Baelthor

The stern and stalwart god of earth is the son of Lord Ptharos and, along with his sister Betshaba, one of the Triad, the creators of the world. As creator of the dwarven race, he is almost universally worshiped as the primary deity by dwarves. He is worshiped throughout human cultures as a patron of smithing, construction and strength and symbolizes the mind and intelligence. Among humans, worship of Baelthor is strongest in the former Great Empire, where he is worshiped along side Betshaba and Lord Ptharos in temples of the Triad.

Baelthor's clergy is usually closely aligned with other Baelthoric deities (excepting Gyges, who is exiled from his father's presence both in celestial and temporal spheres). His greatest enemy is Enosigaois, the offspring of Dagon created to oppose Baelthor and ancient wars between dwarves loyal to their creator and those traitors who fell under the sway of Enosigaois are legendary among the dwarves.

Baelthor

God of Earth

Descriptive Info

Gender: Male

Avatar: Balthor, Gambiar the Strong, The Sleeper of the Deep

Consort(s): None

Allies: Baelthor is accorded respect by all of the Triadic, Ptharosian, Betshaban, and, of course, Baelthoric deities, and the Iuvenes, due to his loyalty to his father, Lord Ptharos. He is particularly loyal to his father, as well as his sister, Betshaba. Cebren, god of music, is known to frequent the Stone Hall, and it is said that his music is the only thing that can move Baelthor's stone heart. His offspring Evander, god of gates, guards the entrance into the Stone Hall. It is also known that he has arrangements with Minos, god of commerce, to support his beloved dwarves. His contests of strength with Thallos, god of strength, are legendary, as is his friendly rivalry with this god. His offspring Mulciber, forges all of Baelthor's weapons, and has also been contracted in the past to assist the dwarves in their creations.

Foes: Enosigaois, Dagon's offspring created to defeat Baelthor, is Baelthor's greatest enemy, though Baelthor opposes all of the Dagonian deities when possible. Baelthor and his offspring Gyges, god of thunder, are no longer on speaking terms, as Baelthor feels that Gyges' choice of spheres treads too closely on his father's territory. Even though Lord Ptharos permitted Gyges his sphere as god of thunder, there is still great enmity between the two.

Spiritual Info

Rank: Greater

Nature: Harmonious

Ethos: Benevolent

Major Influence: Earth

Minor Influence(s): Smithing, Justice, Dwarves (as Balthor), Strength, Construction

Symbols

In the Empire, the symbol for Baelthor is a brown triangle, often depicted to the right of the three triangles of the Triad. As a physical object, the holy symbol must contain some stone or metal, and priests often craft a bas relief axe, hammer or horizontal line to place in the center of the triangle. To the Holunder, Balthor's symbol is a double-bladed axe, made of Mithryl or some other precious metal, should Mithryl be unavailable or exceptionally rare in their region.

Dwelling Place

The Stone Hall of Wuldagor

Servants

Heiliger Thugrin Deepbrow, Heiliger Godric, Heiliger Waldemar, Heiliger Zacharias the Mason.

Doctrine

No information available on the doctrine of Baelthor

Mission

No information available on the mission of Baelthor

Geography

No geographic information available on Baelthor

History of the Church

No historic information available on Baelthor

Organization

No information available on the Organization of the Church of Baelthor

Garments

Priests of Baelthor must wear brown robes and carry their holy symbols over their chests, on a chain. If they carry a weapon, it is typically an axe or hammer (or both), with the brown triangle of Baelthor clearly shown on the head. Priests often wear thick hoods under an iron or steel helm, which protects their bald heads from sunlight. Though their heads are shaven, they wear long beards, which are often dyed white if they have not grayed naturally. To the worshipper of Baelthor, wisdom comes from meditating on darkness, though they do not consider light, particularly sunlight, to be evil. Dwarves, conversely, wear their hair and beards extremely long, and often braid them in elaborate patterns.

Religious Practices

No information available on the religous practices of the Church of Baelthor

Customs

The followers of Baelthor obey the Creed of Truth, issued by Lord Ptharos, but also observe the Code of Steel. These laws, written upon a stone kept in the Stone Hall of Zeth, dictate the proper behavior of the priests of Baelthor, and they must obey these dictates or risk losing their position and power. The Code forbids priests from using any means but their feet for transportation, unless they are unable to walk themselves, in which case they must have a handful of natural dirt touching their flesh. Priests must also carry with them a piece of lodestone, which is precious to the followers of Baelthor, and an axe or hammer (which may be small and ceremonial in nature) whenever possible.

Dwarves consider Balthor chief amongst the gods, having taken his father's seat upon the death of Lord Ptharos. This is heresy in the Empire, of course, and has caused no end of problems in the rare happenstance that the two societies meet.

Worshippers of Baelthor are required to give worship to his father, Lord Ptharos, as well. See the entry for that deity for more information.

Worship services to Baelthor are held underground, or at least in a chamber that is closed off from light, but always during the day. The only celebration which is held at night is the Dedication of the Triad ceremony, which is described in full in the entry for Lord Ptharos.

Taboos

Followers of Baelthor are forbidden from using volcanic rock in their work, without special dispensation from the deity himself (some of the most powerful magic items that have been created by the Church of Baelthor have been created out of volcanic rock).

Priests are also forbidden to wear orange or yellow, as these are the colors of Dagon.