Hamal: God of the Book

Title(s): The Librarian, The Keeper of Knowledge, The Master of Tomes
Alignment: Neutral Good
Domains: Knowledge, Magic, Artifice, Runes
Favored Weapon: Staff
Symbol: Library with a tree growing out the roof.

Hamal is a god of magic, knowledge, science, math, and scribes. He is part of a group of gods called the remembrancers, who have an almost encyclopedic knowledge of Mastracosm. He is a patron god for educators, wizards, authors, and all those that use knowledge to improve the world. He despises any who spread fake knowledge and uses knowledge for evil acts.

History

Early History

In the Age of Creation, Hamal belonged to a group of deities tasked with recording information for the Forge Lords. They were privy to the thoughts of the Forge Lords that no other god short of Iya had. Hamal saw the destruction of the Elemental Lords with his own eyes and had to record the fury the Forge Lords displayed when they sundered their souls. As the cosmos became more complex and more gods were created, Hamal helped create the written language of the gods and wrote down the laws of the universe and its concepts like magic and the flow of souls. He educated many of the young gods created during this time. He was one of the first to notice the insatiable desire for knowledge that Abbadon had and the qualities that made him the god the Forge Lords placed in charge after they left, but also the beginnings of a rebellious streak.
Eventually, the Forge Lords created a library called The Master’s Draft that held all the knowledge of the universe. Hamal was one of the gods tasked with managing and protecting the library. The first conflict the library experienced was with Javano, the Ionad of Chaos. His notes contained so much of his chaotic essence that they distorted reality within the vicinity, bringing his ideas to life. Hamal and the other gods had to fight creations born from his manic scribblings. Afterward, Javano was the first god banned from the library.
Before her rebellion, Shaddi submitted a Treatise titled "The Worth of a People" to the library. In this document, she argued that the early mortals who randomly appeared in the Mastracosm deserved to live despite the harm they caused to the universe's stability. Hamal and the others who feared this document could cause ill will toward the Forge Lords hid the Treastise away, something he now regrets. When Shaddi rebelled, he was not involved and remained as guardian of the library.

The Revolution of Abbadon

Hamal was on the side of the fundamentalists as he had first-hand knowledge of what radical changes could do to the universe due to Javano’s insanity. Another Star God, his brother named Samson, a god of the arts and architecture, took Abbadon’s side. He believed Abbadon had the right to direct creation as he saw fit by decree of the Forge Lords and that only innovating on the Forge Lords’ work would lead to stagnation.
Hamal wasn’t surprised when Abbadon rebelled after seeing the signs when the god was younger, but he didn’t expect the rebellion to spread through the library. Abbadon wanted to steal the documents of creation kept in the library, and Hamal and his friends fought against Abbadon’s remaining loyalists to keep the Forge Lords' most precious works from being taken. While the assault was repelled, Hamal and his friends realized, far too late, that the assault had been a front, and many documents pertaining to the primordial flame and divine creation had been replaced with forgeries. The accuracy of this pointed to only one culprit: Samson, who personally delivered these documents to Abbadon. By the time the alarm was raised, it was far too late to stop Abbadon’s ascension.

The Sacking of The Master’s Draft

Hamal saw the horrifying results of what Abbadon learned about the flame after he reforged himself into an infernal god. The library found itself under attack again, this time by infernal forces. Unlike before, the defenders of the library couldn’t keep the waves of infernal creatures led by corrupted gods empowered by Abbadon’s black flame out of the library. Hamal had to face his brother, now corrupted as well. He had the opportunity to strike him down but stayed the final blow. Hamal and his allies, faced with the infernal forces acquiring priceless knowledge and the ability to shape the very face of the entire universe, so they decided to burn it all. They set fire to the Master’s Draft, destroying knowledge gathered since time immemorial It was only due to timely reinforcements from other gods did Hamal and the other survivors could flee with what knowledge remained as the library disappeared behind them.

The Creation of the Vault

Hamal and his friends created the vault, a repository of the knowledge taken from the library. He enlisted the aid of several gods he could trust to make the vault impregnable. He then had the memory of the vault erased from his mind, so even he doesn’t know where it is.

The Patron of Knowledge

Hamal took an interest in mortals across the Mastracosm as their societies advanced beyond a primitive level. He took a particular interest in the races that valued knowledge and progressive thinking. He sometimes took the guise of a mortal to have friendly arguments with people to inspire them. He was dismayed at how the Nilbog and High Elves used their gifts to fight against each other and would save the knowledge they thought was lost in their constant fighting. He also recorded the history of several other mortal races across the different planes.

The Divine War

Hamal didn’t fight in the Divine War but was among the gods that recorded the events. He was present during the Divine Law Accords.

Appearance

Hamal has the appearance of a mature, bearded Gemini with white hair and glowing purple eyes. He wears ornate robes and has two winged books familiars that are always at his side.

Relationships

As one of the most knowledgeable gods in the universe, he is full of advice and is approachable to all good deities that want aid in their ventures with either his magic or his knowledge. The only thing he won’t stand is using his vast knowledge for dangerous or destructive acts. Beyond that, he is neutral in the affairs of the gods, and most gods prefer he stays that way to prevent the secrets he knows from getting into the hands of evil.

Realm

Hamal lives in what appears to be a small library in the ethereal plains, located in the celestial plane. The library is larger on the inside and is a demi-plane where he stores all his knowledge. Those with a divine library card can enter the library whenever they wish. The library card is intelligent and can detect whenever the owner starts using the knowledge they possess in a way Hamal disapproves of. The card gives the owner one warning, and if they continue to go against Hamal’s tenets, it immediately vanishes.

Servants

Hamal’s divine servitor race are Aeons who preserve the knowledge of the universe and attack anyone who would use the knowledge for ill ends.

Worship of Hamal

The faithful of Hamal are more widespread than some of the other Star Gods due to his patronage of mortals starting since Elves and Nilbog were still primitive. The Gemini still has the highest number of Hamal worshippers. All individuals who value and spread knowledge and use knowledge to improve themselves and others have the eye of Hamal. Those who are the most faithful are known to possess knowledge not of the world.