured from the ashes of the old order. Choosing a house is about more than just your background — it’s about defining your character’s motivations, connections, and ambitions.

The following is a brief look at the major drow houses still active in Hopeholme.

House Darzijon — Tailors of the Soul, Keepers of Culture

Preserving art, heritage, and identity, House Darzijon disguises subversion as cooperation. What seems like harmless cultural curation is, in fact, a slow-burning resistance movement — passing secret knowledge through art, artifacts, and coded performance.

• Path Forward: Darzijon members use charm, tradition, and misdirection to subvert the Coalition’s influence, nurturing a future rebellion beneath the surface of cooperation.
• Player Hook: Perfect for bards, rogues, and characters who favor guile, cultural influence, and veiled resistance.

House Zavare — Confusers of Calm, Greyhounds of War

These military-minded drow hold onto honor, discipline, and physical prowess. House Zavare works closely with the occupiers — or so it seems. In truth, they study Coalition tactics, waiting for the moment to strike.

• Path Forward: Zavare keeps Hopeholme’s martial spirit alive, secretly training drow while maintaining the illusion of compliance.
• Player Hook: Ideal for fighters, paladins, and warriors who prefer physical dominance and tactical strength.

House Maljuvante — The Old and the New

Bureaucrats, artificers, and scientists, this house is a merger of practicality and innovation. Maljuvante survives through clever administration and subtle sabotage of Coalition procedures.

• Path Forward: Maljuvante focuses on reclaiming control through logistics, arcane theory, and scientific advancement.
• Player Hook: Great for artificers, investigators, or intelligent characters who prefer manipulation through knowledge and systems.

House Toula-Rysowal — The Planners and Providers

Outwardly, this house supports the Coalition’s occupation, managing food supply and logistics. Inwardly, it is led by an erinyes devil in disguise, playing both sides to ensure survival — and eventual control.

• Path Forward: This house works within the Coalition framework to secure influence and manipulate the social order.
• Player Hook: Best for schemers, poisoners, or charismatic manipulators who thrive in morally complex situations.

House Verlan — The Watchers in Silence

A secretive house that values discipline, order, and the long game, House Verlan operates as a network of spies and informants embedded within every level of Hopeholme. Its members serve as silent observers and strategic saboteurs, gathering intelligence not for immediate action, but to plan precision strikes that will turn the tide of resistance when the moment is right. They are methodical, calculating, and rarely seen — but always listening.

Path Forward: Verlan operatives work in structured cells, maintaining strict secrecy while coordinating covert missions that weaken Coalition control from within.

Player Hook: Perfect for rogues, warlocks, and intelligence-based characters who value patience, precision, and discipline in their resistance tactics.

House Sceawere — The Whispering Knives

An underground network born from chaos and necessity, House Sceawere lacks formal leadership or structure. Instead, it thrives in the shadows of Hopeholme’s slums and ruins, where hand signs, coded slang, and whispered rumors guide its members. Sceawere is streetwise and unpredictable, embracing sabotage, theft, and misinformation to destabilize the Coalition. Loyalty is earned through shared struggle, not bloodline or ceremony.

Path Forward: Sceawere disrupts the occupiers through street-level resistance — quick strikes, misinformation campaigns, and vanishing before retaliation can arrive.

Player Hook: Ideal for spies, thieves, and survivalists who rely on charisma, cunning, and adaptability in a dangerous, ever-changing world.

House Illudere — Phantoms of Magic

Composed of arcane survivors — mostly male casters once cast aside by traditional society — House Illudere now rises from the shadows, seeking unity and magical mastery outside of divine rule.

• Path Forward: Illudere members reclaim arcane power and knowledge while evading Coalition suppression.
• Player Hook: Suited for wizards, sorcerers, and arcane tricksters looking to shape the future through hidden magic.

Embrace the Role: Why Playing a Drow is a Unique Experience

Starting as a prisoner in your own city is no easy task. But it’s also what makes After the Fall so unique. Whether you rise from captivity through strength, deception, or subtle manipulation, your choices will shape not only your fate but also the future of Hopeholme itself.

Playing a drow (or even a drider!) offers an exciting opportunity to explore themes of identity, defiance, and transformation. In this dark and complex world, the drow are not just victims of history — they are the authors of what comes next.

Will you remain loyal to your house? Will you exploit your allies to achieve your goals? Or will you defy tradition, forge new alliances, and carve your own path forward?

Explore more from the Rise of the Drow universe.

Rise of the Drow: After the Fall 🕷️

The City Has Fallen — Will You Rebuild, Rebel, or Rule?

The mighty drow city of Holoth lies in ruin, its elegant towers shattered, its streets filled with conflict and opportunity. The Coalition’s brutal occupation tightens its grip, but beneath the watchful eyes of their guards, power shifts in the shadows.

You are drow. Now is your chance to take the power back.

Sign Up