Tyr

Tyr

Tyr (pronounced: /ˈtɪər/ TEER) is the lawful good greater god of law and justice in the Faerûnian pantheon. He is the leader of the coalition of deities known as The Triad. Tyr is particularly popular in the lands of Calimshan (where he is worshiped as Anachtyr), Cormyr, the Dalelands, the Moonsea, Sembia, Tethyr, and the Vilhon Reach.
An interloper deity, Tyr is the same power as the god of the same name in the Norse pantheon, although in the Realms he is worshiped only as a god of justice and not as a god of war. As the only Norse power worshiped in Faerûn, if a cleric of the Norse pantheon comes to Toril from another world, he or she will be granted spells through Tyr.

Titles

Tyr has many titles among mortals; among them are the Even-Handed, Grimjaws, the Maimed God, Wounded Tyr, Blind, Blind Tyr, the Blind Overlord, the Wounded One, and the Just God. These titles symbolize his nature to his followers. Among the Outer Planes, he is known as the One-Handed. In Calimshan, Tyr is worshiped under the name Anachtyr.

Description

Tyr is typically portrayed as blind or with a bloody bandage over his eyes and missing his right hand, for which he bears his title of the Maimed God. His title of the Even-Handed, though it refers to his position of god of justice, is also seen as dark humor. His wounded eyes are seen as symbolic of "blind justice" and the occasional cost of living a lawful life. He is usually shown as a burly, noble warrior with a powerful build and a bearded face. 
When an avatar of Tyr appears to his followers, his eyes (or eye) are at first the color of bright steel, but they fade away to empty sockets before the avatar vanishes. His brow always shines with a white radiance or halo, leaving no doubt as to his divine nature. He is often shown wielding a powerful magic sword or warhammer and dresses in light armor or chainmail. He does not try to hide or bandage his stump. 

Abilities

Tyr is said to be able to instantly perceive any thief coming near him and see invisible objects and persons. He can create magical items that bear such powers. He always knows anyone's moral and ethical viewpoint and can detect any lies. Tyr is immune to all illusions, fear, or magics affecting one's emotions. If casting magic, Tyr never uses damaging necromantic spells. His spells from the law sphere are three times as powerful as normal. Tyr is powerful enough to grant his clerics their spells even if they travel to another crystal sphere. However, not all deities are powerful enough to do this, and if one of his clerics find her- or himself in the presence of a cleric of one of these lesser powers, Tyr will only grant spells of the same power as those granted by the other weaker cleric. He does this out of a sense of fairness.

Possessions

Tyr's longsword is named Justicar. It is said to have been a gift either from Tyr's predecessor or from Lord Ao himself. It was crafted with the aid of Mystra. Tyr's warhammer is especially disrupting to undead.

Portfolio

Among the greater deities of Faerûn, Tyr is the only one of lawful good alignment. As god of justice, Tyr can foretell any injustice up to six months before it occurs and feels the pang of that injustice for six months afterward. In the divine realm of Asgard, Tyr is responsible for ensuring that only the most valiant of warriors are permitted access to the great hall of Valhalla.

Personality

Tyr is strong-spirited and noble. He is considered the bravest and the most honorable of all the Aesir of the Norse pantheon. He is primarily concerned with the punishment of wrong-doers and the general furthering of law and good in the world. Tyr hates duplicity, trickery, rule-breaking, and wanton destruction. He likewise hates lies and the breaking of oaths and is disgusted by persons who earn from such things. For his own part, he never breaks a promise. Tyr urges the establishment of moral and ethical codes for sentient beings in all lands. 
Tyr is a fair judge, but he can be hard to understand to those outside his faith, as they more readily perceive him as a stern and rigid punisher. On the other hand, he is seen as a brave father-figure to his followers. In truth, he is well aware that a lawful utopia will never be possible in the imperfect Material Plane, yet this doesn't stop him from trying to make the world a better place for his mortal followers. He wants his followers to see themselves as a "perfect family", not made of perfect individuals but rather of members who try and want to be perfect, who act out of trust, courage, and love toward each other. His knowledge that such a dream will never be achieved among the mortal realm fills him with genuine sadness.
Tyr is at first more willing than many other gods to manifest in some form or other to his followers, because of his fierce feelings of fatherly protection toward them. By the late 14th century DR, however, Tyr  tired of appearing in the Realms and began limiting his appearances to cases with important repercussions that were not obvious to mortals. Besides his avatar, Tyr might send an intelligent war dog as a representative, or he might use a resounding gong, a choir of male voices, or a floating warhammer to express his will. The colors blue, white, and purple are considered sacred to his followers.

Divine Realms

Within the Great Wheel cosmology, Tyr had his divine realm called the Court on Lunia, the first of the Seven Heavens of Mount Celestia. He also considered Asgard on the first layer of Ysgard his home, the joint realm of most of the Norse pantheon. In the World Tree cosmology, the Court was located on a mountain surrounding Mount Celestia, one of three mountains each held by each member of The Triad. In that cosmology, all four mountains were considered the House of the Triad.

Worshipers

Among Tyr's worshipers are judges, lawyers, magistrates, the oppressed, paladins, and police. The highly organized church of Tyr is strong in the more civilized lands of the Realms. They are known for never refusing service or aid to the faithful when they are in distress. Followers of Tyr are expected to show fairness, wisdom, and kindness to the innocent. Tyrrans never enforce an unjust law.
After the Time of Troubles, an entire decade passed where Tyr forbid specialty priests within his church. The clergy believed that he wished to ensure that no members of the faith were treated with greater favor than others. After other churches mocked them for this, Tyr established special orders of priests beginning after the Feast of the Moon in 1369 DR.  

Relationships

The Triad

Tyr is said to be the son of the god Odin and his wife Frigga. He was the head of the group of deities known as the Triad. The two other gods who make up the Triad are Ilmater and Torm. Torm serves as Tyr's war commander and is known as the "good right hand of Tyr." Along with the Triad, Tyr is close to Lathander. He opposes the deities Bane, Bhaal, Cyric, Mask, Talona, and Talos. Tyr greatly respects Zaphkiel and the archons of Mount Celestia, but it is not believed that he has authority over them.

History

Early History

As the only lawful member of the Norse pantheon, Tyr faded largely from prominence. For this reason, he sought a means of strengthening his power by obtaining worshipers from other worlds. He chose the crystal sphere of Realmspace and submitted himself to the authority of the overgod Ao. The first recorded instance of Tyr on Toril was in the Lake of Steam region, circa −2600 DR. A warrior known as Belaros and a group of priests were said to have met with Tyr in person in the mountains near the northern border of Turmish. In response, Belaros crafted the mighty artifact, the Balance of Belaros. For at least 5,000 years of Faerûnian history, Tyr also seemed to appear under other names—Achanatyr, Iltyr the Blind but All-Seeing Eye, Arrtyr Judge of All, and Anachtyr, among others. Under one of these names, he was a member of Jhaamdathi pantheon before that empire's fall.
In Calimshan, Anachtyr has been worshiped for far longer than Tyr has been in other parts of Faerûn. For example, Anachtyr's followers are known to have slain the great wyrm Rivenaurlgoth the Darkly Pious in the Marching Mountains in −284 DR. Among the Calishites, religious legends suggest that the god who was Tyr passed on his portfolio to another at the end of each millennium, and that Anachtyr was actually an earlier Tyr who passed his portfolio on to the Norse newcomer.

Rise to Prominence

I am the planetar Antonia of Hjördis, known to mortals as Resounding Justice, and I bring good tidings to you, Thelasand, fourth of that name. Grimjaws is nigh! In the name of Tyr, this land shall be cleansed of wickedness and anarchy. The seed of Valigan Thirdborn shall be extinguished. Those with evil in your hearts beware, Tyr's justice is both merciful and swift. — The words of Resounding Justice before she opened the portal that began the Procession of Justice, as recorded by Exarch Thelasand IV of Jhaamdath before he turned and fled.

Tyr, in his most recent form, first made a major historical impact on the world of Toril in a campaign to pacify the remnants of the fallen empire of Jhaamdath in the Year of the Striking Lance, −247 DR. This was known as the Procession of Justice, in which the god himself appeared on Toril by portal near future Alaghôn in Turmish to lead a host of ten scores of archons against the chaotic and evil forces arrayed in the Vilhon Reach, in the remains of the fallen empire.
Ilmater aligned himself with Tyr in −243 DR, being impressed by the sacrifices made by Tyr, and the conflict continued until −238 DR. At the end of the great Procession, most of Tyr's archon warriors had been slain or banished, but he was successful in destroying Valigan, a god of anarchy, and by this time, Tyr was committed to inspiring justice on Toril as a whole. Torm joined them to complete the Triad some years later. However, the faith of Tyr did not become a dominant one in Faerûn until shortly before the establishment of the Standing Stone, when most of the other members of the pantheon were already well-established in their roles, but after some 1,600 years since the Procession of Justice, Tyr successfully became known over all of Faerûn.
Tyr lost his right hand to Kezef the Chaos Hound, in a test of his honor and strength of will. The Circle of Greater Powers had previously banned all mortals and powers from any contact with Kezef, but he was still free to consume souls, and a coalition of gods joined together to stop the Chaos Hound once and for all. This alliance included Tyr. They pursued the primordial beast to the Barrens of Doom and Despair, where they offered him a deal - they would lift the ban on him if he could escape from chains forged for him by Gond. Kezef insisted that if this were truly a fair challenge than Tyr must be willing to place his right hand into the elder evil's mouth. Tyr agreed. Kezef was enchained, the chain was anchored deep in Cocytus in Pandemonium, and Mystra placed an enchantment to prevent the chain from ever being severed. Furious, Kezef bit off Tyr's hand. It was said that he feasted on the gods hand, drawing power from it, for centuries. Among the Asgardians, the story of the loss of Tyr's hand was similar but involved the members of the Aesir and the entity Fenris Wolf instead.
At some point, the conman Conner made a deal with Tyr: he promised to bring the god the Claw of Malar, (which was then in the possession of the tyrannical crime-lord Pasha Abon Duum,) in exchange for some unknown service, debt, or crime. Finally, in the Year of the Prince, 1357 DR, emboldened by Conner's apparent death, Abon Duum used the power of the Catlord to travel to Tyr's realm in Gladsheim to confront Tyr with the Claw of Malar, apparently seeking to seize the power of the gods. However, "Tyr" was revealed to be Conner in a cloak, having faked his death and been spirited to Gladsheim. The Catlord stole the Claw of Malar and passed it to Conner, before the real Tyr appeared and took the artifact. With a warning that he would keep an eye on Conner and the scales of justice, he sent the heroes home, while Duum was left to face Justice himself.

Time of Troubles

At the onset of the Time of Troubles, Tyr's eyes were put out by Lord Ao for failing to notice the theft of the Tablets of Fate and for questioning the justice of Ao's response. Ilmater, true to his ethos, worked to teach Tyr to live with these disabilities, though in truth they were not a great hindrance in view of his power as a greater god. Torm, being a god aware of his own past humanity, also aided Tyr by tempering the god's zeal for justice with the gift of mercy.

The Spellplague

In the Year of Three Streams Blooded, 1384 DR, shortly before the catastrophic events of the Spellplague, Tyr and Siamorphe, who then dwelt in the House of the Triad, had a great disagreement over a battle between Tethyrian and Calishite forces. The argument was so severe that Siamorphe left the House of the Triad to make her realm with Sune in Brightwater. Tyr sent Helm as a messenger to Sune to explain his position, and Sune tried to act as a peacemaker. As the goddess of love, she proposed a marriage between Tyr and Tymora as a way to restore balance to the Celestial Planes. Tyr agreed and began a formal courtship with the goddess of good fortune.
It was suspected that Cyric plotted to corrupt the arrangement, for rumors came to Tyr that Helm, who had been delivering messages from the House of the Triad to Brightwater for Tyr, had been having a secret affair with Tymora and that she loved the god of guardians instead of the god of justice. Tyr believed that the only way to reach the truth of the matter was to challenge Helm to a duel, and Helm felt that it was the honorable act to accept the challenge. In the duel that followed, Helm was slain, leading to more chaos in the Celestial realms. Heartbroken, Tymora left Brightwater to be with Tyr out of duty, but Ilmater left the Triad and accepted Sune's invitation to Brightwater.
More tragedy among the gods shortly followed. In the next year, 1385 DR, Cyric teamed with Shar to bring about the death of Mystra and the resulting Spellplague. At least this event brought Sune and Tyr onto the same side again, and the two of them, with Lanthander's aid, pursued and captured Cyric, imprisoning him for a sentence of one thousand years.
After imprisoning Cyric, Tyr abdicated his godhood and granted Torm all his deific power, because the Even-Handed had lost faith in himself and in his ability to lead and judge. Tyr counseled all of his followers to offer their allegiance to Torm. Tyr's portfolio of justice was subsequently absorbed by Bahamut, who later became a subservient deity of Torm. At some point, Tyr sent the deva Ayrx into Undermountain to try and talk sense into Fazrian. Unfortunately, Halaster Blackcloak was able to capture Aryx, and trapped her in a shield in his Lair.

Death

At some point between 1385 DR and 1479 DR, Tyr died fighting off a demonic invasion of the upper realms in an act of heroic sacrifice. Tyr's absence reinforced the role of Torm as the new master of Celestia.

Resurrection

Tyr managed to return to life during the event known as the Second Sundering, in the 1480s DR.

Rumors

One of the many ancient aspects of Tyr, Iltyr the Blind but All-Seeing Eye, is still venerated in secret, even after Tyr's death after the Spellplague. This ancient cult involves a number of Waterdhavian and Cormyrian nobles and even includes some beholder and elven followers. Iltyr is depicted as an entirely black, flying, weeping eyeball with a prehensile tail. Iltyr's hidden shrines, however, often include large portraits that include one or a pair of large but normal staring eyes, which his followers often dismiss to visitors as the only surviving portrait of an ancestor. Iltyr supposedly communicates with followers with a booming, telepathic voice. Another fun rumor: some suggest that Tyr invented the concept of trial by combat.