Some priests and priestesses of Bhaal who had the misfortune of being captured alive by cults of Cyric had torture to look forwards to instead. Urban and rural cults entered into conflict as time went on, ambushing each other and killing one another. After all, they still received their spells, and so kept their faith.Ĭyric as a god. Bhaal's urban cults turned their worship to this usurper god, while his rural cults largely continued their worship of the Lord of Murder. He was killed by the mortal Cyric, and his essence was absorbed. Then, before he could regain his power, Bhaal was pulled down to the Material Plane with the other gods in the Time of Troubles. However, this effort was a failure and greatly weakened Bhaal after his avatar was slain in the attempt. Over the course of his divinity, Bhaal attempted to seize the Moonshae Isles as his personal domain. These nine were known as the Cowled Deaths. These had an assistant known as the First Murder they could call upon, who in turn could call upon the nine most senior members of the clergy. Likewise, the leader of a singular temple within the cult was the Primate of Primistress. The leader of a Bhaalist (or Bhaalyn) cult was known as the High Primate or Primistress. ![]() Probably not the kind of clerics you really want in your party, if I’m being honest. Of course, Bhaal’s clerics believed murder to both be a sacred duty, and a fun pastime. Or, once every ten-day week.Ĭlerics of Bhaal were to commit this heinous deed in the darkest moment of the night. Namely, that clerics of Bhaal were expected to commit murder at least once a tenday. However, as disorganized as they may have been, some aspects of worship remained the same. Thus, he could kill Bane’s minions, or starve Myrkul of power, at his choice.Īnd so the Dead Three ascended to godhood.īhaal’s church took on the form of a disordered group of local hierarchies. Bhaal chose to take the divine portfolio of death. Thus, Myrkul would rule over Bane’s minions after they died. Myrkul came second, and chose to rule over the dead. He believed it would give him the power to take over Toril. Then, they played knucklebones, or jacks, with actual bones.īane was the winner, and chose to inherit the divine portfolio of strife. At first, they chose to bowl skulls, but this game was interrupted. ![]() When the three fell to infighting, Jergal proposed an alternative: they play a game for it. To their surprise, Jergal gave his power up willingly, and asked who would take his place. When the three evil adventurers fought their way through the undead outside, they came to threaten him. Little did the three know that Jergal had grown tired of his throne. Eventually, they fought their way to the Grey Waste of Hades to confront the god of death, Jergal. To this end, they went on adventures, led armies, and even killed a primordial. ![]() But, just in case you need a reminder, I’ll give a brief summary.īane, Bhaal, and Myrkul were a trio of evil adventurers seeking out divine power. So, if you’d like to learn more, you can read about the experience from Bane or Myrkul’s perspective. And so we may have to dig a little deeper for today’s article.īy now I have covered the ascension of the Dead Three twice already. But Bhaal’s influence expands beyond just his actions as a divine, and his adventures as a mortal. Today we’ll be delving into the last of the Dead Three, Bhaal. I, as always, am your humble Loremaster, Sokar. Welcome to Lore-Win, the Dungeons and Dragons lore series. While Myrkul has been forgotten by many in Faerun and in the planes beyond, and most know of Bane, even those unfamiliar with D&D as a game may know of Bhaal. Or a bearded man with stringy black hair, pale skin, and blood-red eyes.Īnd so we come to the most famous of the Dead Three. Or are you imagining a hero, or a villain, one of your own creation? Perhaps you have imagined a great monster, ready to tear your foes apart. Or maybe that image is burned into the stones of a bridge, or drawn in blood on a wall, or sits adorning the front of a box. Perhaps it’s the mental image of a symbol, a skull surrounded by drops of blood. For some of you, just by reading the name you have summoned mental images.
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