Baelnorn lich Baelnorn liches , sometimes simply called baelnorns , were elves who chose a path of Prime - bound duty beyond death . These undead defenders unswervingly protected their clan and its holdings for centuries . The majority of baelnorn were spellcasters , and they maintained their mental and magical abilities in this state , though exceptions occurred . Creation . The method of becoming a baelnorn was a High Magic or divine ritual . Less fortunate baelnorns stored their souls in a magical receptacle called a phylactery , like lich es . In some cases , baelnorns did not need to use phylacteries , as their undeath was gifted to them by the Seldarine , but alas this process was uncommon . Description . Baelnorn , the willing undead elves , were the elf equivalent of liches , though they were hardly as disturbingly " wrong " as the corrupt undead and they did not project the fearsome aura of those wicked creatures . Sustained by magic and granted life of a sort beyond nature , baelnorn appeared largely as they did in life , though an immediate clue to a baelnorn ' s nature was the existence of shriveled and wrinkled skin turning slightly translucent over time . Some of the oldest baelnorn seemed to have little more than the hint of body , hair , and skin around their skeletons . Unlike liches , this was the extent of their degeneration , and they did not fall into loose piles of bones . Of course , elven unlife was similar to their lifespans , and as human liches lived for centuries , no witnesses had ever reported a millennia - old baelnorn . Personality . A baelnorn could be of any non - evil nature , mainly lawful good , retaining whatever alignment it had in life . Powers . Unlike most other forms of undead creatures , the baelnorn retained all of the memories , personality , and abilities that it possessed in life — but it had a virtual eternity to hone its skills and inevitably became very powerful . Like other powerful forms of undead ( such as a vampire or mummy ) , a baelnorn had unnatural powers owing to his state . For example , it could put mortals in a paralyzed state of hibernation with a touch , making them seem dead to others , and could , through their typically powerful magical spells , summon other lesser undead to protect him . Unlike liches , baelnorn did not radiate an aura of horror that could send weak - willed would - be foes to flight . The baelnorn was capable of sustaining tremendous physical damage , and was immune to disease , poison , fatigue and other effects that affected only the living . However , despite all his undead " gifts " , a baelnorn ( like a lich ) counted its vast intellect , his supreme mastery of wizardry , and limitless time to research and plan , as its greatest resources . The Baelnorn ' s Phylactery . Some baelnorn did not use a phylactery , as their un - death could also be endowed on them by the Seldarine . These baelnorn could use soulless clones of themselves to avoid destruction . The soul wandered to an unharmed mortal shell when killed . Some baelnorns ' souls were mystically tied to their phylacteries , in which case destroying its body would not kill it . Rather , its soul would return to the phylactery , and its body would be recreated by the power keeping it immortal . Thus the only way to permanently destroy a baelnorn was to destroy the phylactery as well . Therefore , the baelnorn would generally be extremely protective of the priceless item . The phylactery , which could be of virtually any form ( usually appearing as a valuable amulet or gemstone ) , would often be hidden in a secret place and protected by powerful spells , charms , monsters , and / or other servants . The phylactery itself was usually of a magical nature , meaning its destruction would generally be little easier than attaining it . Society . The choice to embrace undeath was allowed and considered only on rare occasions , when a clan or settlement had need of lorekeepers or defenders beyond the norm . Even if an elf truly wanted to become a baelnorn for their clan ' s benefit , the Coronal , the High Mages , and the elders of the particular clan had to all be of one mind to allow this sacrifice to be made . To the surprise of some elves , these transformations occurred only a few times over five millennia at the will of the Seldarine . Some chose to identify baelnorns by their motivations and occupations chosen in undeath : In truth , the baelnorn were all capable of as much action and activity as a live elf , though their personal attitudes and motivations ( and the social unease over the continued public presence of a baelnorn ) limited them to particular activities . In her time as a baelnorn , the Srinshee had acted as Wardnorn of the Vault of Ages and as the Lorenorn for the armathor s and Court Magi , a great amount of activity despite her relatively hidden existence . While the demilich - type existed among liches , there was no equivalent type among baelnorn . However , some revolutionary changes are recorded in the history . Notable Baelnorn . The Srinshee was no doubt the most famous baelnorn of all time . She was the Senior Cor ' Seku ' Taar , Wardnorn of the Vault of Ages and the Lorenorn for the armathors and Court Magi . She helped raise the " mythal " over Myth Drannor in 261 DR . At that time , she had revived herself as an elfmaid of 300 winters . In - 800 DR , Synnorha Durothil became a baelnorn in order to guard her ancestral library . Elminster once consulted with a number of baelnorns beneath the ruins of Myth Drannor . The protector baelnorn Miroden Silverblade was once kidnapped by a cult . Torynnar Rhaevaern was a baelnorn archmage who became evil and showed hatred for humans . There was a baelnorn named Larrel at the Severed Hand . Sy ' Tel ' Quessir Baelnorn . Almost all of the green elf Audark clan were wiped out fighting Venominhandar in −249 DR . After Venom ' s mate was killed , 33 years later , the twelve remaining Audarks , in their grief , appealed to the high mage s of Cormanthor to become baelnorn s . There was a lively debate among them since no green elf had ever been made into a baelnorn before . Eventually , the mages acceded and transformed all twelve of them . Their transformation was not typical however . Their skin turned into petrified wood , their hair to moss and their eyes to amber . They lost all ability to speak but instead of gaining the arcane powers of a typical baelnorn , they instead became prestigious warriors . As the self - appointed guardians of the Vale of Lost Voices , these new creatures found that they could not leave the Vale ' s boundary but they could travel instantaneously within it and were telepathically aware of all visitors to their territory . No green elves had ever become baelnorns since that time so it was unknown whether this was a unique occurrence or whether all green elves would undergo a similar transformation .