Torm

The Loyal Fury, the True, the Hand of Righteousness
Torm is the god of duty and loyalty, revered by those who face danger to bring about a greater good. Those who favor Torm believe that one’s salvation can be found through service, that every failure to perform one’s duty diminishes Torm, and that every success adds to his luster. Those who take Torm to heart must strive to fulfill his commandment to go out into the world and be an active force for good, to right wrongs, and to help the hopeless. They must strive to maintain peace and order while opposing unjust laws. Followers of Torm stand ever alert against corruption and are expected to strike quickly and hard against any evidence of rot in the hearts of mortals. As the sword arm of justice, Torm’s faithful are expected to bring quick deaths to betrayers. Considering these tenets, it should be no surprise that most Human paladins have Torm as their patron.
Torm (torm) the True, patron of paladins unswerving enemy of corruption and evil, serves the peopk of Faerun by exemplifying the chivalric ideal. An ascended hero who lived his mortal life in service to just sovereign. Torm eschews the pretense of his fellow deities, instead adoptmg a humble position that he exists to serve the common good and the ruile of law as established by honorable mortal rulers. Though a true deity with awesome power at his disposal, the Loyal Fury is all too familiar with the failings of mortal men, having fallen victim to hubris, gullibility and ignorance when confined to a mortal shell durnig the Time of Troubles. During that seminal event, Torm allowed himself to be controlled his own corrupt, oppressive clerics for a short time, an occurrence that gave him, perspective on his own Flaws and enhanced his sense of humility. Stern, rightious and unyielding in the face of evil, Torm's spirt lifts when dealing with his friends, the weak, the defenceless, and the young.
Clerics of Torm pray for their spells at dawn. On the 8th of Eleasias, they celebrate a somber ceremony k:nown as the Divine Death to comemorate Torm's sacroficail destruction of Bane. The 15th of Marponoth sees a more jovial ritual in the form of the True Resurrection which celebrates the anniversary of Torm's return to Toril at the behest of Ao. Shieldmeet, traditionally a time when Faerunians enter new agreements and compacts, is a time of great religious significance to followers of the deity of duty, who take their oaths very, very seriously. In addition to the daily morning prayer, clerics are expected to give thanks and honor to, Torm through quiet prayers at noon, dusk, and midnight. Torm's clencs often multiclass as paladins.
Most temples dedicated to Torm are fortresses built on heights. These structures offer austere quarters for residents and visiting knights, drilling grounds, and stables. White granite, lion statues, and armored figures predominate in the architecture, with the coats of arms of fallen heroes decorating the walls of the great halls.
Torm is seen as the good right hand of Tyr, and a such his symbol is a white gauntlet made for the right hand. It represents Tyr’s sword hand, but it is also a symbol of forbearance. Torm is frequently depicted with his right gauntlet extended palm forward, which worshipers call the Hand Resolute. It signifies the principle that the just and true must pause before acting to judge whether their intentions uphold Torm’s ideals. Temples, civic structures, and the homes of the faithful are often decorated with images of the Hand Resolute as a constant reminder of this principle. Torm is often known for being part of the Triad.
Worshipers of Torm come from most walks of life, for he welcomes any who seek the best in themselves and others, who uphold his tenets of loyalty, responsibility, duty, and kindness, or who are willing to sacrifice to keep evil from gaining ascendancy in the world. The faithful know that all of them will stumble from time to time while following in Torm’s footsteps, but Torm’s priests teach that the shame of a minor fall from grace is far less severe than declining to rise oneself up to Torm’s standards.

History/Relationships

Torm serves Tyr as war lender and champion, as he once did for a mortal monarch in the days immediately following the Fall of Netheril. Scholars disagree on where Torm's kingdom was located, or even what it was called, but the most believable theories place it somewhere south of the Lake of Steam, in the area now known as the Border Kingdoms. Whole knightly orders in service to Torm's church seek the location of this kingdom, which the clerics refer to as the High Seat, or Chalsembyr. They hope that discovering the locacion might give them more insight into Torm's life as a mortal, one of the few subjects about which he absolurdy refuses to enlighten his followers. Some interpret his reticence as a game, as if Torm keeps Chalsembyr's location a secret in order to test his faithful, who routinely go on quests to locate it. Lore or the fairth holds that he who discovers the whereabouts of the Loyal Fury's mortal home will be raised up to the celestial planes as Torm's divine servant.
Prior to the Time of Troubles, Torm served Tyr as a loyal demipower. After his resurrection at the hands of Ao, the Maimed Deity elecated him to lesser deity status, and greatly enhanced his duties, grantng him control of several armies of celestial warriors to use in outer planer conflicts. Torm, Try, and Ilmater work together frequently, and are known as the Triad. At Tyr's insistence, Torm has of late befriended the Red Knight in an attempt to temper her lust for war with an appreciation for justice. His kinship for Helm dates back several centuries, though the clergies of the Loyal Fury and the Watcher curently find themselves at odds on several important idiological and political issues. As a pro-active enemy of evil, Torm finds that his ideal and philosophies often square with those of Lathander, whom he greatly respects.

Dogma

• Salvation may be found through service.
• Every failure of duty diminishes Torm and every success adds to bis luster.
• Serve to maintain law and order.
• Obey your masters with alert judgment and anticipation.
• Stand ever alert against corruption.
• Strike quickly and forcefully against rot in the hearts of mortals.
• Bring painful, quick death to traitors.
• Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alturnatives, not additional laws.
• Your fourfold duties are to faith, family, masters, and all good beings of Faerun.

Precepts of the Code:

Your Duty is to those who lack the power you wield. Care for the sick and aid the distressed. Be an example to the young. Protect your friends. Be generous in so far as your resources allow. There are two things that will blemish the faithful, and these are riches and pride. If one but remains in strained circumstances, he will not be marred.
Be stern, unyielding and unswerving in your battles with evil. Make war upon evil and injustice without cessation. Do not recoil before the enemy, but let your wrath undo the wicked. Seek not only courage, but also wisdom to see that stupidity and courage are cousins. Courage also means taking the side of truth in all matters, rather than seeking the expedient lie.
Obey your Duty, not your master - a worthy mortal master will be one whose directives are compatible with the dictates of your Duty. If not, this is part of a Paladin's Duty to be wary of corruption.
Serve the common good and the rule of law established by honorable rulers. Your fourfold Duty is to faith, family, masters, and all good being of Faerun. Strive to maintain law and order. Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alternatives, not additional laws.
Seek prowess and skill in all endeavors. Throughout your life, advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today so that your strength may be used in the service of the Triad, rather than in personal aggrandizement. This is never ending.
Stand ever alert against corruption. Strike quickly and forcefully against the rot in the hearts of mortals. Avoid all excesses and seek to defeat hubris, gullibility and ignorance within yourself. Purpose and discipline clear the mind. Your breath should only bring truth, always be faithful to your word. Bring painful, quick death to traitors.
Be mindful to serve your Duty through adherence to Purity, Virtue, and an honorable amount of precision and cleanliness of appearance. That which serves to improve the reputation of Paladins in the eyes of the people, without being dishonest or bringing dishonor, serves to ease Duty when it relates to those people, and thus makes Paladins more effective in their service. Purity is something that cannot be attained except by piling effort upon effort.
Be ever mindful of the code, and use them in your actions to swiftly enact justice. This is the mind and heart of the Triad, bringing judgment and compassion to men. Hold to the virtues and Duty of the code, realizing that though the ideals cannot be reached, the quality of striving towards them ennobles the spirit. In confronting difficult matters, if at first you leave it alone, fix the code in your heart, exclude self-interest, and make an effort, you will not go far from your mark.
Bring merciful, quick death to traitors - There is no honor in retribution, and no purpose to a lesson taught to one you intend to kill immediately afterward - only a darkening of the soul.
So speaks Torm, the True, the Loyal Fury.

Clergy

Clerics and paladins of Torm swear themselves to the Penance of Duty, a guide of responsibities, and obligations outlined by the Loyal Fury himself after discovering the rife corruption within the church during the Time of Troubles.
To repay their persecution of other goodly religions, the clergy must aid the establishment of other good faiths as part of the Debt of Persecution. The Debt of Persecution states that Torm's agents must expend every resource possible to eliminate colts of Cyric and Bane. and top work against the insidious The Zhentarim. The Debt of Persecution stipulates that the clergy record the locations of dead and wild magics areas and do what they can to heal these wounds to the Weave. Additonally, clerics and paladins of Torm stand vigilant against corruption within goodly organizations, knowing that what could infect their stalwart order is doubly likely to writhe into the affairs of less watchful bodies. Many travel the world righting wrongs and spreading the food works of Torm.

Promotion Rite

Be loyal, obedient, and dutiful, upholding laws, rules, and the most ethical stances through both unwavering support and armed vigilance.
Seek corruption constantly and stamp it out.
Give swift but brutal death to traitors.
Where laws are unjust or flawed, urge improvements and alternatives rather than a confusion of ever more laws.
Train law keepers and judges to be just, and watch over them to ensure that they perform with impartiality.
Serve with all your heart as well as all your reason. Every failure of duty diminishes the Loyal Fury; every success empowers him and brightens the world.
Be vigilant always. Question your actions and stances rather than sinking into the sin of self-righteousness.
Torm watches you, and expects you to watch and guide others.
Arise as a Guardian.