Bhaal

Bhaal, the Lord of Murder, also known as Niynjushigampo among his Gugari worshipers, is the Faerûnian god of violence and ritualistic killing.

Worshippers, Clergy & Temples

The clergy of the Lord of Murder is a disorganized group of evil priests and assassins. Priests of Bhaal are referred to as either Bhallist, or Bhaalyn.

Appearance, Manifestations

Bhaal in known for appearing in three avatar forms: the Slayer, the Ravager, and Kazgoroth. The Slayer resembles a male, humanoid corpse with a feral face and ivory skin inset with deep lacerations that flow with black ichor; he prefers to assume this form when in urban areas. The Ravager is a 30-foot tall monster with a twisted, grimacing face that features a flowing beard and mane, horns that are 7 feet long, and eyes full of the flames of Gehenna; he assumes this form when visiting the rural regions of Toril. The Kazgoroth form is simply a shape-shifting monstrosity.
Another depiction of Bhaal is that of a cloaked figure wearing a steel harlequin mask. He carries twin curved daggers but is otherwise dressed and cloaked in fine, dark clothing. He stalks opponents relentlessly, increasing their fear and terror until the final blow falls. This depiction is most like the Bhaal of history known in Netheril and Jhaamdath.
In some extreme cases, Bhaal's mortal children (referred to as Bhaalspawn) can actually turn into creatures similar to Bhaal's avatars [mentioned above]. However, these incarnations are even more monstrous and inhuman in shape, acting as little more than powerful killing machines. While powerful, they are weaker than a true god's avatars.

Relationships & History

A wholly evil, debased and sadistic god, Bhaal was served by the goddesses Talona and Loviatar, who in turn served Bane and to a lesser extent, Myrkul.

Mortal

Unknown to many, Tharlagaunt Bale was an accomplished Arcanist of Netheril, famed for his prowess in mage duels. He was such a skilled duellist that he was often hired by other Arcanists and Archwizards to eliminate their rivals, but despite his magical ability dwarfing more than a few Archwizards, he chose never to raise (or steal) an enclave. He traveled much of Toril as a power-hungry adventurer and assassin.
Along with his companions Bane and Myrkul Bey al-Kursi, they traveled the realms seeking power. Together they roamed the lands around Netheril, defeating Borem of the Boiling Mud in -359 DR, Maram of the Great Spear in -357 DR, Tyranthraxus in -356 DR, Camnod the Unseen in -353 DR, and Haask Voice of Hargut in -350 DR. During their quest, they are thought to have allied with and betrayed other companions, such as Malar (lesser deity of hunting, stalking, bloodlust) and Talona (goddess of poison and disease). Eventually, they killed one of the Seven Lost Gods whose power they divided amongst themselves. Then they went at last to the Castle of Bone in the Gray Wastes of Hades, where the God of the Dead Jergal dwelt, intent on taking his power by force. Upon their arrival, Jergal willingly offered his realm to the Dark Three, though they couldn't decide amongst themselves who would rule.
The three then fought over his power until Jergal suggested they divide it up and decide who got what with a game of skill. Bane won and, having first choice, took the portfolio of fear, hatred, strife and tyranny. Myrkul was second, and chose the portfolio of the dead. Bhaal came out the loser of their game, and was left the realm of murder as his own, but Bhaal found it suited him well, and thought it the best of the three.

Godhood

Bhaal's reign of terror in the Moonshae Isles in the Year of the Bloodbird, 1346 DR, was a prime example of his cruelty and malice. Bhaal's shapeshifting avatar Kazgaroth, which emerged from a Darkwell, attempted to combine the firbolgs and Northmen into a conquering army set on destroying all the realms of the Ffolk. It even used its powers to corrupt some of the Northmen, turning them into blood warriors who were bloodthirsty and extremely loyal to Kazgaroth. After Kazgaroth was slain by Tristan Kendrick and his allies, Bhaal sought to personally ravage and corrupt the Moonshae Isles. Through his cleric Hobarth, he corrupted the Moonwell turning it into a Darkwell, formed an alliance with the Thayan wizard Cyndre in the court of High King Reginald Carrathal and raised an army of sahuagin and the undead through the sahuagin priestess Ysalla. The Darkwell turned into a cancerous wound on the earth that corrupted and killed anyone who came near it. Bhaal used the Darkwell to summon forth 'The Children of Bhaal,' which included Thorax the owlbear, a flock of perytons, and a displacer beast known as Shantu, which would lead them. All this was done to destroy the Earthmother and seize the Moonshae Isles as his personal domain. As the God of Murder sucked out the warm life of the Moonshaes through the Darkwell, the Earthmother's strength continued to fade until her spirit was completely extinguished, ending her reign on the isles. Bhaal's army of undead, sahuagin, firbolgs, ogre mercenaries, and the Children of Bhaal led by proxies such as Hobarth and Ysalla wreaked havoc across the isles by killing numerous people and razing settlements. Eventually, the Ffolk united under a newly crowned King of the isles, Tristan Kendrick, and rose up to defeat Bhaal's army. But by this time, the Darkwell was corrupted enough to open a portal to Bhaal's own realm and he sent forth his avatar, the Ravager, fueled by much of his divine power. In the end, the Ravager was slain by Tristan, High King of the Ffolk, using the Sword of Cymrych Hugh. Defeated and greatly weakened, Bhaal was banished from the Moonshae Isles and even temporarily exiled from Toril.

Time of Troubles

On Eleint 16, in the Year of Shadows, 1358 DR, most gods, including Bhaal, were forced to walk upon the face of Faerûn as mortals, and lost all their godly powers. During this period, Bhaal was slain by the then-mortal Cyric with the 'sword' Godsbane atop Boareskyr Bridge. Bhaal, having foreseen his own death, had impregnated countless mortal women, whose children carried a piece of his divine essence within them. These children are referred to as the children of Bhaal, or Bhaalspawn, and were created to ensure Bhaal's resurrection. To this end, Bhaal sought to have all his children slain after his demise so his essence could be freed and gather at the Mana Forge. Once all the pieces of his divine essence had been collected, he left it to his most trusted deathstalker, Amelyssan, to perform the correct rites to bring about his resurrection and help him regain his power.
After the death of the Lord of Murder, many city-dwelling Bhaalists quickly converted to the worship of Cyric, whom they referred to as Cyric-Bhaal. The rural priests maintained their faith for years to come, claiming they continued to receive their divine powers following their nightly prayers. The schism between Bhaal's remaining followers and the emerging Cyric-Bhaalists reached its apex in the Year of the Shield, 1367 DR, getting to the point where the factions would ambush and assault one another. A short time later, the remaining worshipers of Bhaal stopped receiving their divine powers and began gradually converting to Cyricism or Xvimism.

Reemergence

For a time, it was believed that any possibility for Bhaal's resurrection had been stopped. The last known Bhaalspawn, Abdel Adrian, resisted the murderous impulses caused by his lineage and became a famed and beloved figure in the city of Baldur's Gate. In the Year of the Narthex Murders, 1482 DR, near the beginning of the era known as the Second Sundering, Viekang, another Bhaalspawn who was thought to be dead, attacked Adrian as he spoke to a crowd in the portion of town known as The Wide. While the ultimate winner of the duel is unknown, the victor transformed into a massive, blood-soaked creature and began a rampage that was only stopped when a group of adventurers new to Baldur's Gate defeated and killed the monstrosity.
With all of his children dead, all of Bhaal's essence was freed, allowing for his resurrection. Bhaal was revived, and reclaimed the murder domain from Cyric. However, the Lord of Murder was no longer a true deity, and was instead a being of quasi-divine status. As with Bane and Myrkul, he was effectively a mortal. In 1492 DR, the city of Baldur's Gate saw a spate of murders by cultists of the Dead Three.

Divine Classification

God