Bahamut

Bahamut (pronounced bah-HAHM-ut ) is the god of justice and a subservient deity to Torm, god of law. Before entering the Faerûnian pantheon, he was an elder draconic deity of good dragons, metallic dragons, wisdom, and enlightened justice (justice tempered with mercy and punishment with forgiveness) known by the name of Xymor.

His worship grew in the decades following the Time of Troubles, when he regained his divine status.

Overview
Bahamut, also referred to as the God of Dragons or the Lord of the North Wind, is a powerful platinum dragon and the king of the good dragons.

Sages continue to debate whether he actually is a deity or not. According to draconic legend, he has existed since the beginning of time (which, in a dragon's reckoning is since the first dragon appeared on Toril). Whatever he is, he is certainly powerful and venerated by many good dragons and respected by evil ones. One of the most compassionate beings in Realmspace, his name is known throughout the Realmspace and in some aspect all over Toril.

The Truth


The fact is that Bahamut was a god. He came into existence as a lesser deity when the dragons first came to Faerûn, along with the rest of the draconic pantheon. In those ancient times he was known by the name of Xymor by his dragon followers. In some traditions, he is the son of Asgoroth and brother of Tiamat and Null; other traditions claim that he is the son of Lendys and Tamara. Whatever the truth, his cult grew rapidly in the communities of metallic dragons, especially among young gold dragons.

Once dragons as a race had established themselves by about -30000 DR, the draconic gods encouraged their followers to battle each other in their divine names. This lasted for about six millenia until various draconic philosophers decided that all of the fighting was wasteful and that gods who encourage such behavior were not worthy of the religious fervor that they had been given since their conception (This is the event that started the draconic apathy towards their gods which has lasted, for the most part, to this day). That is, all except the followers of Bahamut and Tiamat. Their followers continued fighting in what is known as the Dragonfall War which continues unabated in the present day. The war waxed and waned in intensity, with the last era of intense fighting occurring between -2087 and -1071 DR.

It was during this time that the Untheric empire began and with it, their pantheon became prominent. Tiamat was worshiped by a cult of Untheric humans, forced underground because of her status as nemesis of the gods, especially Gilgeam, whilst Bahamut had an aspect in the form of Marduk who was more widely worshiped. A second front in the Dragonfall war had opened between the humans and the two gods fought each other personally, with neither being able to gain the upper hand. In 1071 the Untheric pantheon went to war with the Orc pantheon and, in a fight known as the Battle of the Gods, while Gilgeam fought with Ilneval, Tiamat saw her chance to strike, but before she could kill the God-king, Marduk struck a wild, lethal blow at Tiamat, saving Gilgeam's life at the expense of his own.

With both of their Untheric aspects dead, Tiamat and Bahamut were both stripped of their divine power. Marduk's church was eradicated and Bahamut was reduced to the status of Celestial paragon. He was forced to stay like this, with not enough followers to worship him as a god, living in the Upper planes or wandering the Material plane, doing whatever good he could until 1359 DR, when Gareth Dragonsbane and his party returned from the Abyss after destroying the Wand of Orcus. They brought with them the Tree-Gem which Bahamut gave back to the party as a sign of his covenant to protect Damara from Orcus and other demons. It also brought renewed interest in the worship of Bahamut as a god and mortals began flocking to his faith once more, at last restoring his deific status as a lesser deity once again. However, at some point Bahamut was trapped in an ancient prison.

The Present Age
In 1373, after the destruction of Sammaster and the end of the High Magic that sustained the Dracorage mythal, Bahamut was able to free himself from his prison and reappears in Celestia, and soon invades Tiamat’s demesne in the Dragon Eyrie.

With the renewed faith in him, Bahamut has been preparing for the resurrection of the Dragonfall War as Tiamat had regained her status as lesser deity thirteen years prior. He gifted his most devout followers with the ability to turn themselves into Dragonborn of Bahamut, the antithesis of the Spawn of Tiamat so that the war could continue between mortals again, albeit now with special 'weapons' on both sides of the conflict.

The destruction of the Dracorage mythal also heralded the prophesized "Turning of the Great Cycle" which has sparked off the religious fervor lacking in dragons since the beginning of the Dragonfall War.

In 1374, lightning strikes and meteor showers pounded Faerûn, Bahamut and Tiamat instructed their respective followers to seek out such sites as they would each contain some form of dragon egg. Unfortunately for Bahamut, Tiamat's followers have been much more effective in retrieving the eggs than his followers have. The Dragonfall War is set to begin anew very soon and Tiamat seems to have the upper hand. Only time will tell what happens.

Description
Bahamut is depicted as a massive dragon (approx 180 feet (55m)) long with a tail the same length as his body) with platinum scales and blue eyes, the exact color of which is hard to specify and may depend on Bahamut's mood. As Xymor, he was described as a huge dragon wrapped in a scintillating aura of light so brilliant that it is impossible to tell his color.

When he wishes to interact with mortals, he appears as an old man, accompanied by seven gold great wyrms polymorphed into canaries. Some claim these wyrms are reincarnations of dead kings, renowned for their sense of justice.

Combat
Bahamut disdains combat, usually getting goodly adventurers of great power to do his fighting for him. Despite this, he is easily capable of defending himself. Those who have seen him fight claim that he has two breath weapons, one a powerful cone of cold, the other a vapor that turns his enemies into gaseous forms. A third special attack is his roar, which disintegrates creatures or objects within 100 feet (30m). If facing off against more powerful creatures, this roar will still permanently deafen those who aren't turned to dust. On top of that he is a powerful warrior and is also reputed to know every arcane and divine spell.

Worshipers
The majority of Bahamut's worshipers prior to the Spellplague were metallic dragons. His few nondraconic clerics typically learned the Platinum Dragon's teachings at the foot of a wyrm, typically a gold or silver dragon in humanoid form. Teacher and student often traveled to see the effects of injustice and cruelty firsthand.

In the aftermath of the Spellplague and following the death of Tyr during an attempted demonic invasion of Celestia, Bahamut gained the portfolio of justice and presumably gained many converts from the church of the Maimed God.

Orders
The Talons of Justice is an order of dragon paladins dedicated to Bahamut that follows the Ptarian Code. No one knows exactly how many Talons there are, but the group probably numbers in the scores. Group members are spread throughout Faerûn, many living in human and demihuman form in cities and towns.

The Platinum Cadre is an order of dragonborn knights from Tymanther.

Relationships
Bahamut's antithesis is Tiamat, the chromatic dragon and Queen of Evil Dragons, worshiped by most evil dragons. Legends of their hatred of each other date back to times before Tiamat is supposed to have arrived on Toril.

Bahamut is also subservient to Torm and a close ally of his fellow deity, the god Ilmater, who likewise resides on Celestia's slopes.

Dogma
The dogma of Bahamut is based on Justice, Nobility, Protection and Honor. He teaches his followers to always uphold the highest ideals of honor and justice, to be constantly vigilant against evil and to oppose it from all fronts, and to protect the weak, liberate the oppressed and defend just order. The God of Dragons advocates a “greater justice” that includes fighting against evil and toppling oppressive regimes.

He also likes to reward strength of purpose and character in his followers.

His dragon adepts follows the Ptarian Code. This draconic code of honor was created several millennia ago by the Gold dragon Ptaris. Originally intended as a guide to conduct for the lords who attend the King of Justice, ruler of good dragons, the Ptarian Code has been adopted by other members of the gold species, and even by certain silvers.

The Ptarian Code is similar to other codes of chivalry adopted by knightly orders of the humanity, and pay homage to Bahamut, as well to his parents Lendys and Tamara. The major precepts are:

''Justice and Good above all. Honor and Fealty to the King. Honor and Respect to Righteous Innocence. Honor and Duty to the Balancer (Lendys), to Her Mercy (Tamara), and to the Justicemaker (Bahamut). Honor and Protection to the Lesser Races. Honor and Correction to the Enemies of Justice and Good. Honor and Forbearance for oneself.''