Bahamut
Bahamut is the god of war, negotiation, and battle prowess. He is generally depicted either as a massive silver dragon or a middle-aged human man with shoulder-length silver hair and a medium-long beard. Bahamut's symbol is that of a dragon with its wings spread wide.
Lore
Bahamut's history is well-known due to his tendency for honesty and fairness to his patrons. Bahamut is known to be the first mortal ascended into the astral plane and is candid with how this occurred. Bahamut claims to have originated from Faerun, the Material Plane, though his mortal self likely existed well before recorded sentient history. Most people living in The Civilized West are familiar at least with the major details of Bahamut's ascension. According to his priests, Bahamut existed as a dragon long before the evolution of humans and other races and, alongside his mate, Tiamat, witnessed the end of the world-- apparently at the will of Shaeth, God of Destruction. Bahamut is candid in his appreciation of Aethon Sol, who by his account first proposed the God of War's ascension into the astral plane to the pantheon and encouraged the additional acceptance of Bahamut's mate, Tiamat, in response to Sheath's unwarranted destruction. Because of this, Bahamut is often a stalwart defender of Aethon Sol, his church, and his teachings. It is said that, after their ascension into the astral plane, Bahamut and Tiamat were responsible for repopulating Faerun with dragons, and as such, allowed the development of sentient life on the Material Plane once more. However, the pair officially separated shortly after Tiamat's exile due to increasing differences in ideology.Teachings
Although Bahamut is often associated with war, he does not condone the use of unwarranted violence. Rather, the god emphasizes fairness in war, use of tactical approaches, and negotiation as a means to a war's end. To the God of War, winning a conflict with subterfuge, betrayal, lies, or sheer numbers represents only a moral retreat into cowardice. Instead, conflict should be resolved by true tests of evenly matched skill and wit. However, Bahamut does not shy away from use of physical force, so long as it is not used to overpower those who are unequivocally unmatched. Typically, Bahamut discourages 'lone-wolf' behavior and preaches the strength of friends, allies, and family. He encourages every sentient to find a family of themselves, whether it be comprised of blood-kin or like-minded individuals, and to strive for contribution to a 'greater good.' Due to this, he is often hailed as the primary god of most contemporary large cities in Faerun and revered as a symbol both for victory in conflict and in the union of the people.Influence
Although considered a 'lesser' god, Bahamut is extraordinarily popular in Faerun, garnering more followers than all other gods aside from Aethon Sol. He is known to appear to the 'common folk' more often than any other god, especially to soldiers and their families. Bahamut generally inspires a sense of peace and cooperation in his followers, but is often called on for assistance in life-or-death, large scale war. It is known that Bahamut will never give an advantage to one side of a conflict or other, but is more likely to 'even the odds' with offerings of conflict resolution given by priests of his order. Alongside commanders, military units often employ Dragon Priests-- or those who belong to Bahamut's official church, the Father's Order-- for this purpose. Bahamut is honored each year on the summer solstice, particularly in the city of Baldur's Gate. During this time, citizens compete in good faith with the hopes of pleasing the god of fair conflicts regardless of their primary affiliations.
Alternate Names:
- God of Fair War
- Father of Dragons
Related Organizations
