Valas Hune Valas Hune was a pragmatic drow scout and member of Bregan D ' aerthe . He was an accomplished guide of the Underdark . He became involved in a quest to solve the mystery of the Silence of Lolth . Description . Valas was described as small and wiry . Valas had amber eyes and a square jaw . He often appeared tense . His skin was scarred , particularly on his hands ( although he noted that after being polymorph ed , his scars were in different locations ) . He generally wore a simple vest of chain mail over a spider - silk shirt and dark breeches . Over that he wore a vest with numerous magical badges and tokens ( see Equipment below ) . Personality . He seemed to know a little about everything , including constellation s ( such as one that resembled a crown ) . He was well traveled and had been to Ched Nasad a number of times , as well as many locations on the surface and even beyond to the Shadow Fringe and Shadow Deep . He was quiet and capable . He wanted to stay out of trouble with priestess es whenever possible . He was also referred to as " dutiful . " Valas was also humble . He explicitly did not like the title " master " ; " I ' m no one ' s master , " he once told Pharaun . Quenthel Baenre ' s group suspected that Valas was a Vhaeraun ite traitor because of his connections . History . Early life . Born into House Ozzl ' Hune , a merchant house in Menzoberranzan , Valas spent his formative years engaged in the family business , organizing and escorting Underdark trading caravans . This job gave him ample opportunity to learn to fight and encouraged him to be cosmopolitan . In the late 13th century DR , Valas and a dozen of his kin were escorting a caravan through the Labyrinth when a large group of minotaur s attacked them . Valas was the only survivor of the expedition and escaped the carnage after all the others had been killed . Somehow , Valas managed to survive in the Labyrinth alone and with no supplies , sneaking past monsters and finding a way through the winding tunnels until he found the refuge of House Jaelre . In thanks for taking him in , Valas lent his now - impressive fighting skills to the refuge ' s defenses , befriending a Vhaeraun ite cleric named Tzirik Jaelre . Rather than stay with them indefinitely though , Valas decided to return to his family , acting as a guard for several caravans until he found his way back to Menzoberranzan . Here he learned that the loss of the caravan in the Labyrinth had left his family destitute and their rivals had quickly destroyed House Ozzl ' Hune . He immediately sought out Bregan D ' aerthe and impressed his new brothers with his skills in silence and bladework , soon turning him into a high - ranking member of the mercenary group . The War of the Spider Queen . In 1372 DR , Valas was hired by Triel Baenre to retrieve the Ched Nasad an ambassador Faeryl Zauvirr and her retainers , who had snuck out of the city in disguise . He was then chosen to escort Quenthel Baenre , Jeggred Baenre , Pharaun Mizzrym , Ryld Argith , and Faeryl to Ched Nasad in search for information about the Silence of Lolth . The group traveled to Ched Nasad , relying on Valas ' s abilities to direct them through the Underdark . Upon arriving in Ched Nasad , they became embroiled in a plot instigated by the Jaezred Chaulssin to lay low the city . Ultimately , the city was destroyed and Quenthel ' s band ( plus Halisstra Melarn and Danifae Yauntyrr ) made it out just in time by escaping through a " portal " that led to the ruins of the Hlaungadath on the surface in Anauroch . The group eventually decided to consult with Tzirik Jaelre , the Vhaeraunite priest . However , when they arrived there , they found that House Jaelre had apparently left for the surface . They took a " portal " from House Jaelre ' s holdings in the Labyrinth to the surface forest of Cormanthor and determined where House Jaelre was located . Upon their arrival , Tzirik offered his assistance only if they aided him in retrieving a magical tome from a beholder lair . They did so and Tzirik revealed that Lolth was still alive but that she was locked away in the Demonweb Pits . The group and Tzirik traveled via astral projection to the Abyss . Once there , Tzirik betrayed them and gated in the god Vhaeraun , who tried to destroy Lolth . Valas attacked Tzirik in an attempt to return the group to the Material Plane , but was unsuccessful . In the end , Pharaun was able to have Jeggred , who had stayed behind , kill Tzirik ' s mortal body to return them to Cormanthor . The group consulted a demon for information on how to return to the Abyss and were led to Lake Thoroot in search of a demonic ship of chaos . Valas plunged into the lake to scout it out , having been given water breathing abilities by Pharaun Mizzrym . However , he was captured by the aboleth Jooran of Zanhoriloch , who used its ability to transform him into a water - breathing creature ( including webbed paws , gills , a fluked tail , no hair , and a slimy coating ) . This didn ' t prevent Valas from returning to the surface to make his report ( carrying a water supply in his magically enhanced backpack ) , where Pharaun " polymorph ed " him into a ( very slightly different ) drow . However , as Pharaun warned him , his metamorphosis could potentially be dispelled . The group eventually found the ship of chaos in the Lake of Shadows . While Pharaun prepared the ship , Valas and Danifae traveled to Sschindylryn to obtain supplies . When they returned , they found their expedition in tatters after an uridezu attack . However , the group continued onward , flying the ship of chaos to the Abyss , where they discovered that Lolth had moved the Demonweb Pits to another plane . They took a portal from the temple to the Astral Plane ; at that time , Lolth returned , granting her priestesses their powers once again . Quenthel decided to lead the group straight to Lolth ' s new temple , but Valas determined that his capabilities ( namely guiding the group through the Underdark ) were no longer sufficient and that his contract was done . He teleported himself out of the Abyss and returned to Menzoberranzan . Abilities . Valas was highly skilled at stealth and remaining concealed , giving him a large advantage in combat . Valas favored the use of his two kukri s enchanted to produce lightning , which he used to hamstring , stab , and eviscerate his enemies . Valas also used a short bow with which he was highly proficient . Valas had some ability to disable mundane traps . He was unable to levitate because he was not a noble . He played " sava " well . Equipment . Valas carried a double - curved shortbow . His preferred melee weapons were his magical kukris that were supernaturally sharp and enchanted to produce electicity . Valas wore a shirt of chain mail with a vest that was enchanted to give him great agility and balance . His belt had a steel buckle shaped like a rothe head . He wore a " ring of speed " , On his vest , he pinned a large number of magical trinkets he had gathered over the years . These trinkets had various magical powers , although not all of them were enchanted . A few of his pendants ( as of 1373 DR ) were : Valas had also carried an enchanted backpack that was nondimensional .