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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 10:30:53 GMT -5
Talona
Lady of Poison, Mistress of Disease, Mother of All Plagues
Lesser Faerûnian DeitySymbol: Three amber teardrops on a purple triangle Home Plane: The Barrens of Doom and Despair Alignment: Chaotic evil Portfolio: Disease, poison Worshipers: Assassins, druids, healers, rogues, those suffering from disease and illness Cleric Alignments: CE, CN, NE Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Evil, Suffering Favored Weapon: A scabrous hand (unarmed strike) Talona (tah-low-nah) is often depicted as a withered old crone with a scarred, tattooed face in religious texts. Where she walks, misfortune and death follow. She has the personality of a petulant, greedy child trapped in the body of a once-beautiful woman now scarred by horrific disease and ravaged by age. She alternately desires attention at any cost like a small child and becomes aloof like a wounded paramour who has been discarded by her love. The church of Talona is organized in a strict hierarchy, but riven by factions and sects. Aside from selling poisons, antidotes, and medicines, the Talonites travel Faerûn as quietly as possible, constantly seeking out new diseases and afflictions and spreading rumors so as to augment the reputation of Talona. What seems to motivate Talonites in their day-to-day behavior is a quest for respect: respect that is due Talona for her potentially devastating abilities and due them as her representatives in Faerun. Throughout their careers, Talona’s clerics work with magic and study to build their personal immunities to various poisons and diseases. Thus protected, they treat the diseased, take employment as food tasters for paranoid rulers, wealthy merchants, and nobles, and bury those who have died from diseases. Whenever a realm or city-state casts out or punishes any Talonites, for any reason, clerics of Talona work to cause a plague in that place to exact “Talona’s price” for such insults. Rumors have circulated that certain unscrupulous Talonites have occasionally chosen wealthy folk as targets for disease so that wealth and properties can be seized by the church upon the death of these wealthy owners, with the threat of contracting disease keeping rightful heirs and claimants at bay. Clerics and druids of Talona pray for their spells in the evening, although they observe thrice-daily prayers to the goddess. Festivals are held every 12 and are open to nondevotees, where such visitors are encouraged to pray and give offerings to Talona to spare themselves or loved ones from death, disease, wasting illnesses, and the like. A long symphony of rolling drums, deep-voiced chanting, and glaur, shaum, and zulkoon music proclaims the power and veneration of Talona throughout the day. Younger members of the church busily sell poisons (for eliminating vermin, of course), antidotes, and medicines during the festival, assisted by senior clergy who diagnose conditions (usually with great accuracy) and prescribe treatments in return for stiff fees. Annually at the festival falling closest to Highharvestide, initiates of the faith are formally inducted into the clergy. Horrifying private ceremonies involving ritual scarring and sacred tattoos mark this ascension. Many clerics and druids multiclass as assassins, divine disciples, or rogues. History/Relationships:Talona is one of the Dark Deities, having served Bhaal alongside Loviatar, whom she hates for her cruel teasing. Since the death of the Bhaal during the Time of Troubles, both Loviatar and Talona have slowly fallen under the sway of Shar. However, the return of Bane, who was Bhaal’s superior, presages a conflict for both lesser goddesses’ loyalty. With more than a hint of jealousy and bitterness, Talona loathes such benevolent deities as Chauntea, Mielikki, Silvanus, Sune, Lliira, Kelemvor, Tyr, and Shiallia. Dogma:Let pain be as pleasure, for life and death are in balance, but death is the more powerful and should be paid proper homage and respect. Death is the true power, the great equalizer, and the lesson that waits for all. If it falls to you to drive home the point with the tip of a dagger, so be it. The Mother of All Plagues works upon you from within, and weakness and wasting is her strength. Talona’s breath is forever and always with you, whomever you or the rest of the world believes in or serves. Let all living things learn respect from Talona and pay homage to her in goods and in fervent worship. If they do so, intercede for them so that Talona will not claim them--this time. Go and work in Talona’s name and let your doings be subtle spectacular, but make them known as the will of the Mistress of Disease. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 10:35:47 GMT -5
Talos
The Destroyer, the Storm Lord
Greater DeitySymbol: An explosive lightning strike Home Plane: Fury’s Heart Alignment: Chaotic evil Portfolio: Storms, destruction, rebellion, conflagration, earthquakes, vortices Worshipers: Those who fear the destructive power of nature, barbarians, fighters, druids, half-orcs Cleric Alignments: CE, CN, NE Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Evil, Fire, Storm Favored Weapon: A lightning bolt (longspear, shortspear, or halfspear) Talos (taahl-ose) is a violent, short-tempered, and angry deity who exults in chaos and revels in destruction. Often petty and vengeful, the Storm Lord is a powerful bully and is often motivated by rage and the desire never to appear weak or compromising in any way to his followers. Known as Bhaerlros among Calishites and Kozah among the Bedine, Talos appears as a one-eyed, broad-shouldered, and bearded man clad in half plate armor and black leather gloves. His empty eye socket is filled with whirling stars and covered by a dark patch. The church of Talos is relatively small for a greater deity and almost universally despised, for his followers bring nothing but destruction and leave only ruin in their wake. They are fanatical in their love of destruction and are unafraid to call storms upon ships, towns, or cities in the name of their crazed deity. However, many fear and propitiate the Storm Lord, ensuring that he remains one of the most powerful deities of the Faerûnian pantheon. Talassans pray for their spells at different times of the day over the course of the year, with the time varying with Talos’s whim (he rarely has them stick with the same time of day for more than a tenday). Clerics of Talos celebrate his annual festivals (Greengrass, Midsummer, and so on) with great ceremonies that call down lightning and summon storms. Their most sacred ritual is Calling Down the Thunder, in which they slay an intelligent being by lightning. The most frequently seen ritual is the Fury, in which a cleric prays, then makes berserk attacks on people and items in an effort to visit considerable destruction on a place or encampment within a short time by hurling spells and burning torches while howling Talos’s name, followed by praying again (if the cleric survives). It is considered most holy when performed by a lone Talassan cleric, but against formidable foes, clergy of Talos usually attack together or draw off defenders to destroy them singly. Talos’s clerics tend to multiclass as barbarians, sorcerers, storm lords, and wizards. Those working with the Cult of the Dragon sometimes multiclass as wearers of purple. History/Relationships:Talos was formed from the first battle between Selune and Shar. He is now the leader of the Deities of Fury: Auril, himself, Malar, and Umberlee. Although he has no compunction about usurping her portfolio, Talos has a close and cordial relationship with Auril. His relationship with Umberlee is simultaneously flirtatious and filled with rivalry. However, he only works with the Beastlord grudgingly, and Malar would kill him if he could. Talos has a history of elevating powerful mortals to divinity and then forcing them to deplete themselves in his service, the most recent of which is Velsharoon. Velsharoon has been more successful than most such empowers elevated by Talos, in that he still survives and wisely shifted his nominal alliance to Mystra and Azuth. Talos tried to assume dominion over wild and destructive magic under the alias of Malyk, but he was forestalled by Mystra and has since moved on to other brazen attempts to grab power. He hates deities those that would dare to alter the weather. His list of enemies include Chauntea, Eldath, Lathander, Mystra, Sune, Deneir, Gond, Helm, Mielikki, Oghma, Shiallia, Silvanus, and Tyr. Dogma:Life is a combination of random effects and chaos, so grab what you can when you can, because Talos may take you to the afterlife at any moment. Preach the might of Talos, and always warn others of the forces only he can command--the fury of all Faerûn. Walk unafraid in storms, forest fires, earthquakes, and other disasters, for the power of Talos protects you. Do so publicly wherever possible, so that others see that only Talos can protect them. Make others fear Talos by showing the destruction he and his servants can cause. To avoid tasting his fury, pray to him energetically and tell all folk that such observances--and only such observances--can protect them from the furies of gales, hailstorms, winds, floods, droughts, blizzards, hurricanes, and other natural dooms. Hurl such forces at one’s foes if Talos deems a place or a person worth defending. One cannot afford to ignore Talos, but must bow down and worship him. Proclaim this message to all and show everyone the destruction even the slightest of the servants of Talos can cause. Clergy and Temples:Talos always has too few worshipers for his liking, so his clergy are sent out into the world to spread word of his might and to try to recruit others to his worship--either out of fear or because such people enjoy the wielding of raw power. As examples to all, the fatalistic clerics of Talos tend to indulge in acts of random or spiteful destruction as they travel and to make examples of all folk who stand up to them from entering a community or passing along a road. Some clerics pillage, burn, and steal as enthusiastically as any brigand, and hamlets that fight them off tend to be visited a season or so later by a gathering of Talassan clerics who try to slaughter everyone and lay waste to the place. This practice had led to some settlements fearfully hiring “adventuring bands in residence” to ward off a similar fate after one or more citizens have had hostile dealings with any Talassan clergy. Talos does not seem to mind clerics who indulge in fulfilling personal desires for wealth, food, luxury items, and wanton behavior as long as they call up a storm or engage in random, spectacular acts of violence once every tenday or so (toppling towers is always effective). As a result, some clergy have taken up a life of brigand. They pose as lunatics in order to spread the word of Talos as ordered, and the rest of the time they adopt disguises to scout out rich prizes. Most Talassan temples and shrines are secret because of the reputation of the church. The worship of Talos is outlawed in many countries. Where there are public temples to Talos, many of them take the form of castles or walled compounds because they must often serve as strongholds that the faithful of Talos can defend against angry folk. Such sites seem to always lie in the path of great storms, on the fault lines of earthquakes, or in path of lava pouring forth from a volcano, yet Talos ensures they always survive unscathed. High clergy of Talos have ceremonial robes of blue-white streaked with crimson that seem to crackle with lightning. All other clergy have formal dress of robes and cloaks of black shot through with teardrops and jagged lines of gold or silver--garb that has earned them the unflattering name “doom crows” in the rare times someone has survived seeing an official ceremony. The robes have jagged hems and rough, uneven sleeves. A black eye-patch is always worn, even if the clergy member has good vision in both eyes. When not performing holy rituals, they tend to dress shabbily and eclectically. Rumors tell of a mysterious group of wizards who specialize in exotic combinations of elemental magic, known as the Lords of the Tempest, that owes allegiance to Talos. Other whispers in dark places speak of Talos’s sponsorship of certain necromancers into lichdom, and of a cabal of crazed sages and mystics intent on bringing about the end of the world. Known only as the Circle of Rust and the Worm, these entropists have sought and obtained the Destroyer as a patron. The church of Talos has no central hierarchy, and low-ranking clerics of the Storm Lord obey their masters only as long as they fear the greater might of the senior clerics. From time to time the church of Talos is wracked by internal warfare, such as was the case recently between the northern-based followers of Talos and the southern-based followers of his alter ego, Bhaelros. However, the Storm Lord generally prefers that his followers wreak devastation on the rest of the world, not each other. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 10:49:59 GMT -5
Tempus
Lord of Battles, Foehammer
Greater DeitySymbol: A blazing silver sword on a blood-red shield Home Plane: Warrior’s Rest Alignment: Chaotic neutral Portfolio: War, battle, warriors Worshipers: Warriors, fighters, barbarians, rangers, half-orcs Cleric Alignments: CE, CG, CN Domains: Chaos, Protection, Strength, War Favored Weapon: “Battle Prowess” (battleaxe) From astride his twin steeds--Veiros the white mare and Deiros the black stallion--Tempus (tem-pus) governs the tide of war and dispenses his favors at random, his chaotic nature favoring all sides equally in time. The deity of war is liable to back one army one day and another one the next. Soldiers of all alignments pray to him for help in coming battles. Mighty and honorable in battle and a strong and robust deity, Tempus answers only to his own warrior’s code and pursues no long-lasting alliances. He is known to love food, drink, and the hunt, though he loves battle best. He always appears as a human giant in battered and bloodied plate armor with his face hidden by a massive war helm. He bears a great battle axe or a black sword notched and stained from much use in his gauntleted hands. The church of Tempus is perhaps the most widely known in battle-stricken Faerun. Countless centuries of warfare have unfolded on the battlefields of the world, and followers of the Foehammer have fought ably and honorably for all sides in nearly every such conflict. The independence of the Lord of Battles and his followers has ensured that his church is widely respected by members of all faiths, and none doubt that they too might prevail in the next battle if only the Foehammer’s fickle nature smiles their way again. Nearly every combatant has fought alongside a cleric of Tempus at some point or the other, and just as many have also fought against a cleric of Tempus. Only the church of Eldath truly wishes there were another way. Tempus’s clerics pray for spells just before high sun. The eves and anniversaries of great battles are the holy days of the church of Tempus, and as such vary from place to place. The Feast of the Moon, honoring the dead, is the most important fixed date in the religious calendar. Each temple holds a Feast of Heroes at high sun and a Song of the Fallen at sunset, and most also have a Song of the Sword ceremony after dark for lay folk. It is also expected that at least once a tenday worshipers of Tempus spill a few drops of blood (preferably their own or a worthy foe’s) and sing the Song of the Sword in Tempus’s honor. The ritual performed by most of the faithful is a prayer for valiant performance and survival in the fray ahead, made to the war deity over the weapon the praying being most often fights with. If a new weapon comes into the believer’s possession before a battle--particularly in the form of hard-won booty00it is taken as a sign of Tempus’s favor, and this weapon is the one used in worship. Tempus’s clerics usually multiclass as barbarians, divine champions, or fighters. Most tend to be battle-minded male humans, although others are also welcome. History/Relationships:Tempus arose from the first battle between Selune and Shar, one of many such war deities to walk the world. In time, he defeated each and every one of his rivals in battle, the last of which was Garagos the Reaver. Some oracles claim that in years to come Tempus may find himself at war with Anhur as the Faerûnian and Mulhorandi pantheons clash and (inevitably) merge. In recent years, Tempus sponsored the divinity of the Red Knight, a relationship akin to that of a fond and protective father to a brilliant daughter who works hard at the family business--war. The Foehammer is casually friendly with martially inclined deities such as Nobanion, Gond, Valkur, and Uthgar. He considers Eldath, his diametric opposite, to be naïve and weak. However, out of respect for her convictions, he punishes those of his faithful who abuse her clergy, shrines, or temples, feeling that war has little meaning without peace to define and highlight it. Sune, who considers him a foe, he regards as irrelevant and flighty and therefore unworthy of active opposition. It is unclear why Tempus tolerates the continued survival of Garagos, although some sages have speculated that Tempus knows that a new challenger is inevitable and he prefers to use the Reaver as a stalking horse to draw out such potential foes. Others claim that Garagos represents that one bit of warfare that Tempus finds personally distasteful, the savage madness of a battle rage, and that he deliberately ceded that aspect of the portfolio of war, though he is still worshiped by many barbarians. Dogma:Tempus does not win battles, he helps the deserving warrior win battles. War is fair in that it oppresses and aids all equally and that in any given battle, a mortal may be slain or become a great leader among his or her companions. It should not be feared, but seen as a natural force, a human force, the storm that civilization brings by its very existence. Arm all for whom battle is needful, even foes. Retreat from hopeless fights but never avoid battle. Slay one foe decisively and halt a battle quickly rather than rely upon slow attrition or the senseless dragging on of hostilities. Remember the dead that fell before you. Defend what you believe in, lest it be swept away. Disparage no foe and respect all, for valor blazes in all regardless of age, sex, or race. Tempus looks with favor upon those that acquit themselves honorably in battle without resorting to such craven tricks as destroying homes, family, or livestock when a foe is away or attacking from the rear (except when such an attack is launched by a small band against foes of vastly superior numbers). Consider the consequences of the violence of war, and do not wage war recklessly. The smooth-tongue and fleet of feet that avoid all strife and never defend their beliefs wreak more harm than the most energetic tyrant, raider, or horde leader. Clergy and Temples:Clerics of the war deity are charged to keep warfare a thing of rules, respected reputation, and professional behavior, minimizing uncontrolled bloodshed and working to eradicate feuding that extends beyond a single dispute or set of foes. At the same time, training and readiness for battle must be promoted if civilized human holdings are to survive in Faerûn in the face of monster raids and orc hordes--and the power of Tempus to aid those he favors in battle must also be promoted. Warriors who employ poison or taint wells, sow fields with salt, kill noncombatants, indulge in torture or the wanton slaughter of innocent folk when they are not at war, or commit similar sings against fair battle are to be denied the favor of the deity, their crimes are to be publicized far and wide, and they are to be made to atone for their deeds or perish. War clerics must preserve the names of the honored battle-fallen, both on gravestones and other such memorials, in their prayers to Tempus, and in an annual chant at the March of the Dead, wherein clerics of the war deity go through the streets to call all folk, worshipers and nonbelievers alike, to the local Feast of the Moon hosted by their temple. Clerics are also charged to collect and venerate the weapons and armor of famous and respected warriors, even if these are broken or have deteriorated, for they retain something of the battle lust and energy associated with the deeds they participated in. Temples of Tempus are usually what are more commonly thought of as walled military compounds than what most picture as temples. Aside from a central shrine to honor fallen decorated with the battered shields and rusted blades of the dead, most temples of Tempus are given over to the necessities of warfare, including armories, barracks, and training grounds. The wealthiest fortified abbeys sometimes contain libraries, but such contain only a history of warfare and an accounting of the fallen. When not in battered armor, cleric of Tempus often wear helms or steel skullcaps, though they are careful never to cover their faces, for such close emulation of Tempus is thought to be an affront to the Lord of Battles. Some of the fanatical wandering clerics never remove all their armor at any time, but in the temples of the big cities clergy are rarely seen in armor except at ceremonies held before armies march or a siege begins. The formal robes of a cleric of Tempus always sport trim the crimson hue of fresh blood, but vary in overall color from place to place and rank to rank, with darker-colored robes are worn by those of lower ranks. Most war clerics wear ceremonial garments of brown or purple. Red or amber is worn by senior clergy, and yellow or white by those of the most exalted rank. Aside from their trusty battleaxes, many senior clerics of Tempus also favor spiked gauntlets as a mark of their station. Given its predilection to support both sides of any fight, the church of Tempus necessity lacks any central authority that might come down in favor of one side or the other. However, within a given temple or military order, there is usually a strict adherence to military rank and a cleric chain of command. The Tempuran church also has many affiliated orders. Two of note are the Order of the Broken Blade and the Order of the Steel Fang. The former honors those warriors and clergy who are injured in Tempus’s service and can no longer fight in the front lines. Broken Blades often serve in support functions at temples and shrines and take a personal oath upon joining the order to defend the holy site where they reside to the death as a final line of defense. The latter group is an elite fighting order within the church whose members are often assigned to the most hazardous duties. Steel Fang units are led by battle-hardened members of the clergy. Many mercenary companies and knightly fighting orders of crusaders also avail themselves of a connection to the church. One badge of the deity seen among his affiliated mercenaries is a rusty brown dagger, shown diagonally with its point to the upper right, dripping four drops of blood. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 10:54:33 GMT -5
Tiamat
The Dragon Queen, Nemesis of the Gods, the Dark Lady
Lesser Faerûnian DeitySymbol: Five-headed dragon Home Plane: Heliopolis Alignment: Lawful evil Portfolio: Evil dragons, evil reptiles, greed, Chessenta Worshipers: Chromatic dragons, Cult of the Dragon, evil dragons, evil reptiles, fighters, sorcerers, thieves, vandals Cleric Alignments: LE, LN, NE Domains: Evil, Law, Scalykind, Tyranny Favored Weapon: A dragon head (heavy pick) Tiamat (tee-a-maht) is a greedy, vain, and arrogant goddess who embodies all the strengths of her chromatic progeny but few of their weaknesses. She is entirely focused on the acquisition of personal power and wealth and views mortals as hapless pawns in her struggles with other deities. She can be charming and fey when necessary, but her self-serving, evil, reptilian nature is readily apparent to those who look. The church of Tiamat is regimented by a strict hierarchy of ranks and titles. Clerics of Tiamat are primarily occupied by the twin tasks of acquiring an ever-increasing hoard of wealth for the faith and sabotaging the faiths of other deities. As a result, they occupy most of their waking hours with an unending series of thefts, assassinations, acts of vandalism, and arson. In Unther and Chessenta they are primarily concerned with seizing as much power as possible, while in western Faerun, the cult’s agents are focused on infiltrating and subverting the Cult of the Dragon. Clerics of Tiamat pray for their spells at dusk, in hopes she will return the sun the following morning, as part of a ritual known as Tithing. The Tithing requires a small tithe, typically several gold coins or a small gem, which are hidden in the cleric’s cupped hands as the cleric’s prayers are offered, then buried. Tiamat’s clergy also perform numerous other daily ceremonies in homage to their mistress. The Rite of Respect is a complicated ritual of abasement and appeasement that must be performed while approaching any spawn of the Dragon Queen. This ceremony does not provide any ritualistic protection from the dragon’s fury, but failure to perform the ceremony with rigorous perfection is sure to draw the great reptile’s ire. In Unther, the Dark Scaly Ones have proclaimed the day of the first full moon after Midsummer a holy day dedicated to the Dark lady. Known as the Festival of Vengeance, this day marks the defeat of Gilgeam by Tiamat, Nemesis of the Gods. In Unthalass the day is marked by general anarchy, rioting, and widespread mayhem incited by the clergy and the faithful and is punctuated by the consummation of long-simmering acts of revenge. During this time, the clerics of the Mulhorandi and Faerunian pantheons seek to contain the looting and destruction, but prominent officials must beware of the numerous assassination attempts executed by Tiamat’s worshipers. Many clerics multiclass as divine disciples, fighters, sorcerers, or (if associated with the Cult of the dragon) wearers of purple. History/Relationships:Tiamat is an interloping deity, brought to Faerun along with the rest of the Untheric pantheon. Her battles with those deities are legendary in Unther, and the Nemesis of the Gods was blamed for every setback experience by Unther. As a result, her small cult survived as the surviving Untheric gods became increasingly tyrannical, and eventually she regained sufficient strength to destroy Gilgeam during the Time of Troubles. Her foes include Bane and Ilmater, and she has no known allies. Dogma:Rival deities of all creeds and from every pantheon are inherently tyrannical. They seek only power, at any cost, despite their honeyed words. The Dragon Queen is the only being powerful enough to defy the gods and overthrow their despotic rule, as demonstrated by her overthrow of the other Untheric deities. Work tirelessly toward the day when Tiamat will banish the gods from Faerûn and unite the world under her rule. Toward this goal, follow her commands unquestioningly and be willing to sacrifice yourself in her service. To overthrow the gods requires power, and power is acquired through the accumulation of wealth and magic. Power demands respect. Chromatic dragons everywhere are to be venerated as the spawn of the Dragon Queen and paid homage. When Tiamat assumes her throne, her draconic children shall serve her as dukes, and her clergy as their mortal vassals. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 10:59:10 GMT -5
Torm
The True, the True Deity, the Loyal Fury
Lesser DeitySymbol: Right-hand gauntlet held upright with palm forward Home Plane: House of the Triad Alignment: Lawful good Portfolio: Duty, loyalty, obedience, paladins Worshipers: Paladins, heroes, good fighters and warriors, guardians, knights, loyal courtiers Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG Domains: Good, Healing, Law, Protection, Strength Favored Weapon: “Duty’s Bond” (greatsword) Torm (torm) the True, patron of paladins and unswerving enemy of corruption and evil, serves the people of Faerûn by exemplifying the chivalric ideal. An ascended hero who lived his mortal life in service to a just sovereign, Torm eschews the pretense of his fellow deities, instead adopting a humble position that he exists to serve the common good and the rule of law as established by honorable mortal rulers. Though a true deity with awesome power at his disposal, the Loyal Fury is all too familiar with the failings of mortal men, having fallen victim to hubris, gullibility and ignorance when confined to a mortal shell during the Time of Troubles. During that seminal event, Torm allowed himself to be controlled by his own corrupt, oppressive clerics for a short time, an occurrence that gave him perspective on his own flaws and enhanced his sense of humility. Stern, righteous, and unyielding in the face of evil, Torm’s spirit lifts when dealing with his friends, the weak, the defenseless, and the young. Torm battled Bane in the harbor of the city of Tantras during the Time of Troubles, destroying the Black Lord in personal combat (he too died in the conflict, but was later returned to life by Ao). As such, he became a hero to good-hearted people throughout the continent, a savior who in slaying Bane delivered Faerun from the machinations of the deity of strife and tyranny. Torm’s destruction of Bane broke the back of Zhentil Keep by eradicating that nation’s divine support, allowing the Dalesfolk, for a short while, to breathe a sigh of relief. In nations across the continent, Torm became a symbol of heroism and bravery, the ideal knight serving his followers with a transforming act of self-sacrifice appreciated even by great Ao himself. This adoration extended to Torm’s church, which experience a renaissance and philosophical blooming as its numbers swelled and new thinkers and adherents joined the congregation. In the fourteen years following that time clerics of Torm have enjoyed popularity unparalleled in Faerûn. Now that Bane has returned, the people look to the Loyal Fury and his mortal agents for salvation once again. They eagerly hope that the menace of the Black Hand can be dealt with after another great battle, that the revived church of Bane can be crushed by an army of paladins with holy hearts and sanctified swords. Such has happened within the lifetime of every adult in Faerun, and many expect it to happen again. Torm and his followers take a more realistic view, knowing that the current day is far different from the Time of Troubles, when the two deities met as essentially equal mortals. They know that the secrecy of Bane’s cult prevents open warfare, and that the menace of the Black Hand returned will not be quenched easily or without great loss of life. Both Torm and his holy warriors know the costs, and both are more than willing to pay them to deliver the good people of Faerun from a world dominated by the lord of Darkness. Clerics of Torm pray for their spells at dawn. On the 13th of Eleasis, they celebrate a somber ceremony known as the Divine Death to commemorate Torm’s sacrificial destruction of Bane. The 15th of Marpenoth sees a more jovial ritual in the form of the True Resurrection, which celebrates the anniversary of Torm’s return to Toril at the behest of Ao. Shieldmeet, traditionally a time when Faerûnians enter new agreements and compacts, is a time of great religious significance to followers of the deity of duty who take their oaths very, very seriously. In addition to the daily morning prayer, clerics are expected to give thanks and honor to Torm through quiet prayers at noon, dusk, and midnight. Torm’s clerics often multiclass as divine champions, divine disciples, or paladins. History/Relationships:Torm serves Tyr as war leader and champion, as he once did for a mortal monarch in the days immediately following the Fall of Netheril. Scholars disagree on where Torm’s kingdom was located, or even what it was called, but the most believable theories place it somewhere south of the Lake of Steam, in the area now known as the Border Kingdoms. Whole knightly orders in service to Torm’s church seek the location of this kingdom, which the clerics refer to as the High Seat, or Chalsembyr. They hope that discovering the location might give them more insight into Torm’s life as a mortal, one of the few subjects about which he absolutely refuses to enlighten his followers. Some interpret his reticence as a game, as if Torm keeps Chalsembyr’s location a secret in order to test his faithful, who routinely go on quests to locate it. Lore of the faith holds that he who discovers the whereabouts of the Loyal Fury’s mortal home will be raised up to the celestial planes as Torm’s divine servant. Prior to the Time of Troubles, Torm served Tyr as a loyal demipower. After his resurrection at the hands of Ao, the Maimed Deity elevated him to lesser deity status, and greatly enhanced his duties, granting him control of several armies of celestial warriors to use in outer planar conflicts. Torm, Tyr, and Ilmater work together frequently, and are known as the Triad. At Tyr’s insistence, Torm has of late befriended the Red Knight in an attempt to temper her lust for war with an appreciation for justice. His kinship for Helm dates back several centuries, though the clergies of the Loyal Fury and the Watcher currently find themselves at odds on several important ideological and political issues. As a pro-active enemy of evil, Torm finds that his ideals and philosophies often square with those of Lathander, whom he greatly respects. After destroying Bane, Torm turned most of his attentions to Cyric, working with Mystra, Oghma, and Mask in dethroning the Black Sun from his position as Lord of the Dead. He deeply regrets not destroying Cyric in that instance, and has vowed to remedy that regret should the two deities meet again. Torm found the alliance with Mask distasteful, and hopes to force the Lord of Shadows to reform himself by thwarting his plans as often as possible. Since the return of the Black Hand, however, the bulk of Torm’s ambition and planning has gone toward defeating the dark intrigues of Bane. Dogma:Salvation may be found through service. Every failure of duty diminishes Torm and every success adds to his luster. Strive to maintain law and order. Obey your masters with alert judgment and anticipation. Stand ever alert against corruption. Strike quickly and forcefully against rot in the hearts of mortals. Bring painful, quick death to traitors. Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alternatives, not additional laws. Your fourfold duties are to faith, family, masters, and all good beings of Faerûn. Clergy and Temples:Clerics and paladins of Torm swear themselves to the Penance of Duty, a guide of responsibilities and obligations outlined by the Loyal Fury himself after discovering the rife corruption within the church during the Time of Troubles. To repay their persecution of other goodly religions, the clergy must aid the establishment of other good faiths as part of the Debt of Persecution. The Debt of Dereliction states that Torm’s agents must expend every resource possible to eliminate cults of Cyric and Bane, and to work against the insidious Zhentarim. The Debt of Destruction stipulates that the clergy record the locations of dead and wild magic areas and do what they can to heal these wounds to the Weave. Additionally, clerics and paladins of Torm stand vigilant against corruption within goodly organizations, knowing that what could infect their stalwart order is doubly likely to writhe into the affairs of less watchful bodies. Many travel the world righting wrongs and spreading the good works of Torm. High Cleric Barriltar Bhandraddon serves as Torm’s pontiff in Faerûn, ruling from the impressive Temple of Torm’s Coming in Tantras. Bhandraddon’s reach extends far, and in the last decade he has sponsored several continent wide knightly orders, including the prestigious Order of the Golden Lion, members of which guard temples and wander Faerun in service to the Penance of Duty. The order is currently led by the affable Tantran paladin lord Garethian the Infallible (a humble man whose title is more an exercise in ironic self-deprecation than braggadocio). Since Bane’s return, many important leaders and field agents of the church have been assassinated, and many of Torm’s knights urge more decisive action against the Black Hand’s honor-less followers. Temples of Torm frequently double as citadels. Often constructed high on mountains to offer their residents a clear view of the surrounding area, such structures feature drilling grounds, high towers, austere quarters for resident and visiting knights, and plainly adorned, simple worship halls. White granite walls and statues of lions and armored figures predominate, with badges of knights who fell in duty lining the high-ceilinged hallways. In order to gain the power necessary to destroy Bane’s avatar during the Time of Troubles, Torm absorbed the souls of all his worshipers in Tantras. The voluntary soul-transference killed the mortals, ending thousands of lives in a matter of moments. As the city had been for centuries the center of his religion, with members of the faithful flocking to it since word spread of his arrival early in the Avatar Crisis, entire neighborhoods were left barren of life. Even though Torm required every once of devotional power to destroy his enemy, he could not bring himself to ask children to sacrifice themselves, especially as he knew many of them couldn’t understand the importance of what was happening. He assured their faithful parents that the children would be cared for, and to this day those children, ranging in age from 14 to 28, are known as the Martyr’s Progeny. Many have gone on to enter Torm’s clergy and some have even exhibited strange powers related to bravery and strength in the years since their parents heeded Torm’s desperate call. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 11:07:08 GMT -5
Tymora
Lady Luck, the Lady Who Smiles, Our Smiling Lady
Intermediate DeitySymbol: Silver coin featuring Tymora’s face surrounded by shamrocks Home Plane: Brightwater Alignment: Chaotic good Portfolio: Good fortune, skill, victory, adventurers Worshipers: Rogues, gamblers, adventurers, Harpers, lightfoot Halflings Cleric Alignments: CG, CN, NG Domains: Chaos, Good, Luck, Protection, Travel Favored Weapon: A spinning coin (shuriken) Tymora (tie-more-ah), the friendly, graceful, and kind deity of good fortune, owes her impressive popularity to two factors. Firstly, her dominance over narrow escapes and lucky discoveries makes her the patron of choice to Faerûn’s burgeoning adventurer population, who propitiate her in hopes of prolonged survival and spectacular takes. The greatest boon to her church came during the Time of Troubles, however, when Tymora appeared to followers in Arabel and set up shop in the temple known as the Lady’s House. As the entire continent quaked with magic gone wild, Tymora offered all-too-absent stability and the reassurances that some deity still cared about their human subjects. The ability to actually meet a deity (in exchange for a reasonable donation to the church, of course) bolstered faith in desperate times, and the ranks of her clergy and followers swelled accordingly. Those commoners who fail to take themselves too seriously see the servants of Tymora as energetic advocates of fun and adventure. The clerics preach a doctrine that urges their followers to take chances and do something, rather than sitting around and daring nothing. Accordingly, those who choose Tymora as patron tend to possess a zest for life and a calm assurance that the Lady Who Smiles will ensure they live a long and fruitful life. Halflings consider Tymora to be one of Yondolla’s Children, and consider her widespread worship in human lands as simply the greatest of Lady Luck’s numerous humorous cons. Clerics of Tymora, often called luck bringers, pray for their spells in the morning. The faithful typically greet each other by touching holy symbols, often embracing to do so. The clergy officially recognizes no set rituals, with religious observances varying wildly according to the dictates of each temple. Tymora’s clerics most commonly multiclass as bards or rogues, but they have been known to try almost any class combination. A rare few become auspicians. History/Relationships:Prior to the Dawn Cataclysm, a single deity, Tyche, controlled both good and bad luck. A fickle deity whose attention just as often brought calamity as calm, Tyche wandered through her existence controlled only by her whims, seldom concerning herself with anything or anyone for more than a moment. As luck would have it, the amorous deity found herself embroiled in the war between deities initiated by Lathander, who attempted to restructure the Faerunian pantheon according to his own sense of propriety. Deciding quickly that her paramour had become altogether too serious, Tyche kissed the Morninglord with misfortune and left him to his fate. During her travels, she came upon a beautiful rose, which she attempted to pluck from the earth. Curiously, the flower would not budge, so she cursed it with bad luck, whereupon its stem broke and it fell to the ground. Thinking little of the incident, she placed the rose in her hair and continued her roaming, oblivious to a dangerous corruption on her very person. The rose had been an aspect of Moander, deity of rot and decay. In short order, Moander worked its corruption into Tyche’s ear, eagerly draining the deity’s life force and withering her form within. When she finally returned home, the oblivious Tyche came upon her friends Lathander and Selune, as well as Azuth, who had been warned of Moander’s attack through consultation with the Pale Tesseract. Before the disgusting creature that had once been Tyche could greet her former companions, Selune lashed out with a bolt of purifying light. Tyche’s form split right down the middle, and from the husk emerged a completely new deity. A bright, somewhat smaller version of Tyche arose first, looking upon the three deities with a bemused expression of confused recognition, as if she had known these figures in dreams even if they had never met. Bold, beautiful Beshaba was second to arise. After a brief battle in which the good and evil aspects of the fallen Tyche nearly destroyed each other if not for the combined effort of Azuth, Lathander, and Selune, Beshaba cursed the four deities, decrying them as murderers and luckless villains unworthy of both her presence and her good will. Swearing to bedevil their followers with ill fortune for eternity, the Maid of Misfortune left the assembly in a torrent of acrid smoke and foul language. The newborn deity, Tymora, simply shrugged, a small frown her only display of emotion. Since that day, Tymora and Beshaba have continued their struggle. For Beshaba, their battle is one of wholehearted destruction. Tymora, for her part, seeks to stave off the Maid of Misfortune’s depredations, occasionally punishing her cruel ambition with a particularly choice humiliation. Though it would not be fair to call Tymora cruel, she does delight in practical jokes, often attempting to bring good humor to stern deities such as Helm and Tyr through the careful application of gentle teasing and playful trickery. Though she inherited all the good qualities of her progenitor, she also retains much of Tyche’s romantic fickleness--she’s seduced dozen of deities and countless mortals, seldom staying with a single paramour for more than a year or two. She shares a somewhat casual, long-running romance with the Halfling deity Brandobaris, whose passion for daring-do and ribald shenanigans rivals her own. Dogma:One should be bold, for to be bold is to live. A brave heart and a willingness to take risks beat out a carefully wrought plan nine times out of ten. Place yourself in the hands of fate and trust to your own luck. Bear and conduct yourselves as your own masters, showing your good or bad fortune as confidence in the Lady. Chase your own unique goals, and the Lady aids the chase. Without direction or goals, you soon know the embrace of Beshaba, for those on no set course are at the mercy of misfortune, which has no mercy at all. Clergy and Temples:Clerics of Tymora favor gaiety and spontaneity, believing that those who enjoy the greatest fortune are those who take the greatest risks. They position their temples as refueling stops for adventuring bands, often offering such staples as holy water and healing potions. Some churches take this a step further, offering excessive secret aid to the most daring of adventurers in a public relations effort to “prove” the value of Tymora’s doctrine. Clerics hail the miraculous success of these heroes upon their return from dangerous dungeons and haunted tombs, declaring their survival and plunder the reward of Lady Luck. When such groups are consumed by walls of living tentacles or walk into a sphere of annihilation set into the mouth of giant bas-relief demon faces, Tymoran clerics are notably silent. Each Tymoran temple is an independent operation with its own hierarchy and doctrinal interpretation, which usually boils down to the whims of the high priest or priestess informed by a baseline collection of beliefs and customs. This longstanding tradition has recently encountered a challenge in the form of Daramos Lauthyr, high priest of the Lady’s House of Arabel, who seeks to unite the church under a single pontiff--himself. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 11:10:29 GMT -5
Tyr
The Even-Handed, the Maimed God, the Just God
Greater DeitySymbol: Balanced scales resting on a war hammer Home Plane: House of the Triad Alignment: Lawful good Portfolio: Justice Worshipers: Paladins, judges, magistrates, lawyers, police, the oppressed Cleric Alignments: LG, LN, NG Domains: Good, Knowledge, Law, Retribution, War Favored Weapon: “Justicar” (longsword) Before every criminal trial in civilized lands, good-hearted magistrates whisper prayers to Tyr (teer) the Even-Handed, asking that he guide their judgments with temperance and resolve. A utopian interloper deity who long ago came to Toril from a foreign cosmos, Tyr sees himself as a father figure working to craft a perfect society among the people of Faerûn, whom he views as his wayward children. The pain of knowing that his mortal charges cannot hope to initiate and protect a flawless, completely just orderly existence tinges Tyr’s philosophy with an undercurrent of resigned sadness. Religious iconography depicts Tyr as an aging one-handed warrior, often with a bloody bandage covering his wounded eyes. The so-called Maimed God lost his right hand in battle with the ravenous entity known as Kezef the Chaos Hound. Tyr’s blindness dates to the Time of Troubles, when Ao himself scoured his eyes for failing to witness the theft of the Tablets of Fate and for allowing discord among the gods of Toril. Worshipers have allegorized Tyr’s wounds as emblematic of the blindness of justice and the price the truly just must endure on the path of righteousness and stern defense of the law. Particularly radical Tyrran sects advocate self-mutilation among their adherents, a practice condemned by the large majority of the faithful, who nonetheless ritualistically don gauze eye coverings and an off-colored glove on their right hands to honor the Blind Overlord. Commoners view Tyr and his clerics as stern arbiters of justice, often missing the paternal philosophical nuances of Tyrran doctrine for its more obvious black-and-white teachings on the nature of morality. They tend to view Tyr as something of a divine constant--they know that Tyr expects fairness, good judgment, and kindness toward the innocent from his followers, and hence afford Tyr’s clerics a great deal of trust. Clerics of Tyr pray for spells at dawn. In addition to numerous minor holidays, Tyr’s priesthood follows a strict regimen of monthly high rituals. On the first of each month, Tyrrans celebrate Seeing Justice, at which specially chanted prayers elicit the appearance of a white-hot war hammer that glows with heat and light. The thirteenth day brings celebration of the Maiming, at which the congregation sings loud, booming hymns as an illusionary gauntleted hand surrounded by a nimbus of burning blood appears above them. A similar ritual called The Binding, which takes place on the twenty-second day of each month, involves an image of burning, crying eyes. Tyr’s clerics often multiclass as paladins. History/Relationships:Tyr came to Toril in -247 DR in an event known as the Procession of Justice. Bursting from a gate near modern-day Alaghon in Turmish, he led a force of 200 archons across the Vilhon Reach in an effort to pacify the remnants of ancient Jhaamdath, which had fallen to lawlessness and brigandage following that empire’s destruction at the hands of its elven enemies. In the ensuring battle, Tyr’s host slew Valigan Thirdborn, a lesser deity of anarchy whose rise in -269 DR directly coincided with the ascendance of the bloodthirsty Exarch Thelasan IV, who spurred the Emperor into greater conflict with the elves. Tyr’s actions and sacrifices during the Procession (which lasted until -238) attracted the attention of the previously obscure Illmater, who joined forces with Tyr in -243 DR. Years later, long after the Procession had ended with most of Tyr’s servants banished or killed and the deity himself taking interest in Toril at large at the expense of his initial, highly targeted campaign, Torm joined up as the Just God’s war leader. Together with Ilmater, the deities became known as the Triad, by which they are still referred to this day. Over the more than 1,600 years since his arrival, Tyr has expanded his dominance over the whole of Faerûn--few are those who do not know his name or the enthusiastic ideals he represents. His is a civilizing voice, urging the construction of moral and legal codes and the administration of fair justice for sentient creatures in every land. In this regard he is both progressive and regressive, representing a force for cultural development in lands with corrupt or no legal systems and representing a stern defense of the status quo in nations with well-established codes of law. Tyr’s relatively short time on Toril has gained him a host of enemies. He fiercely opposes deities dedicated to tyranny, evil, or lawlessness, and bears particularly enmity toward Bane, Cyric, Mask, Talona, and Talos. Dogma:Reveal the truth, punish the guilty, right the wrong, and always be true and just in your actions. Uphold the law wherever you go and punish those who do wrong under the law. Keep a record of your own rulings, deeds, and decisions, for through this your errors can be corrected, your grasp on the laws of all lands will flourish, and your ability to identify lawbreakers will expand. Be vigilant in your observations and anticipations so you may detect those who plan injustices before their actions threaten law and order. Deliver vengeance to the guilty for those who cannot do it themselves. Clergy and Temples:The Tyrran faith appeals to those who seek to bring order to the disorderly, to punish the wicked, and to ensure that civilization prospers through a careful, fair system of justice. Theirs is a doctrine of justice through benevolent force and armed vigilance, a philosophy that makes the faith attractive to paladins and lawful fighters. Most adherents do not fight in the field, however, instead seeing to important battles in the courts as bureaucrats, judges, bailiffs, and merchants. Tyrrans tend to view all affairs in clear-cut moral terms, preferring to see the world ordered by just laws that provide the greatest benefit to all. They tend toward intolerance, sometimes violently so, and seldom tolerate mockery, parody, or the questioning of their faith. Clerics of Tyr bring law to lawless lands, often serving as judge, jury, and executioner. Without a civilized legal code with which to guide their judgments, they often default to a doctrine roughly equivalent to “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” However, Tyrrans prefer to err on the side of mercy, and frequently commute otherwise harsh sentences for cases in which the offender was ignorant of any wrongdoing. Such criminals usually find their names recorded in the cleric’s Book of Lawgiving, which is then shared with the nearest temples to prevent that perpetrator repeating the offense and getting off lightly. Powerful clerics frequently employ the mark of justice spell to add magical coercion to their stern lectures to convicted criminals. In civilized lands, Tyrrans (inevitably called “tyrants” by their legion detractors) tend to become legal experts, advising rulers, judges, or powerful merchants on the intricacies of the law and arguing cases before magistrates. They view the latter as charity, donating their (sometimes lavish) “speaking fees” to the church. Regardless of their setting, Tyrrans never enforce a law that can be shown to be unjust--defined by the church as out of compliance with the principles and definitions adhered to by other laws in the body of legal doctrine of which it is part. This sometimes forces Tyrrans to support very unfair laws that are, nonetheless, just. In many such cases, Tyrrans attempt to change the laws by working within the system. Those who break even unfair laws as a form of defiance or political dissent are nonetheless guilty, in their view, and deserve to be punished to the fullest extent the law allows. In some cases, Tyrrans act as agents of vengeance for those who have been wronged and who cannot afford or are no longer around to defend themselves. In such cases, when the law is so broken down as to become meaningless, clerics of Tyr act openly to defy evil or corrupt forces, martyring themselves if such becomes necessary. The well-connected, highly organized Church of Tyr sponsors an extensive system of fortified temples throughout Faerûn. Each subscribes to a strict set of internal rules known as the Innumerable Edicts, which seems to grow more pedantic and onerous with each passing year. Currently, the sprawling Fortress Faithful in Tethyr (south of Zazesspur) holds the most influential position in the church, as many faithful flocked there during that land’s recent civil war, and have stayed on to ensure stability in the region. The massive House of Tyr’s Hand in Thesk represents a more staid, traditionalist sect of the church, and shelters the Just Knights--clerics, fighters, and paladins who have honored the Maimed God in countless battles against their aggressive neighbors in Thay. Individual temples of Tyr offer lodging, fresh mounts, healing, spell aid, weapons, gear, and holy advice, as well as confession of sins, which plays an important absolving role in the faith. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 11:14:55 GMT -5
Ubtao
Creator of Chult, Founder of Mezro, Father of the Dinosaurs
Greater Faerûnian DeitySymbol: Maze Home Plane: House of Nature Alignment: Neutral Portfolio: Creation, jungles, Chult, the Chultans, dinosaurs Worshipers: Adepts, Chultans, druids, inhabitants of jungles, rangers Cleric Alignments: CN, N, NE, NG, LN Domains: Planning, Plant, Protection, Scalykind Favored Weapon: Tyrannosaur head (heavy pick) Ubtao (oob-tay-oh) is the patron deity of Chult, endlessly patient and rarely emotional. The Father of the Dinosaurs maintains a palpable emotional distance from both mortals and other deities, and he seems to stand aloof from the daily doings of the world and his followers. Only since the Time of Troubles has he begun to evidence a renewed interest in the doings of his followers. The many jungle spirits worshiped in Chult are all aspects of Ubtao. The church of Ubtao is split among three wholly independent sects, all based in the Jungles of Chult among the various clans of the humans. Mazewalkers, found only among the inhabitants of the city of Mezro, see to the general spiritual welfare of the clan, while trying to prepare the faithful for their trek through the maze of life. They teach children and adults the history and lore of the Chultan peoples, provide council about important life decisions, such as marriage, and attempt to mediate interclan and intraclan disputes, and help teach and uphold the law of Mezro. Spiritlords, based outside the city, seek to smooth their clan’s passage through the spirit-infested world. They live to insure the clan does not offend an ancient ancestor or elemental deity by missing a ritual or a sacrifice. They can also coax favors and knowledge from the capricious and jealous spirits. Jungle druids attempt to get the scattered clans to learn how best to fit into the web of jungle life. They are often cast in the role of clan healer, and also accumulate and pass on knowledge about animals, animal behavior (including that of dinosaurs), and plants. Jungle druids are often the trainers of the few domestic animals that the humans keep. Clerics and druids of Ubtao pray for their spells at noon, when Ubtao’s majesty hangs over all Chult. Most native humans consider themselves religious, though they show it in ways that astound travelers from other parts of Faerûn. There are seemingly scores of sacred ceremonies and holy days, many of them particular to ancestors that have passed on, the time of year, the location the people are going to hunt at, move to, or pass through next, or necessary before performing certain activities, such as hunting a certain animal or burying the dead. Yet when their small, moveable stone altars are not being used for these ceremonies, they treat them as if they were just another rock. Mazewalkers are usually clerics while Spiritlords are usually adepts. Jungle druids are druids. Many of the clergy multiclass as rangers. History/Relationships:Long ago, Ubtao agreed to stand guard over the Peaks of Flame against the day when Dendar the Night Serpent slithers forth and the doom of the world arrives. In exchange, the other gods granted him dominion over Chult and agreed never to extend their dominion into Ubtao’s fiefdom. Over time Ubtao’s essence began to fragment into numerous nature spirits, one of which was a shadow entity called Eshowdow. Shar recently absorbed Eshowdow, and her activity might mark the end of the agreement forged with Ubtao with unforeseen results. Ubtao’s only ally is Thard Harr. Likewise, Ubtao’s chief foe (other than Eshowdow) is Sseth, an aspect of Set acting as deity of the yuan-ti. Dogma:Ubtao created the jungle as a test for his people, a maze for them to pass through on their way to a heavenly afterlife. Learn the maze that represents your life, for you must know it when you meet Ubtao in the afterlife. Understand your place in the jungle, represented by your maze. Respect the dinosaur, for they are the Children of Ubtao, agents of his will and gifts of his bounty. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 11:17:25 GMT -5
Ulutiu
The Lord in the Ice, the Eternal Sleeper, Father of the Giant’s Kin
Slumbering DemigodSymbol: Necklace of blue and white ice crystals Home Plane: Astral Alignment: Lawful neutral Portfolio: Glaciers, polar environments, arctic dwellers Worshipers: Arctic dwellers, druids, historians, leaders, teachers, rangers Cleric Alignments: LE, LG, LN Domains: Animal, Law, Ocean, Protection, Strength Favored Weapon: “Harpoon of the Cold Sea” (longspear or shortspear) Ulutiu (oo-loo-tee-oo) is a long-quiescent deity who has voluntarily spent the last eon in slumber, adrift in the Astral Plane alongside a dead giant goddess known as Othea. Ulutir is sufficiently alive to continue to grant spells to his few followers scattered across Faerun’s northern arctic wastes. The Eternal Sleeper has shown little interest in Faerûn since Othea’s demise. If a way could be found to resuscitate Othea, he would likely return to Faerun (and quickly come into conflict with Auril and Umberlee), but for the time being he seems content to rest in eternal sleep, granting spells and protection only to the few hardy people who survive in his favorite environment and venerate his name. The church of Ulutiu is locally based, with little communication between villages. In the Great Glacier region, the clerics and druids serve as autocratic rulers of the villages. They govern with harsh, even cruel, edicts, but are rarely motivated by self-interest. The villagers believe Ulutiu’s clergy receives guidance from the Lord in the Ice, and, as a result, their society is orderly, if somewhat staid. Among the Ice Hunters of the Savage Frontier, Ulutiu’s clergy serve as community leaders as well, but they govern more by consensus than edict. Ice Hunter society is more open to contact with outsiders (on a passing basis) and less stratified in its social classes than Great Glacier society. Ulutiu’s clergy are leaders, teachers, keepers of history and wisdom, and defenders of their people. They teach their clans’ children, induct youths into adulthood, and pass along both clan traditions and practical survival knowledge. Clerics and druids of Ulutiu silently pray for their spells at midday, covering their eyes with their hands and turning their heads to the sky, and offer similar prayers at dawn and sunset. The people of the Great Glacier follow a special set of edicts called kaiurit that vary from village to village and change from year to year, determined from Ulutiu’s dream fragments experienced by the clergy. The Ice Hunters have abandoned the practice of observing kaiurit, but practices a year-long ritual known as the kaitotem in which they capture a totem animal and raise it for a year, then release it into the wilderness to become a servant of the totem spirits. Many clerics and druids multiclass as rangers. History/Relationships:Othea was the mother of the giant races of Faerûn and wife of Annam, father of the true giant races. She had children with Ulutiu, when they were discovered he voluntarily exiled himself in exchange for Annam’s promise to spare his wife. He sank into the Cold Ocean with his ice necklace, causing it to freeze into the Great Glacier. Othea planned to reunite with Ulutiu but was slain by one of her sons, who could not venture onto the Great Glacier while his mother was alive. He has no allies or enemies. Dogma:No person is the superior of another, with the exception of Ulutiu’s clergics, who are his representatives in this world and who are set in positions of leadership to pass on his wisdom to his people. Because animals share the same emotions, thoughts, and morals as people (but express them differently), they should be respected on pain of Ulutiu’s wrath. The villagers of the Great Glacier also believe that magic from any source but Ulutiu is blasphemous and those that practice it should be shunned and driven away. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 11:20:43 GMT -5
Umberlee
The Bitch Queen, Queen of the Depths
Intermediate DeitySymbol: Blue-green wave curling left and right Home Plane: Fury’s Heart Alignment: Chaotic evil Portfolio: Oceans, currents, waves, sea winds Worshipers: Sailors, were sharks, sentient sea creatures, coastal dwellers Cleric Alignments: CE, CN, NE Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Evil, Ocean, Storm, Water Favored Weapon: “Drowning Death” [trident] or jellyfish [trident] Malicious, mean, and evil, Umber lee (um-ber-lee) is the terror of sailors and coastal dwellers across the world. She breaks agreements on a whim and takes great pleasure in watching others die by drowning or in the jaws of sea predators. Vain and desirous of flattery, she is excessively greedy for power and revels in exercising it. Weresharks are her creations, and theirs is one of the few races that worship her out of admiration rather than fear. The Bitch Queen is always depicted as a female blue-green torso garbed in shells and a mauve cape made from jellyfish rising out of the waves from taloned hands, elbow fins, eyes of pale pearly death, and hair of kelp. Like the church of Talos, the church of Umberlee is almost universally despised and propitiated only out of fear. Nevertheless, despite the promise offered by the relatively weak church of Valkur, nearly every sailor makes an offering to the Bitch Queen before heading into her domain and Umberlant clerics can walk unmolested in dockside wards in most ports. They are even welcomed aboard most ships, in hopes that their presence will help appease the Bitch Queen. Umberlant clerics pray for spells at high tide (in the morning or evening), making offerings and self-anointing on the brow, hands, and feet with sea water. The Drowning is a private ritual, and only clergy members may witness it or take part. In the Drowning, a supplicant lies before an altar and is surrounded by candles lit to the deity, each placed with an intoned prayer by a different Umberlant cleric. The attending clergy then withdraw and release a wave of sea water to flood the room in a huge breaking wave and then flow away. Supplicants who survive are confirmed in the service of Umberlee and warned that if they should ever betray the Queen of the Deeps, drowning is the fate that awaits them. They were spared during the Drowning and so can be taken by the Sea Queen at any time to come. (Clergy whom the Sea Queen feels have failed her go to sleep one night never to awaken, dying under the night of drowning, their lungs mysteriously filled with sea water.) The two public rituals of the Umberlant faith are the First Tide and the Stormcall. The former is celebrated when the ice breaks up in a harbor and involves a parade through town with a caged animal, which is then tied to a rock and hurled into the sea. If it reaches shore alive, it is treated as a sacred animal for the rest of its days. Stormcall is a mass prayer to send a storm to devastate a specific harbor or ship or to turn away an approaching storm or one that has already broken upon the worshipers. Its participants pray around pools upon which float candles on driftwood planks, and throw sacrifices into the pools. A doused candle is a sure sign of the Bitch Queen’s anger. Umberlee’s clerics tend to multiclass as druids, fighters, rogues, divine disciples, or waveservants. History/Relationships:Umberlee is one of the Deities of Fury. She serves Talos, along with Auril and Malar. Talos has been encroaching upon her portfolio, and since she lacks the strength to fight him, Umberlee has been trying to distract him with romantic intrigues. She fights Selune and Valkur (to whom sailors pray to bring them home safely), Chauntea (for her dominion over land), and Sune (whose beauty she envies). Dogma:The sea is a savage place, and those that travel it had best be willing to pay the price of challenging Umberlee’s domain. All should know the Bitch Queen and fear her, for the wind and the wave can reach everywhere if sufficiently angered. Fair offerings bring fair winds to sea travelers, but those that do not pay their respects will find that the sea is as cold as Umberlee’s heart. Spread the word of the might of Umberlee, and let no service be done in her name without a price. Make folk fear the wind and wave unless a cleric of Umberlee is there to protect them. Slay those who ascribe sea and shore storms to Talos. Clergy and Temples:Umberlant clergy are charged to spread respect for Umberlee by preaching of the doom she has wrought in the past and the storms to come in all coastal cities and settlements. Along the way, they seek to build up favor enough to be washed ashore by the deity if they are ever in danger on the seas and to enrich themselves by accepting offerings, selling the safety of their own presence on shipboard, or by casting certain spells. Temples of Umberlee are always located along the coast or underwater. Many lie within sea caves, while free-standing structures are usually are constructed from flotsam, surf-pounded rocks, and the shells of great sea beasts. Umberlant temples are mainly vehicles for sailors and merchants to make offerings of candles, flowers, candies, or coin to appease the Bitch Queen’s wrath. The ceremonial garb of the Umberlant clerics consists of a skintight blue or green body stocking worn with a voluminous cape of blue or green trimmed with white fur (to represent foaming breakers). A tall collar, similarly trimmed, rises from the back of the cape’s neck. A popular badge of rank is the skeletal hand of a drowned victim. The church of Umberlee is disorganized and run differently in different locales. The only organized hierarchy is that imposed by a particularly favored and powerful cleric, and such regimes are inevitably washed away in time by the ever-fickle Bitch Queen. Clerics of the faith are even given to dueling each other to settle disputes of rank or ability, although such combats are rarely fatal. Instead, the loser is usually thrown aboard the next ship to leave port, regardless of the destination. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 12:26:53 GMT -5
Uthgar
Father of the Uthgardt, Battle Father
Lesser DeitySymbol: That of the individual beast totem spirit Home Plane: Warrior’s Rest Alignment: Chaotic neutral Portfolio: Uthgardt barbarian tribes, physical strength Worshipers: The Uthgardt tribes, barbarians Cleric Alignments: Varies with beast totem (see below) Black Lion (CG), Black Raven (CE), Elk (CN), Gray Wolf (CN), Great Worm (CG), Griffon (N), Red Tiger (CN), Sky Pony (CN), Tree Ghost (NG), and Thunder beast (CN).
The Blue Bear (CE) is unavailable for Player Character Worship.Domains: Animal, Chaos, Retribution, Strength, War Favored Weapon: Appropriate beast totem spirit (battleaxe) Father of the Uthgardt barbarians of the Savage Frontier, Uthgar (uhth-gar) is a proud, fierce, and independent warrior. According to some legends he is the son of Beorunna (a Netherese warrior hero whose followers became the barbarian tribes of the North), while others claim he is the divine offspring of mighty Tempus. The Battle Father has few friends and has remained relatively uninvolved in divine politics. Uthgar’s full and hearty laugh rings out whenever he hears a good joke. He enjoys sensual pleasures of the flesh, even in his divine state, and likes to hunt, eat, drink, and be merry in his feast halls with the warrior spirits he has called to serve him. Although he is a tireless and methodical tactician, his battle strategies are not terribly inspired. He is driven to win in the long run, however, especially if the Uthgardt barbarians (his people) are threatened. Uthgar has many faces, in his guises as the various beast totems, but in his hall he is always depicted as a tall, burly, bearded, blond-haired warrior with eyes of piercing blue dressed only in a battle harness, leather breechcloth, and furred boots. Little known outside the harsh realm of the North, the church of Uthgar does not exist per se outside the collected ranks of those who venerate the various beast cult shamans. Although generally seen as savage and frightening by other inhabitants of the Savage Frontier, in truth the character of the church of Uthgar varies greatly from tribe to tribe. In recent years, Uthgar’s people have worked to remove the stain of their reputation caused by the cruel actions of the now-defunct Blue Bear Tribe (whose totem was defeated and absorbed by Malar the Beastlord), and that fact has increased acceptance of Uthgar outside the barbarian tribes. Religious fervor within the tribes has increased because several infants in each tribe have been born with a beast-totem birthmark, which has been taken as a sign of great favor. These two factors have caused Uthgar to rise to the level of a lesser deity. Clerics of Uthgar pray at dawn or sunset. They are almost exclusively male, and each worships the beast totem spirit of his tribe. The spring equinox and both solstices are holy days, and all tribes converge upon their ancestral mound (or Beorunna’s Well, the holiest of the ancestral mounds) during the autumn equinox to perform ceremonies, make agreements, and commune with ancestral spirits. During the Runemeet, Uthgardt youths desiring to be adults (and warriors of all ages) participate in the ritual of the Runehunt, in which those involved seek victory over the tribe’s ritual enemies--usually orcs. When youths complete a Runehunt successfully, Uthgar’s clerics hold a ceremony, known as the Telhut, to initiate them into manhood. Uthgardt clerics of Chauntea initiate Uthgardt girls into womanhood at this time as well. Rather than follow the one step rule, clerics of Uthgar (and those who take him as a patron deity) must abide by the somewhat broader alignment guidelines of the beast totems who mediate between Uthgar and his people. Any alignment that fit’s the guideline for a beast totem is suitable for a cleric of Uthgar of that totem. The names and alignment guidelines of the totems are Black Lion (CG), Black Raven (CE), Blue Bear (CE), Elk (CN), Gray Wolf (CN), Great Worm (CG), Griffon (N), Red Tiger (CN), Sky Pony (CN), Tree Ghost (NG), and Thunder beast (CN). Uthgar’s clerics often multiclass as barbarians, druids, or rangers. History/Relationships:Uthgar was once a mortal Northlander from Ruathym named Uther Gardolfsson, brother to Morgred (the “Morgur” of Morgur’s Mound), who gained fame by invading the fabled realm of Illusk before moving into the northern interior. There, his followers united with Netherese refugees who had reverted to a primitive way of life to form a dynasty of barbarians, the Uthgardt. As he lay dying of wounds received in battle with Gurt, Lord of the Frost Giants, Uthgar was raised up as a demipower by Tempus, who admired his fighting spirit. Uthgar counts only the Lord of Battles as an ally. The Father of the Uthgardt dislikes Helm, Ilmater, Torm, and Tyr, for they have stolen away the devotion of all but one cleric of the Black Lion tribe. He holds Malar responsible for the destruction of the Blue Bear tribe (a fragment of which survives as the new Tree Ghost tribe), and he hates Auril for turning the Elk Tribe away from his worship. Other than enmities stemming from encroachment upon his followers, Uthgar holds himself aloof, unconcerned with divine politics and struggles. Dogma:The dogma of the Uthgardt religion varies slightly from tribe to tribe as each beast cult emphasizes different “barbarian” virtues. In general, shamans are charged as follows when they are initiated into the Uthgardt faith: Strength is everything. Civilization is weakness. Men should fight, hunt, and raid from the weak to provide for their wives and families. Family is sacred, and its bonds are not cast aside lightly. Arcane magic is effete, self-indulgent, and ultimately leads to weakness. Reliance upon arcane magic is an evil and false path that leads to death and ruin. Revere Uthgar, your ancestors, and your tribe’s beast spirit. Study the beast so that you know its virtues and its weaknesses; claim its virtues as your own and weed its weaknesses from your spirit. The beast holds wisdom and raw power that you can make your own. Make the others of your tribe fear and respect your power and knowledge so they heed the wise words your ancestors speak through you to them. Clergy and Temples:The church of Uthgar is divided among the eleven beast totem spirits that serve Uthgar as intermediaries to the Uthgardt tribes of the Savage Frontier. Uthgar is not worshiped directly, but each tribe venerates one of these servant spirits as the divine embodiment of the spirit of their tribe--the symbol of its vitality, wisdom, mystical ability, endurance, speed, and moral nature. Uthgardt shamans tend to the respective needs for their tribes, teaching tribal history and customs passed down by heroics tales and lineage chants in an oral tradition spanning centuries. They provide healing for their tribes, initiate youths into manhood after they complete their tribal quest (often missions against a tribe’s ritual enemy), and provide counsel to the tribe’s chieftain and elders. When the tribe faces a new situation or a quandary, shamans consult with the ancestral spirits and totem animal great spirit to find guidance. All Uthgardt shamans believe that personal strength can demonstrate purity of purpose, and so arguments are often settled by a test of strength or a battle to first blood, to surrender, or to the death-if the matter is serious enough. At Runemeet, shamans officiate over the tribal rites of passage. Uthgar has neither temples nor shrines, and his clerics can perform necessary ceremonies in any location, though their tribes’ ancestral mounds are their most holy sites. (Each tribe and its beast totem are tied to a particular ancestral mound.) These huge earthwork mounds, often shaped like the totem beast of the tribes that gather at them, are sacred burial grounds where only the greatest shamans and chiefs are interred. Most tribes believe their tribal founders are buried in their ancestor mound. Although there are many lesser burial mounds and shrines revered by smaller clans within the tribes, it is to the large mounds devoted to their most ancient and holy ancestors that the Uthgardt tribes return each fall to spend their winters near the protection of their ancestors. The ancestor mounds are all roughly similar. Two mound rings called cairn rings surrounded a large central altar mound. The ancestor mounds of large tribes may also be surrounded by smaller, nondescript burial mounds. Usually all mounds are formed of turf-covered earth. The Uthgardt correctly believe that the spirits of dead ancestors protect the graves from harm. For high rituals at the ancestral mound or when honoring the appointment of a new chieftain for the tribe, clerics of Uthgar dress in a high holy regalia of leather-and-fur tunics, breeches, breechcloths, and boots covered in intricate, mystic designs and ornamentation and thongs and fringes to which are attached beads and holy relics of personal importance (usually revealed to them as objects of power by spirits in visions). When a shaman dies, his relics are buried with him in his ancestral mound. Rather than a holy symbol, Uthgardt shamans carry a sacred bundle, a leather satchel containing spell components, objects too holy for others to see, and small carved miniature depictions of the shaman’s totem animal, all of which have been gained by the shaman at the request of his ancestral spirits. There is no church wide hierarchy among the faithful of Uthgar. Rather, worshipers of each tribe (totem) revere their religious leaders, with the eldest and most charismatic garnering the greatest respect and influence. Many beast totem clerics consider the church of Uthgar to be greatly threatened by the encroachment of foreign deities and a consensus is emerging among the remaining clerics that the foreign deities must be cast out and their clerics driven off. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 12:30:47 GMT -5
Valkur
The Mighty, Captain of the Waves
Faerûnian DemigodSymbol: Cloud with three lightning bolts on a shield Home Plane: Warrior’s Rest Alignment: Chaotic good Portfolio: Sailors, ships, favorable winds, naval combat Worshipers: Fighters, rogues, sailors Cleric Alignments: CG, CN, NG Domains: Air, Chaos, Good, Ocean, Protection Fa vored Weapon: “The Captain’s Cutlass” (cutlass) Valkur (val-kurr) can pilot any sailing craft in any conditions, and he never shies away from a challenge. His moods are as mercurial as the weather, but he is always incredibly loyal to his crew. He is usually jolly, always lucky, emphasizes his points by shaking his fist in the air, and has a great belly laugh. Valkur never holds a grudge, but when angered, his voice cracks like rolling thunder. Valkur epitomizes the daring sea captain who can sail his ship through anything the Deities of Fury can unleash. The church of Valkur is only loosely organized, with clergy members coming together to worship only when serving on the same ship or in port at the same time. Some clerics of Valkur captain sailing ships that sail the length of the Sword Coast or across the Sea of Fallen Stars. Most serve as officers on some ship or other. Few clerics of Valkur serve on pirate ships, but many enjoy serving their homelands as privateers. While in port, Valkur’s clerics provide care and small amounts of monetary support to sailors down on their luck and to families whose chief breadwinner has been lost at sea. Other clerics run shipyards or administer fleets of merchant ships. Valkur’s clerics are also fond of contributing to (if not totally sponsoring) seaborne exploration and long-distance trading expeditions because of the challenges and opportunities they present. Clerics of Valkur pray for their spells at around dawn, whenever the first hint of a breeze begins to stir. The church of Valkur celebrates only one holy day per year. The Shattering is always held in early spring, but the exact date varies from year to year. The festival is held to mark the end of winter and the beginning of the sailing season in the North and is celebrated even in the South where the winter ice does not block or trouble ocean travel. Valkur is said to communicate to his High Captains the exact date of the festival each year, and it often varies from city to city. The Shattering is marked by the unfurling of many new sails throughout the port districts or coastal cities and the christening of at least one new ship that then departs for its maiden voyage crewed by Valkur’s clergy. Valkur’s clergy regularly perform over a dozen separate ceremonies in the course of their duties. Most of these rituals are related to ships and voyages, including ceremonies at a ship’s christening, before departing on a voyage, when arriving at a new port, and when returning to the home port, among others. Many clerics multiclass as divine champions, fighters, or rogues. History/Relationships:Valkur is the sworn foe of the Deities of Fury and looks to Selune to guide him across the oceans and seas of Faerûn. He may have once been a sea captain from Mintarn who dared challenge Umberlee and won. The Red Knight, and through her Tempus, is trying to persuade Valkur to take more of an interesst in the disposition of naval conflicts, but he feels his primary responsibilities lie the protection of sailors. Dogma:There is nothing more invigorating than challenging the elements. The feel of wind and spray on one’s face and the deck pitching beneath one’s feet is the greatest feeling in the world. If humankind is to expand its reach, daring men and women must defy the odds and dare the impossible. The thrill of exploration is sweeter than wine or rum. There is always risk, but without risk life is empty. Life is to be lived and damn the consequences. One’s loyalties are first to one’s mates, then to one’s ship, and then to Valkur, who protects all sailors. Rely not on Valkur’s hand to always extract you from difficulties, for such is coddling and leads to a lack of challenge and the room to grow. Rather, Valkur helps those actively solving their own problems by helping their plans work. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 12:34:31 GMT -5
Velsharoon
The Vaunted, Archmage of Necromancy, Lord of the Forsaken Crypt
Faerûnian DemigodSymbol: A crowned laughing lich skull on a solid black hexagon Home Plane: Dweomerheart Alignment: Neutral Evil Portfolio: Necromancy, necromancers, evil liches, undeath Worshipers: Liches, necromancers, seekers of immortality through undeath, Cult of the Dragon Cleric Alignments: CE, LE, NE Domains: Death, Evil, Magic, Undeath Favored Weapon: “Skull Staff of the Necromancer” (quarterstaff) Velsharoon (vel-shah-roon) is a vain, selfish, petty, but very canny deity consumed with vengeance, obsessed with experimenting on living and dead beings, and unconcerned with the fates of lesser creatures. In many ways he continues to act like the mortal he recently was, albeit with far greater power at his disposal than before. The church of Velsharoon is a new one, and what hierarchy exists is found within individual temples. Many clerics of Velsharoon spend their days in necromantic research, seeking to understand and expand the faith’s collective knowledge of life, death, and undeath. Most have created hundreds of undead servitors, some of them unique. When an undead creation has served its purpose, these self-involved researchers often brand the symbol of their deity on its chest and then order it to wander randomly across Faerûn. Other clerics of Velsharoon are involved in “support” activities for the faith--grave robbing, embalming, or teaching. A few of the more congenial low-level clerics sometimes cure the minor ills of the populace to bring in funding or worldly supplies for the church and to more easily gather information about its enemies. Clerics of Velsharoon pray for their spells at midnight, when the secrets of the night are best unearthed. For a relatively young faith, the clergy of Velsharoon have quickly established a large number of holy days and rituals. The faith has yet to coalesce into a homogeneous creed, however, and widely varying rituals are found not only in different temples but within individual temples as well. Two rituals have become fairly widespread. The Binding of the Crypt and the Pact of the Everlasting are two rituals performed by powerful clerics, allowing them to return as an undead creature or be raised from the dead automatically if they are slain. Both rituals involve numerous other horrible incantations and the foul sacrifice of numerous good-aligned sentients. Prominent theologians of the faith claim that these rituals are merely the two of seven to be revealed by Velsharoon along a path to achieving immortality. Many clerics multiclass as divine disciples, necromancers, or (if part of the Cult of the Dragon) as wearers of purple. History/Relationships:As a mortal, Velsharoon was a renegade Red Wizard of Thay whose chief rival was Szass Tam. He discovered a method laid forth by Talos for a mortal to achieve divinity, but quickly realized that the Storm Lord would simply exploit him until he was destroyed. Velsharoon then shifted his allegiance to Azuth, who, with Mystra’s help, blocked Talos from seeking vengeance. Velsharoon has since secretly renewed his alliance with Talos and has begun flirting with Shar, although he still nominally serves Azuth. Velsharoon loathes Cyric, Jergal, and Kelemvor, for all three routinely upset his plans. Dogma:Life and death are the twin faces of eternal existence. To surrender to either one is to resign oneself to obscurity. True power lies in the twilight zone between life and death. By seeking to explore and extend the mortal condition and form--even mortal life itself--knowledge of the world and its infinite complexity are extended. Let no one interfere with the pursuit of such research, for the end result will more than justify the necessary sacrifices along the path. Knowledge is power, and knowledge of life and death brings power over all beings, living and unliving. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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Post by DM Leverage on Apr 29, 2013 12:39:14 GMT -5
Waukeen
Merchant's Friend
Lesser DeitySymbol: Gold coin with Waukeen's profile facing left Home Plane: Brightwater Alignment: Neutral Portfolio: Trade, money, wealth Worshipers: Merchants, traders, the wealthy, rogues (those who learn the thiefly arts in order to fight thieves) Cleric Alignments: CN, LN, N, NE, NG Domains: Knowledge, Protection, Travel, Trade Favored Weapon: Cloud of coins (nunchaku) Vibrant and vivacious, Waukeen (wah-keen) is a relatively young, hardworking deity who loves wealth not for itself but for what can be done and acquired with it. She enjoys bargaining and the hustle and bustle of the marketplace. She rules over deals done above and below the table--legitimate as well as black market commerce. She is interested in innovation, but can also be stubborn and persistent, which sometimes gets her into trouble. The Merchant's Friend appears as a slim, beautiful woman with golden eyes and long, luxuriant hair the hue of spun gold. Her gowns are woven of gleaming, gem-studded strips of precious metals and her gold-soled boots made from links of laced pearls. Widely admired and envied before the Time of Troubles, the Merchant's Friend's church suffered greatly during the Interdeium of Waukeen, a span of several years in which she was missing and presumed dead. Although Waukeen has begun revitalizing the faith of her worshipers, the opinion of the outside world may take far longer to recover. All sorts of rumors about Waukeen's disappearance and return are still being banded about, with allegations that she is really dead or that she consorted with fiends being the most damaging and persistent tales told. Clerics of Waukeen pray for spells just before sundown and must initiate their prayers by throwing a coin into a ceremonial bowl or a body of water. The church celebrates a dozen high festivals spaced over the course of the year that honor accounting (Cold Counting Comfort on Hammer 15), textiles (Great Weave on Alturiak 20), wealth (High Coin on 30 Ches), generosity (Spheres on Tarsakh 10), benefactors (Sammardach on Mirtul 12), finery (Brightbuckle on Kythorn 21), deal-making (Sornyn Flamerule 3-5), bounty (Huldark on Elesias 17(, magic (Spryndalstar on Eleint 7), guards (Marthoon on Marpenoth 1), craft (Tehennteahan on Uktar 10), and the dark side of wealth (a solemn rememberance of the evils of excess) (Orbar on Nightal 25). Clerics often multiclass as bards, goldeyes, or rogues to enhance their contacts and negotiating skills. History/Relationships:At the time of the Time of Troubles, Waukeen was still a relatively young deity with few enemies other than Mask, whose portfolio was naturally opposed to hers. As such, it was quite unexpected that Waukeen was never seen during the Time of Troubles and never reclaimed her mantle following its conclusion. The truth behind her disappearance is that she conspired with Lliira to leave her divine mantle behind and escape to the Astral Plane with the aid of a deity from another world. Once on the Astral Plane, she intended to make her way back to her realm via the Abyss through the purchased aid of the demon lord Graz'zt. However, Graz'zt betrayed her, making her his prisoner, and it was not until she was rescued by daring adventurers in 1371 DR that she regained her divinity. Waukeen has since revitalized and reassured her worshipers of her existence and her restored divine power. She is very closely allied with Lliira (who held her portfolio in trust while she was imprisoned), Gond (whose inventions she appreciates), and Shaundakul (whose portfolio complements hers). Aside from Mask, her only true enemy is Graz'zt, against whom she has sworn her eventual revenge. Dogma:Mercantile trade is the best road to enrichment. Increasing the general prosperity buys ever greater civilization and happiness for intelligent folk worldwide, bringing people closer to the golden age that lies ahead. Destroy no trade goods, raise no restrictions to trade, and propagate no malicious rumors that could harm someone's commerce. Challenge and refute unproven rumors that could negatively impact trade when heard. Give money freely to beggars and businesses, for the more coin everyone has, the greater the urge to spend and trade rather than hoard. To worship Waukeen is to know wealth. To guard your funds is to venerate her, and to share them well seeds your future success. Call on her in trade, and she will guide you in wise commerce. The bold find gold, the careful keep it, and the timid yield it up. Clergy and Temples:Waukeenar travel the world aiding merchants or staff temples in large cities that serve as money lending and changing houses, safe storage warehouses, and (covertly) fences for stolen goods--all in exchange for fees. Waukeen’s clergy members are under orders to donate 25% of their monetary income to the church, to invest in all enterprises that have any reasonable hope of succeeding if they are run by devout worshipers of the deity, and to consider other investments if approached by entrepreneurs willing to make substantial offerings to the deity. Waukeenar are not above manipulating trade by means of rumors, buy-ups, hired border brigands, and the like, but strong public criticism of such unsubtle tactics in the past has led the church to officially deny undertaking such things and to order its clerics to do such work only with the greatest subtlety, so that no one who suspects their hands at work will be able to prove anything. Personal enrichment is the sign of a wise cleric, but this must be done through arms-length investments, not openly unlawful acts. Temples of the Merchant’s Friend are almost always located in cities where commerce is in its fullest flower. Temples of Waukeen are built in many architectural styles, but a preference for ornate decoration is prevalent no matter whether the building is a soaring cathedral or a classical temple featuring a large portico and many columns. Such houses of worship are always constructed with the finest materials and with no expense spared. Decoration in Waukeen’s temples covers the floors, walls, roof pillars, and ceiling if possible. The decorative elements are baroque, intricate, brightly colored, and feature as much precious metal and as many gemstones as can be fitted into the design. However, despite their lavish adornment, inside and out, typically underneath the gold leaf is an all but impregnable fortress more secure than a king’s treasury. Such temples provide wealthy merchants who give generous tithes to the temples sumptuous cleric-guarded accommodations in town during their stays. Such temples can also be rented by the faithful for lavish fetes, useful for impressing potential trading partners and upstaging rivals. Waukeen’s clergy members are among the most lavishly dressed, rivaling those of Sune, Milil, and Lathander in their rich robes. Waukeenar ritual garb is gaudy and ornate, with white silk undergarments, slashed and fluted sleeves and boots, pince-nez and lorgnettes (if the clerics have any weakness of vision); various useful items dangling from silk ribbons, and tall gilded and gem covered miters. Tunics, trousers, hose, or tabbards may be worn as desired (or as the season makes practical), but these are always of the finest, most costly fabrics and furs, dyed and arranged for the most vibrant display possible. The entire ensemble is be covered by a gilded scarlet cloak heavy with the weight of thousands of wheels, plates, clasps, and flourishes of various precious metals. The costume is finished off with white gloves and a gilded rod or staff, which is either magical or ornately carved and set with gems. High clergy usually wear coronets with their miters, and outshine many monarchs with their garb. The Waukeenar faith is a hierarchical one that has traditionally been led by a single pontiff, known by the rank of Holycoin. Through the long years of the Merchant’s Friends absence, Holycoin Voice of the Lady Tharundar Olehm held Waukeen’s church together from Goldspires, the great abbey overlooking the Merchant’s Bay of Athkatla. Now that Waukeen has returned and the church is well on the road to recovery, the aged patriarch’s thoughts have tuned toward retirement, and many seek the honor of replacing him when he does decide to step down. In the true tradition of Waukeen’s faith, such competition involves forging alliances, cementing trade deals, and other forms of mercantile activity in preparation for the day when the counting of the coins is begun. Chief among the contestants are five ambitious, beautiful women of various ages and backgrounds, the “Five Furies”: Barasta Cleeith, Daerea Ethgil, Faerthae Garblueth, Halanna Jashire, and Sariila Tebrentan. These women are all clerical sisters holding the rank of Overgold who pursue a vicious game of quiet in-fighting to become Thardunar’s successor as the supreme head of the church of Waukeen in Faerûn. - Source: Forgotten Realms Faiths and Pantheons |
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