that the goddess and her faith represent and assist them on the surface of Faerun. Composition of the Clergy The clergy of Eilistraee are collectively known as "the Dark Ladies", although individual temples often have their own naming conventions for both the clergy collectively and individual titles. Young initiates and acolytes are known as Maids. Individual titles vary greatly from temple to temple, but some suitable examples include Moon Dancer, Moon Singer, Dark Huntress, Argent Maid, Living Sword, Unsheathed Blade, Sword Smith, Bright Edge of Darkness, Darksong Knight, Protector and Ghost of the Moonstruck Night. Clerics of Eilistraee are individuals of any race, but almost always female, because – due to the goddess' nature of nurturing mother – One cannot truly feel the Divine Dance of Eilistraee PROPERLY except as a female. However, during the 1300s, the faith of Eilistraee started to open up to male priests: this was Eilistraee's choice and by 1373 DR all her clerics were aware of it (as the goddess is close to her clergy). At the time, some female worshippers initially disliked this change, and priests could be met with distrust by some priestesses, who feared that they could merely be hungry for power: they would be wary of males, act with coldness and watch over their actions (at least until acceptance on a personal level was achieved, by working alongside them). Nonetheless, no priestess would reject males who wished to join the clergy, or act against them, refuse to aid and accept them, or renounce Eilistraee's vision. On the contrary, taken as a whole, all clergy of the Dark Maiden welcomed the fellowship of more and more followers of the goddess, no matter what gender. However, in order to truly feel the Divine Dance of Eilistraee (and therefore become priests), males had to Dance the Changedance at least once, spending time as females (including everyday life, and not only rituals). Generally, this wasn't perceived negatively, and with time the priests found themselves feeling the need to spend more and more time as female, because through that they could feel and cleave more fully to the nature of the Dark Maiden (and the willingness to remain shapechanged for long periods of time was seen and appreciated as a mark of dedication by the female clergy). However, these priests were few and usually secretive. Near the 1489 DR, with the return of Eilistraee, the situation