Purphoros, God of the Forge

Purphoros is the god of the forge, the restless earth, and fire. He rules the raw creative force that infuses sapient minds. Purphoros is also the god of artisans, obsession, and the cycle of creation and destruction. As a forge radiates heat in the area around it, Purphoros's influence provides inspiration to mortals. He makes exquisitely crafted objects almost constantly, sometimes absentmindedly working while he holds conversations with the other gods, only to destroy the finished product and begin again. Impulsive and mercurial, Purphoros is prone to bouts of either joyous productivity or frustrated anger. He often feels constrained by the limits of imagination, yearning to realize ideas that seem just out of reach.
Purphoros's preferred form is that of a muscular man whose coal-hued skin is mostly covered in mutable organic bronze. He might also appear in the form of a fiery phoenix or a bull made of cooling lava, and for that reason, both of those creatures are associated with him. When angered, he might appear as an enormous mass of lava, a blazing fire, or a volcanic eruption. Mortals who see Purphoros in one of those forms seldom live to tell about it.
Purphoros’s Influence The raw creative force that Purphoros embodies is chaotic, but Purphoros isn't a god of unbridled chaos. Rather, he shows mortals how to harness that primal energy, shaping it through passion and labor into something usable.
Purphoros is primarily associated with forging, metallurgy, and related activities. It was his followers who first brought bronze to Theros, and a few of his most favored have begun working with a new metal—iron—said to come directly from their god's forge-fires.
Though Purphoros is largely interested in physical craft, he has influence over all forms of creation. Keranos also inspires new ideas, but it is Purphoros who oversees the advancement of the craft that brings these ideas to life in the world.
Purphoros is always ready to obliterate what is to make room for what could be, and to start the cycle again when what could be becomes what is. When he is inspired, the night sky glitters with new constellations, and anvilwrought creatures appear in the countryside. When he is wrathful, stars vanish in molten rain, and his hammer blows annihilate whole mountaintops.
Purphoros’s Goals Purphoros acts not because of grand plans or high ideals, but on the whims of his restless, creative mind. On the rare occasions when he contemplates what he would do if he were ascendant in the pantheon, his most fervent wish is to be left alone. To Purphoros, that would mean spending time by himself in his forge, creating anything he desires. But it also would mean being free to uproot mountains, topple cities, and reroute rivers without any of the other gods interfering.
Worshiping Purphoros Purphoros holds dominion over everything that springs from mortal ingenuity. Most artisans say a small prayer to him upon beginning or completing the construction of nearly anything, from swords to fortresses to ships.
Naturally, Purphoros is strongly associated with the forge, and nearly every smithy on Theros is a sort of ad hoc temple to him. Charms and idols of Purphoros hang from the walls in such places, intended both to inspire the artisans and protect them against accidents. Regardless of their professions, worshipers of Purphoros often light small fires in the god's honor, burning wooden crafts or drawings of their inventions to gain his favor.
Purphoros’s Champions Alignment: Usually chaotic, often neutral
Suggested Classes: Barbarian, bard, cleric, fighter, sorcerer
Suggested Cleric Domains: Forge (described in Xanathar's Guide to Everything), Knowledge
Suggested Backgrounds: Acolyte, entertainer, guild artisan
Most champions of Purphoros are unswerving advocates of passion and creativity who change the world by doing what they believe is right in the moment.
Purphoros’s Favor Purphoros is notoriously impulsive, often selecting champions based on momentary whims. Despite this seemingly blasÈ attitude, he is dedicated to all his champions, no matter how they came into his service.
What made the forge god turn his attention to you? What set you apart from the masses of people who offer him prayers and sacrifice? What whim came over him that made you the perfect choice in the moment he tapped you?
Purphoros's mood is highly changeable, and having his favor doesn't always mean having his attention. But if you follow your passions and do what you believe is right, he will stay true to you as well.

Myths of Purphoros The myths about Purphoros revolve around one of two themes: his wonderful creations or his explosive anger.
The Gift of Iron. 200 years ago, mortals on Theros fought and hunted using weapons made of bronze. According to legend, it was an anvilwrought smith named Alasin who brought great and unknown knowledge of power and craft to Purphoros. Purphoros, delighted, saw this as the time to gift mortals with a new raw material. Some smiths, hastily adapting new methods to use iron, devised ways to blend iron and ingenuity into new and incredible technologies. The forging methods were dangerous and often yielded defective or destructive results.
To reward the smith who granted knowledge not known to even the gods, Purphoros appeared to Alasin and granted the anvilwrought the secret of taking iron ore and making pig iron. The manufacture and use of Iron weapons and technology spread across Theros, launching an age in which people traveled further and faster than ever before
Purphoros’s Twin. When the world was young, Purphoros was jealous of Iroas and Mogis and wanted a twin of his own. He created Petros, a Nyxborn double of himself crafted of divine bronze with a touch of mortal flesh. Petros aged as the eons passed, and Purphoros was forced to patch cracks with strips of bronze and refill the vessel of his Nyxborn twin. Petros lacks the spark of true life, though, and can’t speak. He toils day and night in Purphoros’s forge, making wonders that would shame any mortal smith but can never match Purphoros’s work in beauty or originality.
The Stone Winter. In Theros’s earliest days, the people vociferously honored Heliod, Nylea, and Thassa for the comforts of nature. Gradually, Purphoros grew bitter that mortals never acknowledged his flames, which kept the earth warm and fertile. So, Purphoros quenched the world’s core. For a year, a lifeless winter gripped the world, with neither the sun nor the seasons warming the corpse-chill earth. Ultimately, it was the mortal engineer Chersio who brought about the winter’s end. Instead of cursing the situation, Chersio sought a solution, creating a hypocaust system to bring warmth to her community. Delighted with the innovation, Purphoros waited until Chersio completed and lit her substructure furnace. When she did, the god returned warmth to the entire world. Today, an autumnal festival called the Kindling or the Forge-Lighting (the Chalcanapsion) lends its name to the seventh month in the Meletian calendar. During this festival, worshipers keep a bonfire burning from sundown to sunrise, acknowledging that Purphoros warms the earth and makes the harvest possible.