Mask

Mask

Mask (pronounced: /ˈmɑːsk/ MASK), the Lord of Shadows, is the god of shadows and thieves in the Faerûnian pantheon. He is a loner god most often associated with thieves or those of otherwise ill-repute. He is a chaotic neutral or neutral evil intermediate deity from the Shadow Keep in the Plane of Shadow, whose portfolio includes shadows, thievery and thieves, and previously also included intrigue. Mask's symbol is a black velvet mask tinged with red.

Personality

Known for his constant scheming, cool head, and oft-reserved biting comment, he lost a significant portion of his power, the intrigue portfolio, to Cyric. This, of course, led to two things: an enduring hatred of Cyric, and the Lord of Shadows leading himself to be more direct than he was in his prior, elaborate plots.

Relationships

Simply put, Mask is a loner. However, before this, he had frequent alliances with Bane. If nothing else, their sizable hatred of Cyric gave them common ground in addition to their history of working together. Mask was also at direct odds with Waukeen, the goddess of merchants and honest trade. All guardians of light, knowledge, and duty are opposed to him. This includes Selûne, whose light tends to reveal his own faithful while they work.
He is allied with the drow god of thievery Vhaeraun. The relationship itself is businesslike. However, Mask planned to compensate what he lost to Cyric with Vhaeraun's divinity, while Vhaeraun used the similarity between their symbols to recruit half-elves and humans into his church. The two were often confused with one another among non-drow on the surface. They also share a very similar title, Mask's "Lord of Shadows" and Vhaeraun's "Lord of Shadow". 

History

Godsbane

During the Time of Troubles of 1358 DR, Mask took the shape of a powerful blade called Godsbane. He eventually came to be wielded by the then-mortal Cyric; he acquired the sword by murdering a halfling named Sneakabout, who in turn killed the former wielder of the sword. 
In the years following the Time of Troubles, Mask released the powerful hound Kezef to try and kill Cyric, but the hound turned instead on the Lord of Shadows, not stopping the chase until it had bitten off one of the god's limbs. Mask, seemingly too weak to heal, acquired the powerful weapon Houndsbane to defend himself; the weapon was a gift from the deity of magic, Mystra.

Death

In 1374 DR, Mask relinquished his divinity and his life over to Shar to repay a millennia-old debt to the goddess, who was revealed to be his "mother" as well as the person he served as a herald. Just before his death, Shar revealed Mask's true name as Lessinor, though its origin (either as a mortal name or a birth name) was not explained. A portion of Mask's divinity—the portion stolen by Kesson Rel—was absorbed in equal portions by Erevis Cale, Drasek Riven, and Prince Rivalen of the Shade enclave. Erevis then sacrificed himself to Mephistopheles, the archdevil Lord of Cania, in payment for releasing the half of the soul of Magadon that he ate; Mephistopheles in turn absorbed the portion of Mask's divinity held by Cale.

Rebirth

There have been several hints that Mask could return, either in person or via a successor who takes his place in the pantheon, namely:

• When Mask surrendered to Shar, his last thoughts were about the secret he kept from her
• Mask apparently arranged that Cale's son would be born in safety after the Spellplague of 1385 DR 
• Drasek Riven, himself ascended to a demigod of shadows, prophesied to Magadon of the return of Mask 
• This was proven to be true when the Shadowlord's plans to thwart the Cycle of Night perpetuated by Shar on countless worlds resulted in Mask's divinity (both the Shar-consumed and Kesson Rel portions) being gathered back into a single being—Drasek Riven, Mask's former Second of Five—resulting in the aforementioned cycle being thwarted, along with the stripping of divinities from both Mephistophales and Rivalen Tanthul

Possessions

The Shadowlord wields a pair of magical, twin longswords known as Stealthwhisper and Shadowblade. 

Divine Realm

Mask keeps a divine realm called Shadow Keep on Niflheim, the second layer of Hades. Visitors might glimpse the Keep, but very few ever reach it, as it is constantly shrouded in a heavy fog that leads them astray.

Dogma

Mask's faithful are led to believe that the god sees everything that happens in the dark and to trust it, as one would be made an easy target by walking into plain light. The abilities to deceive, as truth is a foolish virtue and manipulation is better than brute force, and to be dextrous are also appreciated. Whilst the faith advocates for accumulating riches, it also says to only steal what is necessary. They also believe that owning something simply requires being in possession of it.

Worshipers

The church of Mask states that wealth rightfully belongs to those who can acquire it. Honesty is for fools but apparent honesty is a very valuable thing, and subtlety is everything.
The Clergy of Mask are called Maskarrans, with elite specialty priests referred to as demarchesses (pronounced: /dɛmɑːrˈkɛsɛs/ deh-mar-KESS-es) if female and demarchs (pronounced: /dɛˈmɑːrks/ deh-MARKS) if male. Maskarrans address each other as "Brother/Sister Shadow", no matter their rank. Clergy that completes an especially dangerous heist or complex act of manipulation are often admitted to the Circle of the Gray Ribbon.
It is rumored that the Cult of Mask maintains a large network of informants throughout the cities of the realm. It is also rumored that this network provides employment for all sorts of thieves, beggars and thugs.
Shrines of gods radiate the part of their philosophical orientation they share the most. For example, a shrine of a chaotic evil deity, who was more chaotic than evil, radiates chaos. Mask's shrines during the 14th century DR radiated chaos, despite him being a neutral evil deity during that time.