Totem

A totem was a symbolic representation of a spirit. They were typically used in barbarian tribes and beast cults. The practice was most common in the North, and they were often considered just as sacred as what they represented.

Tribes generally had only one totem spirit that they worshiped, though there were exceptions to this.

Description
Totems varied wildly in how they were depicted and through what medium. Some were known be carved into trees, painted on shields, or etched into stones. Typically they were short rods of wood or bone, carved to resemble a nature spirit or patron animal. They were often adorned with feathers, scraps of fur, leaves, small bones, and similar symbols of primal power.

Barbarians often carried around a personal totem, either tied to an important moment in their lives or of mystical origin. Such totems didn't always represent the totem spirit a barbarian worshiped.

History
At some point subsequent to the mineral's discovery in 1485 DR, a group of Auril worshipers established enchanted totems around Icewind Pass that would hasten the spread of black ice.

Notable Totemic Faiths

 * A number of ancient civilizations used totems in the land of Chult.
 * The Alcheringa faith of Osse revolved around the worship of ancestral heroes as totems.
 * The Arkaiuns of Dambrath traditionally worshiped a variety of totems. Twice a year their tribes met at a spot in the Hills of the Dead Kings where over a hundred totems documented the history and future intentions of each clan.
 * Frost folk were sometimes known to worship the spirits of woolly mammoths through totems.
 * Almost every clan of gnolls had their own totem. These represented a specific race of prey that were religiously significant to them and that the tribe often sacrificed to Yeenoghu. The most common totems were elves, gnomes, halflings, and humans. Some less common ones included ettins, giants, kobolds, and non-intelligent prey like deer or zebras.
 * The tribal sailors who founded the settlement of Old Illusk worshiped a pantheon of beast totem spirits and this tradition would get passed down to later tribal groups in the region, such as the Uthgardt.
 * Every berserker lodge in the land of Rashemen had a spirit totem and were watched over by its respective telthor.
 * The Black Blood cult centered around the worship of various totemic beasts alongside Malar and Talona.
 * Neanderthals were once known to worship the spirits of an ancient precursor to elks through totems.
 * In the Silver Marches, a group of barbarians recruited from the local Uthgardt tribes worshiped Chazzar Ne as a living totem.
 * The Tuigan were known to worship a variety of beast totems, the two most notable being ones that represented the horse and tiger.
 * The eleven Uthgardt tribes of the North were all named for a distinct totem spirit that each revered. All eleven of the totems were intermediaries of their main deity Uthgar and were considered the embodiment of their tribe's spirit.
 * Besides the Uthgardt tribes, the worship of totems was prominent in the North among the Reghedmen and Ice Hunters.
 * In the land of Malatra, the native Nubari tribe known as the Wise Ones worshiped the spirits of elephants through totems.
 * In the land of Maztica, some halfling tribes worshiped live dragonnes as their totem.
 * The eleven Uthgardt tribes of the North were each named for a distinct totem spirit that they revered. All eleven of the totems were intermediaries of their main deity Uthgar and were considered the embodiment of their tribe's spirit.
 * The White Worm tribe worshiped a totem of the same name, representing their region's unique species of albino remorhazes.

Trivia

 * Barbarians who sought to deepen the connection with their totem spirit often went down a primal path to becoming a Totem Warrior.
 * Both druids and shamans were known to use totems as focuses for their evocations.
 * Druids of the Circle of Shepherds were capable of summoning an incorporeal totem spirit that would bless creatures in the surrounding area with some form of boon.
 * Druids of the goddess Angharradh were referred to as Totem Sisters and were known to create small wooden or stone totemic charms for their tribes.
 * No Dwarven god ever had any form of totemic beast.
 * One's social status in lillend society was partially based on their totemic mask.
 * Whenever a member of a Ulutiun tribe died a custom totem was carved to mark their grave, with a knob at the top meant to resemble their face.
 * Wild elves were often known to depict a wolf totem alongside the god Solonor Thelandira.