speech, and cramped, ink-stained fingers. Wizards
invoke Azuth when they scribe scrolls, inscribe magic
circles, attempt to memorize spells, and even when they
cast spells. Often this acknowledgment comes in the
form of silently forming Azuth's holy symbol, pointing
the index finger of the left hand to the sky. For many wiz-
ards, the gesture is so commonplace in their lives that it
becomes an unconscious habit.
Temples dedicated to Azuth are scarce, and clerics of
the deity are extremely rare. Even in magic-saturated
Halruaa, only a handful of holy places are dedicated to
Azuth. Sometimes a statue or a shrine dedicated to him
stands in a corner of a temple to Mystra or another deity.
More often, a wizard has a personal shrine at home.
Azuth is represented at such sites as a hooded and
bearded figure with left hand held high, finger pointed
up. Sometimes he is represented by merely the hand. In
either case, the finger often serves as a candleholder or
as the point of origin for a light spell.
BANE
The Black Hand, the Lord of DarknessBane has a simple ethos: the strong have not just the
right but the duty to rule over the weak. A tyrant who
is able to seize power must do so, for not only does the
tyrant benefit, but so do those under the tyrant's rule.
When a ruler succumbs to decadence, corruption, or de-
crepitude, a stronger and more suitable ruler will rise.
Bane is vilified in many legends. Throughout history,
those who favor him have committed dark deeds in his
name, but most people don't worship Bane out of mal-
ice. Bane represents ambition and control, and those
who have the former but lack the latter pray to him to
give them strength. It is said that Bane favors those who
exhibit drive and courage, and that he aids those who
seek to become conquerors, carving kingdoms from the
wilderness, and bringing order to the lawless.
At many times and in many places in Faen1n, the
faithful of Bane have been seen as saviors for their ef-
forts in slaughtering raiders, throwing down corrupt rul-
ers, or saving armies on the brink of defeat. But in just
as many other places, the worship of Bane has created
or supported cruel dictatorships, aided mercantile mo-
nopolies, or brought about the practice of slavery where
before it didn't exist.
SYMBOL OF BANECHAPTER 1 I WELCOME TO THE REALMSBESHABA
The Maid of Misfortune, Lady Doom, Black Bess
Beshaba is the counterpoint to Tymora and is just as
frequently acknowledged in daily life as is her more be-
nevolent "sister." She is seen as a cruel and capricious
goddess who must be propitiated to avoid attracting her
attention and interest in a negative way.
Beshaba's name is invoked when someone is beset by
bad luck-which could be as minor as stubbing a toe or
breaking a wagon wheel, or as catastrophic as slipping
and accidentally falling off a cliff. It is also invoked to
ward off her attentions when someone is doing some-
thing in which good luck wouldn't play a part but bad
luck might. For example, someone rolling dice would
invoke Tymora because they want random chance to
fall in their favor, but someone about to cross a rickety
bridge would ask Beshaba to keep the bridge intact.
Folk make the symbol of Beshaba by folding in their
thumbs and extending their fingers on one or both
hands (mimicking the horns of her holy symbol) to ward
off misfortune. The same gesture raised to the head
signifies a salute; when pointed at someone, the "horns"
indicate ill favor directed toward that individual.
Many druids worship Beshaba as one of the First
Circle. They propitiate her with dances while wearing
fire-blackened antlers dipped in blood. According to
these druids, her holy symbol is the horns of a stag be-
cause when Beshaba was first worshiped, humans were
simple hunter-gatherers and she was believed to bring
misfortune to hunters, such as being gored by a stag.
Although most people tremble in fear at the prospect
of Beshaba's attendance at any event (even in spirit),
Beshaba is almost always invoked and welcomed
formally in the opening speeches or ceremonies of
formal functions such as marriages and coronations,
contests of sport or martial prowess, and at the naming
ceremonies of children. If she isn't invited to such an
event, she might take offense and wreak misfortune on
those involved.
Temples to Beshaba are virtually unknown. It's com-
mon, however, for rural folk to erect a post and mount
antlers on it at the site of some roadside accident or
murder. In cities, where antlers are hard to come by and
murders and accidents more prevalent, the fashion is to
draw the black antlers of Beshaba with charcoal on a
nearby wall, leaving the symbol on display until weather
scours it away. These "shrines," in either form, serve as
warnings to others about places of ill fortune.