The Orcgate Wars

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.

At a Glance

A series of conflicts which took place in eastern Faerûn beginning in -1076 DR and ending in -1069 DR. Narfell, Raumathar, Thay, and Chessenta had not yet been founded, but the nations now known as the First Empires of Mulhorand and Unther were shaken and subsequently entered a period of decline which lasted until about -150 DR.

In the aftermath of this event, orcs were exterminated across the lands of Mulhorand and Unther. Even today, the only place in the Old Empires where they can survive in any numbers is within the Akanapeaks. In the cities of Mulhorand and Unther, orcs are attacked on sight.

Sources

  • Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting [11836] pages 109, 263, 267, 268
  • Old Empires [FR10/9274] pages 3, 5, 8, 18, 23, 24, 33, 34, 44, 86
  • Xaeyruudh: starting with “Man Versus Orc” this account was written for the Xaeyruudh campaign

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Sects

Sects is the word I’m using for the “gray area” of churches… something I’m going to be relying on in the Xaeyruudh campaign both to introduce variety and also to keep the players guessing.

The idea is that there can be variations in interpretation of key ideas in each church, and this can result in schisms (like the Protestants splitting from the mainstream church of their day, if you want a real-world example) but it can also be smaller in scale.  It doesn’t have to result in a church splitting into two churches.  Sometimes it can’t go that way, because the mainstream church would hunt you down and exterminate you before you could gather enough support to defend yourself.  So you spread your own ideas, as much as your self-preservation instinct allows for, and keep your heretical ideas under wraps when your superiors are listening.  If your instincts are good enough, and if your ideas are appealing enough, then you have yourself a sect.

To keep things relatively simple, I’m organizing them by alignment.  I recognize the possibility that there could be 14 CG churches of Anhur, but that would be kinda crazy and I don’t want to be crazy.  So all CG “churches” venerating one God-King are considered one sect of that God-King.  CG churches of another God-King are a sect of that God-King.  Each alignment gets its own sect.  Potentially.

The head of each pantheon (Horus-Re and Gilgeam) can theoretically have a sect for each alignment.  In practice, the church of Horus-Re only has six sects and the church of Gilgeam really only has one.  To limit the crazyness of having up to nine churches for each God-King, only the head of each pantheon gets that kind of diversity.

The other central God-Kings – Anhur, Isis, Nephthys, Osiris, and Thoth – get a sect for each alignment within two steps of their own.  Anhur is CG, for instance, so his church can have up to six sects: CG, CN, CE, NG, N, LG.  Once again, this is just a theoretical max; sects tend to combine and ally with each other.

The remaining mainstream God-Kings – Bast, Geb, Hathor, Nut, Shu, and Tefnut – are limited to one alignment “step”.  Hathor is LG; her church has up to three sects… LG, LN, and NG.

The other God-Kings – and churches of foreign deities trying to get established in the Old Empires – don’t get sects, with the exception of Set.  Set is sorta like the head of his own subpantheon (which contains only himself) so he gets a loophole.  But it’s mostly academic because most of Set’s followers join his church because they like what he stands for.

The result of this “graying” is a bewildering array of possibilities… like CE followers of Anhur and CG followers of Set.  This is by design.  It creates a framework for unexpected interactions… roleplaying opportunities!

Set

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.

Thoth, Nephthys, Osiris, Set, and Sebek, from the WotC Faiths & Pantheons Art Gallery... click on the image for the link. All rights are assumed to be reserved by Wizards of the Coast


At a Glance

Set is one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.  Although the Mulhorandi pantheon doesn’t do “portfolios” in the same way that powers do, Set is most often invoked in connection with hatred, ambition, betrayal, deception, political corruption, strife, tyranny, fear, loss, necromancy, drought, darkness, rot, snakes, and undeath.  He is also a patron of evil-aligned arcane spellcasters.  Within the Old Empires, Set wholly or partially supersedes Bane, Gargauth, Shar, and Velsharoon.

Set’s domains include Air, Darkness, Evil, Hatred, Law, Magic, and Scalykind.  His favored weapon is the spear.

Symbol of Set, from the WotC Faiths & Pantheons Art Gallery... click on the image for the link. All rights are assumed to be reserved by Wizards of the Coast


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources

  • Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting Web Enhancement
  • Old Empires [FR10/9274] pages 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31, 32, 34, 65, 82, 83, 84, 85, 93

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Sebek

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.

Thoth, Nephthys, Osiris, Set, and Sebek, from the WotC Faiths & Pantheons Art Gallery... click on the image for the link. All rights are assumed to be reserved by Wizards of the Coast


At a Glance

Sebek is posing as one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.  Although the Mulhorandi pantheon doesn’t do “portfolios” in the same way that powers do, Sebek is most often invoked in connection with wetlands, river hazards, stalking, bloodlust, disease, poison, greed (for money, power, whatever), hunters, reptiles, and evil lycanthropes.  Within the Old Empires, Sebek wholly or partially supersedes Malar, Talona, and Tiamat.

Symbol of Sebek, from the WotC Faiths & Pantheons Art Gallery... click on the image for the link. All rights are assumed to be reserved by Wizards of the Coast


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

In the Xaeyruudh campaign, Sebek is a sarrukh and thus older than the God-Kings. Before the Conjunction he masqueraded for some time as one of the minor gods worshiped by some Imaskari. As the planes aligned, he altered his disguise, and slew and replaced one of the conspirators.  After the Conjunction and the fall of Imaskar, he deliberately got himself exiled from the God-Kings’ midst so that he wouldn’t have to keep up his disguise.

Sebek created the werecrocodiles in response to the planetouched races created by the God-Kings.

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources

  • Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting Web Enhancement
  • Old Empires [FR10/9274] page 26
  • Xaeyruudh — I think Sebek’s history and nature are unique to this campaign

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Re

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Re was, until the Orcgate Wars, the leader of the Mulhorandi pantheon.  Following his defeat in the Wars, his church was combined with the cult of Horus, and while some individuals remained loyal to him (separate from Horus-Re) for some time, today the cult of Re is small and disorganized.  Re doesn’t have a specific “portfolio” but the eternal prosperity of Mulhorand and the mulan people is his primary concern.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Source

  • Old Empires [FR10/9274] pages 3, 5, 17, 23, 24, 25, 33, 86

Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Ptah

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Ptah is falsely assumed to be one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources


Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Apophis

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Apophis is posing as one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources


Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Anubis

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Anubis is one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources


Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Tefnut

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Tefnut was, until the Orcgate Wars, one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.  Her cult survives mostly intact, though their prayers are now answered by someone else.  Although the Mulhorandi pantheon doesn’t do “portfolios” in the same way that powers do, Tefnut is most often invoked in connection with water, springs, pools, purification, peace, and quiet places.

The cult of Tefnut is actually venerating Eldath. Eldath’s domains include Family, Good, Plant, Protection, and Water.  Her favored weapon is the net.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources


Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Shu

This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.


At a Glance

Shu was, until the Orcgate Wars, one of the God-Kings of Mulhorand.  His cult survives mostly intact, though their prayers are now answered by someone else.  Although the Mulhorandi pantheon doesn’t do “portfolios” in the same way that powers do, Shu is most often invoked in connection with air, wind, the sky (the day sky, as opposed to the night sky), movement, speed, flying, and sea winds/waves.

The cult of Shu is actually venerating Shaundakul.  It might seem like Akadi would be a closer fit to Shu, but the elemental powers don’t really take an active hand in the Realms… Shaundakul, in contrast, is interested in expanding his following and is somewhat willing to interact with mortals in order to do so.  There’s not much interest in Auril within the Old Empires; when one wants protection from the cold wind one prays to Shu. Shaundakul’s domains include Air, Chaos, Portal, Protection, Trade, and Travel.  His favored weapon is the greatsword.


Appearance

What You See
Mannerisms

Personality & Power

What’s Important
Class/Level

The Church

Sects
Temples
Priests
Followers

Personal History

Timeline
Recent Events

Sources


Disclaimer

Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Forgotten Realms, and their logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the United States and other countries. This blog is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC.