Selvetarm
From Forgotten Realms Wiki
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Selvetarm | |
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| Title(s) | The Spider that Waits Lolth's Champion |
| Power Level | Demigod |
| Homeplane | Demonweb Pits Abyss |
| Alignment | Chaotic evil |
| Portfolio | Bloodlust Battle Prowess |
| Worshipers | Drow |
| Cleric Alignments | |
| Domains | Chaos, Drow, Evil, Spider, War |
| Favored Weapon | Venommace (heavy mace) |
Selvetarm, known also as The Spider that Waits or Lolth's Champion, is a chaotic evil demigod worshipped by few drow in the Underdark; the place where his worshippers are most common are in the city of Eryndlyn. He is the patron of unequaled battle prowess and bloodlust. Selvetarm cares only for battle and destruction everywhere, and he has a great hatred for all things living, although that is nothing compared to the hate he has stored for his mistress Lolth.
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[edit] Manifestations
When sending his avatar, the spider that waits appears as a large spider some of the time with the head of a drow male. He is known to wield a sword and mace in his front arms, and he can call upon the spells of all spheres.
The spider that waits rarely manifests himself in the realms; he prefers to send his avatar or just ignore the petitions of his supplicants, although he will manifest when his avatar is busy elsewhere. On those rare occasions he manifests himself as a tiny sphere of utter darkness.
[edit] Worshipers
The Church of Selvetarm usually acts over the manifestation of soul spiders, and also common spiders. He manifests his pleasure by the discovery of stones, dried bark or webstone, and his anger by making pieces of weapon or armor break upon contact. All of the Selvertargtlin are trained in the sword in addition to the clerical skills. Although the church is mostly males, a handful of females worship Selvetarm.
[edit] Relationships
Selvetarm is grudgingly allied with Lolth even though he is her consort and although he is not hugely enamored of that fact he guards her vigilantly, he is also known to defend Garagos due to the similarity of their personalities and portfolios. He fiercely opposes his father Vhaeraun's machinations and has opposed him on multiple occassions, one being during the War of the Spider Queen as Vhaerun sought to destroy Lolth in her weakened state.[1]
[edit] History
Selvetarm was born from the brief union between Vhaeraun and Zandilar the Dancer, a demipower worshipped by elves in Yuirwood and later absorbed by Bast who would become Sharess, which was part of an elaborate plan to help Zandilar's followers against the attacks of Lolth's.
Selvetarm was alone for a time, until he was befriended by Eilistraee who showed him the ways of good, but all this would be shortlived as a result of the trickery of Lolth. The Spider Queen was enraged by the existence of a demonic lesser lord of the Abyss, who professed himself as having power over spiders, and whose name was Zanassu. Around this time the spider demon Zanassu had been weakened by a conflict in the Prime Material Plane, and so Lolth tricked Selvetarm into destroying the Abyssal lord and absorbing his divine power, under the false pretences of winning Eilistraee's gratitude. But in his actions Selvetarm also absorbed enough of Zanassu's malevolence to overcome his acquired goodness. Lolth used this to her advantage and entrapped Selvetarm's will, binding her grandson to her service.
In 1372 DR, during the War of the Spider Queen, the drow of Menzoberranzan send a contingent to Lolth's Demonweb Pits where they discover Lolth defenseless. Their guide summons his god Vhaeraun to attack the defenseless Lolth, but Selvetarm appears and in the ensuing battle they both fall off the web and plummet into the darkness below.[1]
Selvatarm was later slain by a mortal follower of Eilistraee wielding the Crescent Blade.[2]
[edit] Dogma
| “ | War is the ultimate expression of individual power, and only through battle and death can you realize the respect of your comrades. Hone your fighting skills constantly and teach those who will follow into the fray. Never give or recieve quarter, and hope to die amid the bloodlust of battle against overwhelming odds. | ” |
[edit] References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Richard Baker (May 2003). Condemnation. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0-7869-2824-7.
- ↑ Lisa Smedman (January 2007). Sacrifice of the Widow. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0-7869-4250-9.
[edit] Further Reading
- Eric L. Boyd, Erik Mona (May 2002). Faiths and Pantheons. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0-7869-2759-3.
| Deities in the drow pantheon |
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| Eilistraee | Ghaunadaur | Kiaransalee | Lolth | Selvetarm | Vhaeraun | Zinzerena |
