IWD lore question [Possible Spoilers]

Grimo88

Wondering if any die hard Realms fans can shed light on this: who is the Forgotten God?

All we know is that the cult was started by a rogue druid from Kuldahar. Kuldahar wasn't established that long ago, relatively speaking, so it seems that 'Forgotten' is more of a title for the god, rather than being a symptom of its antiquity.

What really throws a spanner in the works for me is that the same robed figure seen throughout the Temple is ALL OVER the Vale of Shadows!

Thanks in advance for your insight and discussion

OlvynChuru

About those robed figures, I think most robed, hooded people look alike for the most part. They might not all be the same person.

scriver

I don't think we're supposed to know. The history of the Realms is likely full of dead and forgotten gods, but I don't think they intended for it to be anything except an unnamed entity.

kcwise

Although I've been reading Realms novels and playing Realms games for years I'm definitely not an expert on the topic, but I'll throw in some ideas just for fun. There are at least a few gods referred to as forgotten in the Realms.

There is a Faceless God, also called the Forgotten God, in Zakhara (a land far to the south east) worshipped by evil yak-men. Doesn't seem a likely fit in this case. Link: http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/The_Faceless_God

There is a 3.5 edition diety called The Forgotten God or Voidmazix, which is a representation of entropy and is devoted to destroying all of creation and returning things to nothingness. Followers do not have temples, instead meeting in destroyed or damaged places. Voidmazix favors shape changers and creatures with no distinct form. I think this was created after IWD was released, so probably not the forgotten god we're looking for. Link: http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Forgotten_God_(3.5e_Deity)

Tharizdun, a long forgotten god of the Greyhawk setting, was imprisoned in another universe (Voidharrow) for trying to destroy all of creation. Also called The Chained God, Tharizdun tried to convince various creature and cultists on a number of worlds to help him escape. A series of novels was written about some of the god's incursions, but again those were written long after IWD's release so not a connection. Link: http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Tharizdun

A popular forgotten god from the early days of the Forgotten Realms novels is Moander, the former god of rot and corruption. His body floats in the astral sea and is almost without power due to his virtually forgotten status. In the novels another god takes his portfolio, but it is unclear whether Moander ever really dies entirely, much like a certain weary god in Baldur's Gate 2. If the IWD designers had a specific forgotten god in mind Moander would be a definite possibility. Setting up a temple far to the north would be a good way to avoid the attentions of the followers of other deities not favorable to Moander's return. Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moander

It's fun to speculate on which forgotten god the cult might be worshipping, or if they are simply worshipping the concept of a forgotten deity who agrees with their particular world view. And, it's possible some evil god is masquerading as a forgotten deity to gather a few worshippers for some bad behavior he or she can then claim not to be responsible for causing.

Grimo88

Thanks for your help @kcwise‌

I have another one. It's a bit of long shot but there is a giant deity called Karantor. He is the chief deity of verbeeg, is a god of beasts and deformity, and appears to his followers as a stranger (mysterious hooded figure?)

He also searches the realm for artifacts to an unknown end (Heartstone Gem?)

Why would he have human followers? Maybe his human priests are deformed and shunned by society?

quote:
Of course, it's extremely doubtful that any of these rumors contain more than the smallest kernel of truth, though the Jotunbrud still have plenty to worry about. Many of the verbeeg servants and laborers have been planted in the various giant steadings as spies at the behest of a mysterious figure who is actually no less than an avatar of the giant god Karantor himself. Years ago, Karantor actively recruited followers in all the largest verbeeg tribes and directed his priests to force the verbeegs to follow the dictums of the mysterious stranger who occasionally came to visit bearing treasure in exchange for promises of fealty. Only the priests are aware that the stranger who takes a slightly different form in each settlement he visits is actually Karantor's avatar. For hundreds of years now, spies dispatched by the avatar have been keeping Karantor informed of the comings and goings in many of Faerûn's most prominent Jotunbrud settlements. Recently, the avatar has also started dispatching some of his verbeeg servants to collect specific artifacts scattered all across Toril's surface. Exactly what Karantor has in mind for the verbeegs and how they are assisting him remains a mystery.
http://forum.candlekeep.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=11521

OlvynChuru

kcwise said:

A popular forgotten god from the early days of the Forgotten Realms novels is Moander, the former god of rot and corruption. His body floats in the astral sea and is almost without power due to his virtually forgotten status. In the novels another god takes his portfolio, but it is unclear whether Moander ever really dies entirely, much like a certain weary god in Baldur's Gate 2. If the IWD designers had a specific forgotten god in mind Moander would be a definite possibility. Setting up a temple far to the north would be a good way to avoid the attentions of the followers of other deities not favorable to Moander's return.

I think you may have found the answer! There is an item potentially found in the Temple of the Forgotton God (random loot) called "Boots of Moander."

kcwise

Grimo88 said:

I have another one. It's a bit of long shot but there is a giant deity called Karantor. He is the chief deity of verbeeg, is a god of beasts and deformity, and appears to his followers as a stranger (mysterious hooded figure?)

Neat find! I've never read about Karantor before. The giant connection is intriguing because, from what I've read, there are quite a few giant and giant-kin groups in the north.

OlvynChuru said:

I think you may have found the answer! There is an item potentially found in the Temple of the Forgotton God (random loot) called "Boots of Moander."

Good catch! It's been a long time since I played, but that seems dimly familiar. It does indeed give strength to the possibility of the Forgotten God being Moander. I can imagine the developers throwing that in as a nod to the earlier Gold Box games which included Moander in the storyline (at one point you even get to adventure inside the body of the dead god!).

Gulthias_Amarson

Well, I know that the power behind the Vale of Shadows is Myrkul, because of a certain mob pretty much telling you so.

As for the Temple, I'd say that Moander is probably spot on. If the temple was created by a rogue druid, I can certainly see why. You could argue that Rot and Corruption are still part of the cycle of balance, but a much darker part.

If I was going to guess who took over Moander's portfolio's after he was gone, I'd put money on Talona. Which makes even MORE sense, if you take into account she's one of the big bad deities mentions in IWD.

Grimo88

I like the Moander theory! However, it is a pretty well-kept and tidy temple for a temple to a god of decay