Helm

The Watcher, the Vigilant One, He of the Unsleeping Eyes

Helm (HELM) is the epitome of the guardian, the watcher, the guard, and has in years past been greatly venerated by those who need to remain watchful for evil at their doorsteps. He was once a much more powerful god, but has fallen upon hard times through two actions.
During the Time of Troubles, Helm was left with his powers and ordered to hold the gates to the Outer Planes against the other powers of the Realms when the other deities were stripped of their power and confined to the surface of Abeir-Toril. Helm did so all too successfully, and much of the resulting destruction and deific turmoil caused by the many divine deaths of the Godswar is laid at his feet.
Helm remained strong in the South, but experienced a further setback when his priests became deeply involved in an invasion of the True World of Maztica. Their unflinching and often brutal actions counted further against the god's reputation. Because of the inflexible and cold reputation those actions gained him, Helm's star is fading at a time when Torm and Gond are attracting new followers.
Helm is difficult to understand and is often viewed as emotionless, heartless, and devoted only to his duty or goal at the cost of all mortal consideration. While he is devoted to the point of obsession, he is not heartless, but merely a stern disciplinarian. He is fond of children and has been known to be most uncharacteristically lenient (for Helm) when dealing with small infractions by them or on their behalf.
In attempting to comprehend Helm's driven nature, many mortal sages have attempted to account for him throwing himself into his work by blaming his behavior on a broken heart caused by long-unrequited or spurned love. Others say he lost a great love to tragedy or eternally grieves for a lost relative, such as a brother, sister, or child. Still others account for his behavior more coldly as a burning ambition to become the greatest of deities. Helm has never given credence to any of these theories, as he considers such speculations frivolous use of time that could be spent more honestly at productive work.

Divine Domains

Life, War

Divine Symbols & Sigils

Staring eye with blue pupil on the front of upright war gauntlet

Tenets of Faith

"He also serves who stands and waits and watches carefully" and "Careful planning always defeats rushed actions in the end" are popular sayings of Helm's faithful. Novices of Helm are charged to be vigilant and to be fair and diligent in the conduct of their orders. They must protect the weak, the unpopular, the injured, and the young and not sacrifice them for others. They must anticipate attacks and be ready, know their foes, and care carefully for their weapons so that their weapons can perform their duties properly when called upon.
"Never betray your trust" is the guiding phrase for faithful of Helm. This philosophy extends to thinking about how best to guard and protect, both in terms of weapons and the deployment of guardians, and to anticipating what attacks may come and having a practiced plan ready to deal with such threats. The faithful and the priests of Helm train and exercise so as to always be able to carry out their duties as best they can.
Helmites always obey orders, provided those orders follow the dictates of Helm. Helm's wishes are often revealed to his faithful in response to on the spot prayer (often via an omen spell). He is very responsive in sending guiding vision, especially when his faithful face conflicting orders or directives, even from his senior clergy. The thought of commanding undead rather than turning them or destroying them is abhorrent to Helm, and so his clergy are not allowed to do so and would never dream of trying. This difference in philosophy is a major factor in the rivalry between his church and that of Torm.

Holidays

The Helmite faith always holds a Ceremony of Honor to Helm on each Shieldmeet, but its members observe no other calendar-related rituals to the God of Guardians. On a daily basis, worshipers of Helm should always pray to the Vigilant One upon awakening and before composing themselves for slumber. A faithful worshiper who poses a question to the god typically receives some sort of (often cryptic) guidance in dream visions. Helm may also grace a nonbeliever who is growing interested in his faith with such visions.
The most holy major Helmite ceremonies are the Consecration of a Postulant, which is the dedication of a being seeking to be confirmed as one of the clergy of the church of Helm, and the Consecration of a Glymtul, which is a dedication of a special item to Helm's service (glymtul is an ancient word for "favored thing"). Other ceremonies of note are the Purification and the Holy Vigil. The Purification is a renewal of faith undergone by beings returning to the faith or atoning for a shortcoming in vigilance, loyalty, or worship. The Holy Vigil ceremony marks the ascension of a priest to a higher rank. It is a night-long ceremony of concentration in which a priest, by willpower alone, keeps his or her weapon floating in midair. The weapon is enspelled by a senior priest through ritual magic to levitate, and the vigilance of the priest observing the ritual keeps it hovering.

Divine Goals & Aspirations

Day-to-Day Activities

Helmite clergy believe they can win back the rightful power of Helm only through demonstrated excellence of vigilance and purity of loyalty in their roles as guardians and protectors. They have set about trying to train bodyguards everywhere and spreading the word that only Helm-tested worshipers of the God of Guardians are truly worthy and reliable to their masters.

Priestly Vestments

Priests of Helm wear spotless, shining, (often everbright-enchanted), unblemished full plate armor with open-faced helms (a visor reduces vision). Often the helms are topped with plumes. Such armor may be accessorized with red cloaks and tabards of steel gray, and such garments—or the armor itself—may be adorned with the Unsleeping Eye in the center of both back and breast. In southern regions, Helmite clergy members often wear the finest full plate armor set with gems and worked with gold filigree in designs that accentuate great golden eyes set in the centers of their chests (on the breastplates) and backs. In areas where heavily armored clerics are frowned on, the armor is reduced to a set of heavy shoulder plates, but the helm remains in any case.

Adventuring Garb

Because of the useful nature of the ceremonial gear of the priests of Helm, it is worn in the field as well as for ceremonial purposes, unless it is decorated with such costly materials that the priest fears it will attract thieves, in which case a more utilitarian version of the same full plate armor is worn. In either case, the armor is dominated by the symbol of Helm's eye on the chest, often shown in a sunburst or as the topmost level of a stepped pyramid.

Symbol: Staring eye with blue pupil on the front of upright war gauntlet
Home Plane: House of the Triad
Alignment: Lawful neutral
Portfolio: Guardians, protectors, protection
Worshipers: Explorers, fighters, guards, mercenaries, paladins
Cleric Alignments: LE, LG, LN
Domains: War
Favored Weapon: “Ever Watchful” (bastard sword)
ALLIES: Torm
FOES: Bane, Bhaal, Garagos, Mask, Shar, Talos

Divine Classification

Power