Auril
Auril, the merciless goddess of cold and winter, is worshiped mostly in regions that are affected by deep winters. Folk propitiate Auril with offerings and prayers for mercy. Her priests warn others to prepare for winter, and to stock extra provisions in order to have some to spare as offerings to the goddess.
Few favor Auril except for those who make their livelihood from winter or those who truly love the season. Her rare priests tend to be folk who would, but for their status, likely be outcasts from their communities. They practice celibacy and remain aloof from others when not serving in their official capacity.
Harrowmoor has a temple dedicated to Auril, the white-spired Winter Palace. The structure is a roofless array of pillars and arches carved of white stone. The rituals of Auril’s worship often seem cruel to outsiders. In Luskan, visitors gather at the temple to watch the frequent “wet parades,” a ritual in which supplicants don garments packed with ice. They then journey between six white pillars known as the Kisses of Auril, which are dispersed throughout the city. The worshipers move from pillar to pillar, chanting prayers to the goddess. Upon reaching a pillar, a supplicant must climb it and then “kiss the lady,” touching lips to a rusty iron plate at the top. In winter, these events resemble frantic footraces, with the added risk of frostbite and injuries caused by falling from the slippery pillars. The parade runners are cheered on by patrons who come out of nearby taverns to place bets on the stamina of the participants. Those who finish the race are thought to have helped make the winter easier, and they rarely have to pay for food or ale all winter long.
In the late 14th century DR, Auril encroached onto Llŷr's domain by freezing her chaotic tides. Though Llŷr was once allied with Auril, she cut off this alliance, and turned to Qetarr, God of the Sky and Thunder, and Kythys, Goddess of the Wind. The three allied deities sought to take down the Frostmaiden, and she was forced to retreat to the most frigid region of Azthir-Terra, Oerich's Maw. From an island known as Solstice, the Goddess of Winter caused the Everlasting Rime beginning in 1488 DR. This seemingly eternal winter covered the area and extended over Icewind Dale for two years. This taxed the goddess, and as such, Auril became very weak, vulnerable, and self-isolated. In fact, she became so powerless that she could be slain by mortal creatures, which could force her to be banished until the next winter solstice.
Tenets of Faith
In the North, Auril was a commonly worshiped, and feared, goddess and an integral part of northern cultures. Worship of the Frostmaiden was common in lands such as The Frozen Expanse, the High Snowspire Range, and the Frostfinger Peakes.
Northlanders considered Auril one of their primary deities and was a key part of their culture. She was feared and seen as the harbinger of winter upon the whole world. In the late autumn and over the winter, regular sacrifices were made to her. Sacrifices of food were place upon rafts which were then set adrift in the ocean. Human sacrifices, usually prisoners of war or slaves, were placed on these rafts. Human sacrifice was a rare occurrence and was only seen during dire times.
In the Free Republics of the West, followers of the Frostmaiden were shunned by society and was most commonly encountered in Ninthmire and Hillhelm. During the winter in Hillhelm, followers of Auril openly recruited from the destitute, homeless and refugees. They were offered salvation, instead of the risk of freezing to death in an alley, if they joined the faith.
Worship and sacrifices to Auril were sparse in the Trade Sea region, found mainly in the mountain towns vulnerable to winter winds.
Auril was one of the deities worshiped by air and water genasi, especially those who lived in cold regions. Air gensasi tended to be zealous in their worship, with a fanatical devotion to Auril. They enjoyed inflicting pain on other creatures using cold air.
Auril was one of the deities worshiped by members of the Arcane Brotherhood.
Auril used frost giants and winter wolves to deliver commands to her cults, while frostwind viragos and winter hags were the handmaidens of the Frostmaiden.
Druids considered her to be among the First Circle of nature deities, and saw her as deserving of veneration in spite of her more violent tendencies relative to some other members of the Circle.
Holidays
- Midwinter (Night), Hammer 30 to Alturiak 1. This was the most holy night of the year for the clergy, a festival of ice-dancing that lasted all night. Druids were also known to pay respect to the Frostmaiden on this date.
- The Coming Storm and the Last Storm, informal but enthusiastically celebrated rituals where the priests gathered and called howling ice storms down on a region to mark the onset and end of winter.
- Auril's Blesstide, or Auril's Day, was a holiday (of sorts) held annually in the city of Harrowmoor on the first day of new frost in the year. It was not so much a holiday as a way to seek to appease the Frostmaiden in hopes of a mild winter.
Divine Classification
Lesser Goddess, seasonal deity in the Life Warden circle
Realm
Church/Cult
Spouses
Siblings
Children
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