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Mystra (pronounced MISS-trah ), the Mother of all Magic, was a greater deity and the second incarnation of the goddess of magic after her predecessor Mystryl sacrificed herself to protect the Weave from Karsus's Folly. Mystra was destroyed by Helm when she defied the will of Ao the overgod and attempted to leave the Prime Material Plane during the Time of Troubles. At the conclusion of the Godswar, Ao offered the position of Goddess of Magic to the wizard Midnight, who reluctantly accepted and took Mystra's name in order to smooth the transition after so much chaos.

Description
Mystra could shape change at will and mortals who saw her reported she changed constantly. Others described her appearing in a form resembling a multicolored will-o'-wisp. Mystra's avatar was a slim, young girl named Caitlan Moonsong who had a graceful bearing, large, dark eyes and short-cropped blond hair. Caitlan went barefoot and wore plain ankle-length robes of a dark hue. When possessed by Mystra, she appeared taller and her hair moved as if it were alive.

Mystra's Chosen
Mystra also had powerful mortal servants among her ranks of followers, including Elminster, Khelben Arunsun, the Seven Sisters and the mad lich Sammaster.

Worshipers
The church of Mystra preserved magical lore so that magic would continue and flourish in the future even if the dominant races of Faerûn were to fall. Its members also searched out those skilled in magic or who had the potential to use it, keeping a close eye on those who were likely to become skilled. Her clerics were encouraged to explore magical theory and create new spells and magic items. Sites dedicated to the goddess were enhanced by the Weave to allow any spell cast by her clerics while in them to be affected by metamagic.

Orders

 * Order of the Starry Quill
 * Order of the Shooting Star:
 * Knights of the Mystic Fire

History
The goddess of magic had three incarnations over the years. All shared the same role and responsibilities, but they were different in alignment and temperament.

Mystryl
Mystryl, as her predecessor and first incarnation was called, was the goddess of magic and a chaotic neutral greater deity born during the battle between Shar and Selûne at the dawn of time. Being the goddess of magic, spells, creativity, invention, and knowledge, she was said to have taught the first spellcaster of the Realms. All spells of all types were known to her when their creators constructed them, and her spirit was said to imbue all inventors, authors, songwriters, and artists. She was most venerated by wizards and those who used magic or magical items. She provided and tended the Weave, the conduit that enabled mortals to safely access the raw magic force.

In -339 DR, the archwizard Karsus of Netheril attempted to "borrow" the power of Mystryl by casting the only known twelfth-level spell&mdash;a spell of his own design&mdash;called Karsus's avatar. This siphoning of power away from Mystryl disrupted her ability to keep the Weave from unraveling and there was a brief but mighty surge in magical power everywhere, and then all magic became unstable. Mystryl broke the connection with Karsus by sacrificing herself before the coherence of the Weave was completely lost. Mystryl was reborn as Mystra, but for the duration of her death all magic ceased to function and the great cities of Netheril fell from the sky, killing most of the Netherese population, including Karsus.

Mystra
Mystra came into being after the previous incarnation sacrificed herself to save Faerûn from the destruction Karsus of Netheril nearly brought upon them. She used as a basis a beautiful peasant girl who was still just learning cantrips but who had the potential of becoming an archmage. She was Lawful Neutral in alignment.

Midnight


During the Time of Troubles, Mystra was killed by the deity Helm for defying the god and trying to climb the Celestial Stairway to the heavens. Her death caused great damage to the Weave, but the young mortal Midnight was chosen to succeed the goddess as the next Mystra — eventually restoring the magic of Toril. This Mystra was later murdered in the heart of her realm by the efforts of Cyric and Shar in 29 Tarsakh 1385 DR.

In the Year of the Ageless One, a voice Storm Silverhand recognized as Mystra's was heard through the telepathic link shared by all Chosen of Mystra, asking for Elminster. Elminster and Storm encountered what was left of Mystra in a cave in Cormyr. Mystra instructed Elminster to recruit new Chosen and to preserve and strengthen the Art. Later, after Elminster and Storm restored the Simbul's mind, she hinted that Mystra might be brought back through Blueflame items.

Appearances

 * "Lord of the Darkways" (Dragon #390)

Gallery
Mystra