Auril

Auril (pronounced AW-rill ), also known as The Cold Goddess, The Frostmaiden, Icedawn, the Queen of Air and Darkness, and the Goddess of Winter, was a fickle, vain and evil deity, who was primarily venerated out of fear. She was most powerful in those regions that were affected by deep winters or crouched at the edges of the Great Glacier.

Worshipers
Sacrifices to the Frostmaiden were common, especially in the North, as people hoped to appease her and thus avoid cripplingly cold winters. She also had many secret temples along the Spine of the World that brought terror and dominion to small settlements of people trying to eke out a living.

Auril's clergy was loosely organized, and the main goals of most followers was to intimidate common folk and make them venerate the Frostmaiden to avoid reprisals from her clergy, or to have them make donations to her church. Some of her powerful clerics accumulated impressive personal wealth in this manner, some of which they sacrificed as offerings to Auril. Her priests wore ice white robes with blue trim, and were easily identified by the dire warnings they proclaimed of the wrath of Auril come the winter. They were also known to cast cold based spells, many of which were described in the Codicil of White.

Dogma
''Cover all the lands with ice. Quench fire wherever it is found. Let in the winds and the cold; cut down windbreaks and chop holes in walls and roofs that my breath may come in. Work in darkness to hide the cursed sun so that the chill I bring may slay. Take the life of an arctic creature only in great need, but slay others at will. Make all Faerûn fear me.''

Auril's clergy were commanded to revere her and sing her praises into any chill breeze or winter wind. They were to make all creatures fear or worship her and to bring down her cold power against all so that all might know her and quake before her. They were not to raise their hands against any other cleric of Auril.

Titles / Ranks
Auril's church had a few males within its ranks, but most clergy of the Frostmaiden were female. Specialty priests of Auril, called icepriestesses and icepriests, made up one-third of Auril's priesthood. The relationship between the specialty priests and the clerics of Auril was very good. The entire church was very loosely and informally organized, and clergy members wandered and were largely independent. Most priests of Auril used only the honorific "Hand of Auril" or "Icebreath," but at temples such as the House of Auril's Breath at Glister the clergy used formal titles. In ascending order, these were:


 * Postulant
 * Votre
 * Icewind
 * Storm Sister / Storm Brother
 * Frosttouch
 * Lady / Lord Cold
 * Lady / Lord Deep Winter
 * Lady / Lord Cold Circle
 * High Hand of Ice

Orders
Auril's church had no affiliated military or knightly orders. She was just not of a mind to sponsor prolonged military actions; she would rather send a blizzard down on those who offended her than troops. An odd assortment of cults and fellowships grew up around or became attached to her worship, though. These groups included the Cult of Frost, whose driving goal was the acquisition of the artifact known as the Ring of Winter; a group of wizards known as the Frost Witches, who recorded at least one tome of frost and cold magic in Auril's name and were reputed to know the location of the Codicil of White, a priestly book describing Aurilian rituals and containing some wizard spells as well; and the Sisters of Istishia, who worshiped Istishia as a herald of cold and servant of Auril. The Sisters of Istishia's worship seemed to benefit Istishia, not Auril, as a few Aurilian priestesses were given a mandate to seek out the Sisters and "correct" their theology.





Holy Days

 * Alban Arthan (Winter Solstice), the longest night of the year
 * Midwinter (Night), 1 Hammer. This was the most holy night of the year for the clergy, a festival of ice-dancing that lasted all night.
 * Last Storm (Vernal Equinox), 19 Ches
 * The Coming (Winter Solstice), 20 Nightal. Informal but enthusiastically celebrated rituals where the priests gathered and called howling ice storms down on a region to mark the onset and end of winter.

Temples dedicated to Auril

 * Icedawn's House (South of Neshkel)
 * The House of Auril's Breath (Glister)
 * The Towers of Fury (Calimport)
 * The Winter Palace (Luskan)
 * Ice Temple (located between Andora and the Wandering Village, it was to block the western pass to prevent the adventurers from moving forward (Icewind Dale 2))

The Codicil of White
The Codicil was a magical book containing basic rites, rituals, services, and major ceremonies of Auril's faith. The book also had several pages devoted to the goddess' favorite arcane magic. It was created as a tool for Aurilian wizards and sorcerers to gain a better understanding of the faith.

Known Worshipers of Auril

 * Iyraclea - Self-styled queen of the Great Glacier
 * Gerti Orelsdottr - effective leader of the Shining White frost giants
 * Cierre - wandering drow surface spy
 * Cefra Windrivver
 * Lysan - Priestess (Icewind Dale)
 * Odea of Andora - Druid (Icewind Dale II)
 * Cathin - High Priestess of the Ice Temple (Icewind Dale II)
 * Lysara - High Priestess of the Ice Temple (Icewind Dale II)
 * Oria - High Priestess of the Ice Temple (Icewind Dale II)
 * Thvara Baelm - Priestess of the Ice Temple (Icewind Dale II)

Relationships
Much of Auril's power was absorbed by Talos in recent times, weakening the minor deity. Despite this, or perhaps as a result of it, Auril quietly siphoned power from the slumbering deity Ulutiu who was in stasis under the Great Glacier. Kossuth and Auril were mortal enemies, but their followers seldom came across each other. Sune opposed Auril, as she blamed her for the destruction of much that was beautiful. Uthgar hated Auril as she turned the Elk Tribe away from his worship.

As a denizen of the Deep Wilds, Auril was technically a subject of Silvanus, the dominion's ruler, although Auril did not consider herself accountable to the greater god.

Deities of Fury
Auril, along with Malar, Umberlee, and their superior Talos, was a member of the Deities of Fury. Umberlee and Auril cooperated with some degree of confidence, while Malar and Auril despised each other.

History
Auril was originally a fey princess known as Aurilandür the Frost Sprite Queen. While her sister Titania was bathing in the waters of the river Afon Bhlu, which fed the lake Cwm Glas, Aurilandür remained in court. On this particular day, dwarven miners were bringing a gemstone they had unearthed as a well-intentioned gift to the Seelie Court; this black, ten-faceted gem, rumored to be the creation of a "Dark God" of the Underdark, slowly corrupted the princess, turning her to evil.

After a failed attempt at a coup, Aurilandür was banished from the Feywild. Auril became known as the Queen of Air and Darkness. She slowly acquired a human following and joined Talos as one of the Gods of Fury. During the Stormstar Requiem, Silvanus finally helped break the evil gem's hold over Auril, and Aurilandür has begun to slowly turn away from her corruption.