Gorothir the Dark Prophet of the Night was a powerful high priest of Shar during the time of the Netherese empire.[1][2]
Description[]
Gorothir was said to be darkly handsome, and sired countless children over his centuries-long life.[1]
Personality[]
Gorothir was a cunning and energetically evil man, feared even by his fellow faithful.[1] He liked to indulge in sensual excesses and orgies of violence, and was given seemingly endless power by his goddess.[1] Gorothir ruled his church and the lands it controlled like a mad tyrant.[1]
Abilities[]
The Dark Prophet was said to be able to turn into a man-stag twice as tall as a man.[1] He was also said to be able to twist spells cast against him, causing their magical powers to go haywire.[1]
Possessions[]
Gorothir possessed two objects which were considered as sacred relic by the followers of the Dark Lady:
- Gorothir's Girdle
- A magical corset of great power and one of the church of Shar's holy books.[1]
- The Shadowstaff of Gorothir
- A magical staff capable of manipulating shadow magic, summoning various creatures and casting shadow bolts.[2][3]
Relationships[]
Gorothir's gave his name to his descendants, which were known as the Goroth family. One of those descendants, Jurguth Goroth, was involved in his ancestor's death and snatched up Gorothir's Girdle afterwards.[1]
History[]
Gorothir was a powerful priest of Shar, active around the Fall of Netheril. Around the Year of Glassharks, −310 DR, he came into possession of a divine relic of the Mistress of the Night—the eponymous girdle.[1] The origin of the Girdle was unclear: some believed that the powerful priest created it, whereas others believed it was gifted to her high priest by the Dark Lady herself.[1]
Due to his tremendous power and tyrannical nature, Gorothir was feared as much as he was hated.[1][2] During the Year of the Unblinking Eye, 446 DR his grandchilden allied with several of his enemies, from disgruntled mages to rulers whose thrones were usurped.[1][2] The motley alliance ambushed him while he was raiding a place of power sacred to Selûne, during an event which would later be known as the Night of Dark Fire.[1] They managed to kill him in a massive conflagration of magic which killed most of them as well.[1][2] After this victory an archmage of Selûne shattered the staff of the high priest, losing his life in the process.[1][2] As for his belt, it was salvaged by one of his descendants and played a major part in the history of the Church of Shar afterwards.[1][2]
During the Year of the Shadowkin Return, 1136 DR, the whispers of the Dark Goddess led Lord Vanrak Moonstar to find the remains of Gorothir and of his staff.[2] The Dark Ranger built a crypt to store those blessed relics in his base of Vanrakdoom, deep in Undermountain.[2] The relics were kept in a sarcophagus resting on the desecrated Plinth Stone of the Moonmaiden.[2] To reward this act of great devotion, Shar restored the Shadowstaff to its former power and sent a couple angels of decay to watch over the relics.[2]
Rumors & Legends[]
It was said that Gorothir felled an empire with only a lie and a secret.[4]
Appendix[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 Ed Greenwood and Doug Stewart (1997). Prayers from the Faithful. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 32–35. ISBN 0-7869-0682-0.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 Eric L. Boyd (2005-07-12). Vanrakdoom (Zipped PDF). Wizards of the Coast. pp. 23–24. Archived from the original on 2016-08-16. Retrieved on 2009-10-07.
- ↑ Monte Cook, Jonathan Tweet, Skip Williams (July 2003). Dungeon Master's Guide v.3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 281–282. ISBN 0-7869-2889-1.
- ↑ Bruce R. Cordell, Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel, Jeff Quick (October 2003). Underdark. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 134. ISBN 0-7869-3053-5.