Tempus

Tempus (pronounced TEM-pus ), also known as the Lord of Battles, was the god of war. His dogma was primarily concerned with honorable battle, forbidding cowardice and encouraging the use of force of arms to settle disputes.

History
Tempus was originally one of many potential war gods who emerged from the primordial clashes between Selûne and Shar. These gods fought constantly with each other, the victors absorbing the essence and power of the defeated. This continued until Tempus stood as the sole god of war in the Faerûnian pantheon, having defeated and absorbed all of his competitors (with the notable exception of Garagos, whom he defeated but spared). The barbarians of Icewind Dale claimed that Tempus's original name was "Tempos".

The Time of Troubles
In the Time of Troubles of the Year of Shadows, 1358 DR, Tempus' avatar appeared in a ruined castle in Battledale, just over five miles southwest of Essembra. Immediately following the Godswar, Eldan Ambrose, an Amnian cleric of Tempus, saw Tempus during a battle in Swords Creek. After the fighting ended, Ambrose followed his god's trail back to Battledale, and found the castle (which originally belonged to Belarus, a long-dead Tempuran). In the ruins of the great hall, Ambrose had a vision confirming the site as sacred to the Foehammer. Ambrose and his allies rebuilt the castle, establishing the Abbey of the Sword.

Relationships
Tempus was served by the Red Knight, deity of strategy and war planning; Valkur, god of seaboard warfare; and Uthgar, patron of the Uthgardt barbarians of the Sword Coast North. He opposed and was opposed by Garagos, who was formerly known as Targus and worshiped as the god of war in the fallen empire of Netheril until Tempus defeated him and claimed his station, reducing the greater god of war to the demigod Garagos. Tempus slew many other deities aspiring to be the god of war in the past, and it was not certain why he tolerated Garagos's continued existence, having already defeated him once. Some scholars believed that Tempus's dislike of mindless slaughter and bloodlust prompted him to spare Garagos so that he could represent those more vicious aspects of war, rather than Tempus taking them on himself. This was supported by the fact that the Tempuran liturgy stressed honorable combat, not wanton destruction.

Sune saw Tempus as her enemy because of the destruction that wars wreaked upon beautiful things and people, but Tempus did not consider her worth the conflict. Despite the fact that Tempus' dogma was diametrically opposed to that of Eldath and that he considered her naive for her pacifist outlook, he commanded his followers to not harm those of the goddess of peace, seeing that war was meaningless without peace following, and he punished followers who disobeyed that command.

Tempus was known as "the Butcher" to the followers of Eilistraee.

Worshipers
Faerûn was a violent land, and thus from sheer number of worshipers Tempus was one of the mightiest deities in the Realms. Nearly everyone who drew a sword or nocked an arrow had fought alongside a cleric of the Foehammer, and just as many had fought against one.

Temples to the Lord of Battle looked more like military fortresses than the archetypal temple. They featured barracks, mess halls, armories, and training grounds.

Due to its tendency to have followers and priests on both sides of any engagement, the church of Tempus had no central authority that might support one side or the other exclusively. Within a given temple or order, however, there was a strict hierarchy and chain of command.

Orders

 * Order of the Broken Blade: The Order of the Broken Blade honored those warriors and clergy who were injured in Tempus's service and could no longer fight on the front lines.
 * Order of the Steel Fang: The Order of the Steel Fang was an elite fighting order within the church of Tempus, whose members were often assigned to the most dangerous duties and led by battle-hardened clergymen. Many mercenary companies and knightly fighting orders of crusaders also availed themselves of a connection to the church. One badge of the god seen among his affiliated mercenaries was a rusty brown dagger, shown diagonally with its point to the upper right, dripping four drops of blood.

Hierarchy
All clergymen of Tempus were known as "Hammers". Each Hammer received their own ceremonial armor, depending on their rank. Hammers were broken down further into ranks:
 * Acolyte: The lowest in the hierarchy, they wore leather jackets and baldrics.
 * Stalwart: Priests, who wore chainmail.
 * Hardhar: Warrior-priests, who wore breastplates and bracers.
 * Arahar: Battle-chaplains, who wore splint mail.
 * Rauthat: Swordmasters, who wore plate mail with shoulder spikes.
 * Direhar: Guardian priests, who wore full plate.
 * Warlyon: High priests, who wore gilded magic plate mail that enabled flight.

Dogma
Tempus's orders to all combatants were simple and direct:

1. Be fearless

2. Never turn away from a fight.

3. Obey the rules of war.

Rituals
The words "Tempus thanks you" were used by the deity's faithful in conjunction with the response "and I thank Tempus" to indicate the completion of a deed that would please Tempus.

Connections
Tempus