Church of Valkur

The church of Valkur was the collective of individuals that venerated Valkur, the Northlander hero-god of sailors. While it was one of the smaller denominations in Faerûn, the faith was notably influential among coastal settlements in the Realms.

"The thrill of exploration is sweeter than wine or rum. There is always risk, but without risk life is empty. Life is to be lived and damn the consequences."

- Excerpt from the Valkuryte dogma.

Dogma
Valkuryte doctrine taught that nothing made one more alive than struggling against the forces of nature, and that no feeling could surpass standing upon the deck of ship, feeling it rock upon the waves of the sea and the spray of wind and water against one's face. It was a philosopy of taking chances and pushing the boundaries of possibility, both for the exhilaration and the betterment of humankind. Appropriately, it was discouraged to always rely on Valkur to remove dangers, a coddling that would only lead to stagnation; rather, Valkur helped those who helped themselves, best aiding those who solved their own problems by pitching in to their efforts.

Conversely, Valkur's dogma actually deprioritzed loyalty to Valkur himself. One's shipmates, the people they most held dear, were those whom they owed their first loyalties, and second to them was the vessel upon which they sailed the seas. After mate and ship, devotion was owed to Valkur himself, for it was he who protected all that took to the waves.

Attitudes
Water genasi that venerated Valkur were warmly welcomed by skippers across the realms and were held in some reverence by most sailors.

Beliefs
Followers of Valkur believed their god to be a rising power that stood against the influence of the Gods of Fury. This sentiment was shared by many Faerûnians of coastal cities and nations.

One order of the faith subscribed to the belief Valkur was more the god of exploration and discovery, rather than the patron and protector of sailors at sea.

Activities
Quite often, priests of Valkur captained their own ships, leading voyages across the breadth of the Sword Coast or even the Sea of Fallen Stars. Others served as officers aboard other vessels, took jobs as privateers, or occasionally turned to a life of piracy. Yet other Valkuryte priests oversaw shipyards or directed operations within mercantile fleets.

Collectively, influential or wealthy Valkuryte clergy sponsored trading expeditions to far off lands. These voyages were considered extremely risky with the potential for great reward, and thus were ideal pursuits for any follower of Valkur.

While their ships were docked and they remained on land, Valkuryte priests often lent their support to unfortunate or stranded sailors.

Organization
The church of Valkur was not exceptionally organized, and individual priests typically only gathered when aboard the same ship or when their vessels were docked. Despite this, each Valkuryte temple maintained a strict hierarchy among its own clergy, though they hardly recognized the stature of priests in others congregations.

Titles
Valkuryte clergy in Faerûn maintained different titles for its members depending on the region in which they lived. On the Sword Coast, titles of the Valkuryte faith were as follows (in ascending order): swab, Gob, Seaman, Sailor, Boatswain, Third Mate, Second Mate, First Mate, Captain, Commodore, and Admiral. Regardless of title, the head priest of each temple was referred to as High Captain.

Sayings
Some Valkuryte expressions included:


 * "By the wheel!", an expletive expressing surprise.


 * "Brokenkeel!", an expletive expressing a negative situation.


 * "Storm at the helm!", an expletive denoting a dangerous problem.


 * "Drown!" or specifically "Drown you!", an expletive expressing ill will at a person.


 * "Safe harbour!", a blessing requesting Valkur aid the recipient.

Orders
The Order of the Calming Wave was founded by a group of pirates from the Sea of Swords who abandoned their worship of Umberlee after a particularly dangerous storm. They believed that they survived by Valkur's hand and dedicated their life to serving their new deity and growing the monastic order.

The Marines of the Seven Seas was an armed navy dedicated to ridding the Sea of Fallen Stars and Sea of Swords of maritime monsters including krakens, dragon turtles, morkoths, quelzarns, vurgens, gigantic octopi and other sea monsters that preyed on shipping

The Sailors of the Heavenly Seas was a flotilla of spelljammers that left Realmspace and rarely returned to their one-time home on Toril.

Classes
Specialty priests of Valkur were known as wavetamers. They were largely responsible for spreading the Captain of the Wave's faith across the Realms.

Rituals
Followers of Valkur observed performed about a dozen different ceremonies of their faith. Most of these involved the ritual of setting sail from dock, arriving at a new port, or other regular events of note made during a sea voyage. They also performed the appropriate rites when new ships were granted a name, in preparation for their maiden voyage.

Valkur's priests prayed for their spells at dawn when the first breeze cut through the morning air. His name was invoked to bless dead sailors and lost ships, although the name of Umberlee was used more often.

Celebrations
The church of Valkur celebrated a single holiday marked on the Calendar of Harptos. Held on the day when winter turned to spring, the Shattering marked the beginning of sailing season in waters around the North for the year. It was celebrated with maiden voyages of newly-built ships and the unfurling of new sails for experienced vessels.

Regions
As of the late 15 century DR, worship of Valkur appeared wholly concentrated within the Moonshae Isles. While he was revered by the local Northlanders for centuries, by that time he had attained the distinction of regional hero-god amongst the people of the Moonshaes.

The Lands of Intrigue were however once considered the center of the Valkuryte faith. The Captain of the Waves previously held significant worship throughout the realms of Aglarond, Altumbel, Impiltur,  and the Wizards' Reach.

Temples
Valkuryte temples were established within port cities, often built right upon the docks facing the sea. The were constructed to resemble sea-faring ships, with central columns of ironwood that resembled a mast, and open-air architecture that allowed coastal winds to pass through as it would through sails. Their underground chambers were arranged in the same manner as a ship's hull, holding cargo necessary for any voyage across the seas.

Notable temples included:
 * The Protectors' House, a small, splendid, two-story temple carved from distinctive emerald marble from the Deepwing Mountains. One of the four caryatid columns along the front colonnade depicted Valkur as one of the four protective gods revered within, representing him as a barrel-chested figure of a ship captain with a symbolic trio of lightning bolts for a cloak clasp. The shrines were spread out and decorated as was orthodox for the faith, with Valkur sharing the main floor with Shaundakul.
 * Sailor's Last Request, a simple Valkuryte chapel found in Waterdeep.
 * Schooner of the Seas, a floating temple that has sailed to at least four continents around Toril, including Zakhara and Maztica. The fastest ship in the realms, speculated to have been built by Gond and given to Valkur who then bestowed in on his priests as an example of the potential future of sailing.
 * Storm Horn, the Valkuryte temple of Murann.
 * Temple of Endless Waves and Winds, a temple built atop a colossal zaratan that sailed the southern Sea of Fallen Stars.
 * The Valkurhouse, a temple found in the city of Alamontyr, whose inhabitants considered Valkur as the protector of those individuals sailing the Lake of Steam.
 * The Wavehall of Valkur, a temple in Waterdeep tended by several priests of the faith during the 15 century DR.
 * The Wavelord's House, A former church of Umberlee before it was burned down by the pirates ousted from the city of Tulmene by Queen Zaranda in 1367 DR A year later it was cleaned up and a dolphin was emblazoned over the door. The church had seen slow and steady growth since.

Other unnamed temples could be found in Tulmene and within Dolphin's Leap in Velen. Shrines to him could be found up and down the Sword Coast and Sea of Fallen Stars, although those of Umberlee were more numerous.

Possessions
Valkuryte ceremonial garb included flowing, silver-trimmed, white and blue robes that flared up at the smallest gust of wind. They wore cutlasses at their side and carried with them a small vial of sea water for use as a holy symbol, although some carried sturdy pieces of jewelry for that purpose.

While at sea they dressed as any other sailor, or as appropriate for their rank. They preferred common sailor's weapons and light armor whether on land or sea– with one exception: Valkuryte priests that could afford such extravagance often commissioned custom chainmail armor that could be doffed in moments with a simple clasp. This greatly lessened any possibility they could be weight down if required to go to sea.

Spells
Notable Valkuryte spells included sea legs, weathertell, cure scurvy, swim, home port, still waves, ship shield, and favor of Valkur.

Relationships
In regions where the worship of Umberlee was prominent, devotees of Valkur kept their worship secret.

For some time, Valkur was considered among the patron deities venerated by the Harpers.

History
The Valkuryte faith grew significantly larger during the early Era of Upheaval, but by the era of the Second Sundering had undergone a significant transition. By the late 15 century DR had became closely—if not exclusively—associated with the Northlanders of the Moonshaes and nearby frigid north.

Notable Valkurytes

 * Duil Dolphinson, a priest of Valkur and affected, fawning little man responsible for tending to the Storm Horn temple.
 * Ilmar N Rys, a priest of Valkur who headed the Wavelord's House.
 * The Storm Maiden, the mighty warrior blessed by Valkur and Umberlee who led a tragic campaign against the king of Norland after allegedly being overtaken by the latter.
 * Thamalon Uskevren, a powerful figure within Selgaunt and worshiper of Valkur (as well as Tymora and Waukeen).
 * Valla Dorminthar, priestess of Valkur and the kindly yet burly Veteran Lady Master of the Gallant Lady.
 * Vox Dorrg, the king of Ruathym who ruled from the Hall of Black Waves.
 * Yves Carrack, the priest of Valkur who administered his faith in the basement of Dolphin's Leap tower.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Storm King's Thunder
 * Storm King's Thunder