Mask

Mask (pronounced MASK ), the Lord of Shadows, is a loner god, most often associated with thieves or those of otherwise ill-repute. He is a Chaotic Neutral Intermediate deity, from the Shadow Keep in the Plane of Shadow, whose portfolio includes shadows, thievery and thieves; although it previously also included intrigue. Mask's symbol is a black velvet mask tinged with red.

Known for his constant scheming, cool head, and oft reserved biting comment he has recently lost a significant portion of his power, the intrigue portfolio, to Cyric. This has, 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.

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 while subtlety is everything. Clergy of Mask are called Maskarran, with elite specialty priests referred to as demarchesses (deh-mar-KESS-es) if female and demarchs (deh-MARKS) are male. Maskarran address each other as "Brother/Sister Shadow," no matter their rank. Clergy that have completed 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.

Chosen

 * Avner of Hartsvale (briefly a Chosen of Kelemvor, during the Time of Troubles)
 * Erevis Cale
 * Drasek Riven
 * Kesson Rel (First Chosen)



Relationships
Simply put, Mask is a loner. However, in the past he has had frequent, presently infrequent, alliances with Bane. If nothing else, their sizable hatred of Cyric gives them a common ground in addition to their history of working together. Mask is 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 whilst they work.

He was allied with the drow god of thievery Vhaeraun. The relationship itself was businesslike. 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 confused with one another among non-drow on the surface. They also shared one very similar title, Mask's "Lord of Shadows" and Vhaeraun's "Lord of Shadow".

Godsbane
During the Time of Troubles Mask took the shape of a powerful blade called Godsbane. He would eventually come 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, 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 reveals Mask's true name as Lessinor, though its origin (either as a mortal name or birth name) is 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 were several hints that Mask could return, either in person or via a successor who takes his place in the pantheon, namely:


 * When Mask surrenders to Shar, his last thoughts are about the secret he kept from her.


 * Mask apparently arranged that Cale's son was born in safety after the Spellplague.


 * Riven, himself ascended to a demigod of shadows, prophesied to Magadon the return of Mask.

This was proven to be true in The Godborn, when the Shadowlord's plans to thwart the Cycle of Night perpetuated by Shar on countless worlds result 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 wielded a pair of magical, twin longswords known as Stealthwhisper and Shadowblade.

Divine Realm
Mask kept a divine realm called Shadow Keep on Hades' second layer of Niflheim. Visitors might glimpse the Keep, but only very few ever reached it, as it was constantly shrouded in a heavy fog that led astray.

Trivia
Shrines of gods radiated that part of their philosophical orientation they shared the most. For example, a shrine of a chaotic evil deity, who was more chaotic than evil, radiated chaos. Mask's shrines during the 14th century DR radiated chaos, despite him being a neutral evil deity during that time.