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Helm (pronounced: /ˈhɛlmHELM[20][6] about this audio file listen) was the Faerûnian god of guardians and protectors,[21][22] worshiped by guards and paladins both. The Vigilant One had long been seen as a cold and focused deity who impartially took the role of defender, and sometimes enforcer,[23] but his activities in the Time of Troubles caused the folk of Faerûn to view him differently.[24] The Watcher was the epitome of the vigilant guardian and embodiment of the spirit of watchfulness, whether used for good or ill.[23] In the late 15th century DR, he returned to Faerûn with the restored faith of his chosen, Kleef Kenric.[25][26]

I guard this path! Do not approach. This way is forbidden...[27]
— Helm, guarding the Celestial Stairway.

Description[]

Helm always appeared as a 14​ to ​20 feet (4.3​ to ​6.1 meters) tall man in plate mail armor, his face concealed by his helm.[21]

His avatar appeared in front of his chosen Kleef as a fully armored blue knight, a giant tall knight in blue plate with fire-hail pinging off his armor and helmet.[25]

Personality[]

"Vigilance".
— Helm's avatar permanently empowering his chosen Kleef Kenric.[28]

A very old deity, Helm was the eternal sentry[23] and was always seen wearing a full suit of armor that represented the weight of his heavy responsibility.[21] Yet Helm always got the job at hand done without complaint. The people of the Realms widely admired these qualities in what they saw as a humble and reassuring god.[24]

Helm was particularly fond of children, and often forgave their minor transgressions.[24]

Realm[]

Helm - Ravenloft Strahd's Possession

Helm, God of Guardians, sitting on a throne in his plane.

Helm lived within his divine realm was known as Everwatch, a watchtower which moved around the four mountains of the House of the Triad.[15]

Relationships[]

Helm sees the world as nothing but some vague prize to be protected from an even more vague adversary. That would have to be Mask, I suppose. Who would the God of Guardians hate more than the Patron of Thieves?
— The reincarnated Mystra regarding Helm.[29]

Far back in time, the deity Lathander caused a divine purge known as the Dawn Cataclysm in which Helm's lover, a lesser deity of pragmatism called Murdane, was a victim. Helm begrudged the Morninglord for this.[30] However, Helm reserved his real opposition for deities whose plots threatened the people and stability of Faerûn, especially Bane, Cyric, Mask, and Shar. He was also especially at odds with the uncontrolled violence and careless destruction of the deities Garagos, Malar, and Talos.[22]

The only god who could have been considered a full ally of the Watcher was Torm, the god of paladins. Strongly held ideological differences caused a great rivalry verging on hatred between the clergy of the two gods, but the deities themselves remained close.[22]

A forbidding guardian of unknown name or nature in mithral full plate manned Everwatch, unfailingly detecting alignments and the purposes of visitors.[15]

Worshipers[]

Main article: Church of Helm
Helm symbol

The holy symbol of Helm.

Keep my path in your unfettered gaze, Lord. I shall not err if you are watching.
— A basic prayer to Helm.[31]

Prior to the Time of Troubles, Helmites were long respected and revered for their dedication and purpose, especially in the frontiers of the North. Throughout the divine crisis, and beyond, they unfailingly pledged to come to the defense of those who called for it.[21]

They wore polished full suits of armor, often enchanted as everbright,[32] and typically wore plumed helmets.[33] Their hierarchy was strict and militaristic, with specific groups such as the order of paladins called the Vigilant Eyes of the God, and originally also a single pontiff as head of the church—the Supreme Watcher. However, there had not been someone in that post since 992 DR.[32]

The faith was especially popular in Cormyr, the Dragon Coast, Tethyr, the Vilhon Reach, and the Western Heartlands.[34]

Festivals[]

Helmites celebrated the festival known as the Ceremony of Honor to Helm on Shieldmeet.[8]

Orders[]

Temples[]

Main article: Category:Temples to Helm

History[]

Time of Troubles[]

Helm DenBeauvais Spellfire

Helm guarding the Celestial Stairway during the Time of Troubles.

During the Time of Troubles in 1358 DR, when the gods walked Toril, it was reliable Helm whom Lord Ao trusted with the task of keeping the other deities from returning to their divine realms in the planes without returning the stolen Tablets of Fate. For this task, Ao left Helm with all his divine abilities, guarding the Celestial Stairway to the planes.[41]

On Midsummer, when the goddess Mystra—who had spirited away a portion of her divine power in the realms, which she then recovered once the gods were cast from the heavens—attempted to pass him without the Tablets, she was turned back by the Watcher, and when she forcibly tried to pass the Watcher, he destroyed her[42] with a catastrophic explosion in the skies above Castle Kilgrave, north of Arabel. Following Mystra's death, Helm shed a single tear that fell to Toril, but stopped before hitting ground. Hovering over the crater of destruction left below, the teardrop appeared as a magnificent gemstone, filled with the torment and guilt that Helm felt inside.[43]

This action had enormous repercussions for Helm. Whilst it put off any of the other earthbound deities attempting the same action, it also caused the other deities and mortals alike to hold Helm in great contempt.[8] Surprisingly, however, Helm's following remained strong in the south.[21]

After the Time of Troubles ended and other gods were restored to their former existences, Helm himself was no longer bound to stand guard against them and much of his worship had faltered. The reputation of his clergy was made worse when the natives of recently discovered Maztica, whom the priests of Helm were subjugating in their conquest of the region, highlighted their cause.[24]

Death[]

In 1384 DR, while conveying messages from Tyr to Tymora during the pair's courtship, a strange and fateful misunderstanding resulted in the accusation that Helm had stolen Tymora's heart. Helm was subsequently slain in a duel by Tyr. Cyric was suspected to have had a hand in these events.[11]

The Heresy of the Threefold God, a belief held by the Eye of Justice maintained that Helm wasn't truly destroyed by Tyr, but rather had his divine essence merged into Tyr's upon his death.[44]

Return[]

After the Second Sundering, Helm returned to the Realms.[45] He appeared before his chosen Kleef Kenric in Nightal of the Year of the Nether Mountain Scrolls, 1486 DR, as the guardsmen and his companions ventured into Sadrach's Splinter.[25]

While the faith of Helm endured dark times during the century that he was dead, or at the very least incorporated into Tyr's essence, his worship never truly disappeared across the realms of Faerûn.[23] Since his return, his faith steadily rebounded across Faerûn.[46]

Appendix[]

Appearances[]

Novels
The Avatar Series
ShadowdaleWaterdeep
The Sundering Series
The Sentinel

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Steve Kenson, et al. (November 2015). Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide. Edited by Kim Mohan. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 21, 29. ISBN 978-0-7869-6580-9.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Ed Greenwood, Jeff Grubb (August 1987). “Cyclopedia of the Realms”. In Karen S. Martin ed. Forgotten Realms Campaign Set (TSR, Inc.), p. 11. ISBN 0-88038-472-7.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Jeff Grubb and Ed Greenwood (1990). Forgotten Realms Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 20. ISBN 0-8803-8828-5.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 68. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Ed Greenwood, Julia Martin, Jeff Grubb (1993). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 2nd edition (revised), Running the Realms. (TSR, Inc), p. 51. ISBN 1-5607-6617-4.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Eric L. Boyd, Erik Mona (May 2002). Faiths and Pantheons. Edited by Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel, et al. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 28, 29. ISBN 0-7869-2759-3.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 242. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 69. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  9. Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford (2014). Player's Handbook 5th edition. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 60–61, 294. ISBN 978-0-7869-6560-1.
  10. Jeremy Crawford (November 17, 2020). Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-0786967025.
  11. 11.0 11.1 Brian R. James, Ed Greenwood (September 2007). The Grand History of the Realms. Edited by Kim Mohan, Penny Williams. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 159. ISBN 978-0-7869-4731-7.
  12. Bruce R. Cordell, Ed Greenwood, Chris Sims (August 2008). Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide. Edited by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, et al. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 44. ISBN 978-0-7869-4924-3.
  13. Bruce R. Cordell, Christopher Lindsay (April 2006). Complete Psionic. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 11. ISBN 0-7869-3911-7.
  14. Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 234, 235. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 Richard Baker, James Wyatt (March 2004). Player's Guide to Faerûn. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 159. ISBN 0-7869-3134-5.
  16. Hal Maclean (September 2004). “Seven Deadly Domains”. In Matthew Sernett ed. Dragon #323 (Paizo Publishing, LLC), p. 65.
  17. Hal Maclean (May 2007). “Seven Saintly Domains”. In Erik Mona ed. Dragon #355 (Paizo Publishing, LLC), p. 26.
  18. Colin McComb (October 1996). On Hallowed Ground. Edited by Ray Vallese. (TSR, Inc.), p. 181. ISBN 0-7869-0430-5.
  19. Sean K. Reynolds (2002-05-04). Deity Do's and Don'ts (Zipped PDF). Web Enhancement for Faiths and Pantheons. Wizards of the Coast. p. 12. Archived from the original on 2016-11-01. Retrieved on 2018-09-08.
  20. Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 242. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  21. 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 68. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 Eric L. Boyd, Erik Mona (May 2002). Faiths and Pantheons. Edited by Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel, et al. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 28. ISBN 0-7869-2759-3.
  23. 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 Steve Kenson, et al. (November 2015). Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide. Edited by Kim Mohan. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 29. ISBN 978-0-7869-6580-9.
  24. 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 242. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 Troy Denning (April 2014). The Sentinel. (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 18, p. 264. ISBN 0786964596.
  26. Troy Denning (April 2014). The Sentinel. (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 18, p. 266. ISBN 0786964596.
  27. Ed Greenwood (1989). Waterdeep (adventure). (TSR, Inc), p. 40. ISBN 0-88038-757-2.
  28. Troy Denning (April 2014). The Sentinel. (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 18, p. 265. ISBN 0786964596.
  29. James Lowder (August 1993). Prince of Lies. (Wizards of the Coast), chap. 7. ISBN 1-56076-626-3.
  30. Eric L. Boyd, Erik Mona (May 2002). Faiths and Pantheons. Edited by Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel, et al. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 38. ISBN 0-7869-2759-3.
  31. Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke, et al. Baldur's Gate III. Larian Studios.
  32. 32.0 32.1 Eric L. Boyd, Erik Mona (May 2002). Faiths and Pantheons. Edited by Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel, et al. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 29. ISBN 0-7869-2759-3.
  33. Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 6. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  34. Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 23. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  35. Jennell Jaquays (1988). The Savage Frontier. (TSR, Inc), p. 32. ISBN 0-88038-593-6.
  36. Ed Greenwood (1993). Volo's Guide to the North. (TSR, Inc), p. 173. ISBN 1-5607-6678-6.
  37. slade, et al. (April 1996). “Cities & Civilization”. In James Butler ed. The North: Guide to the Savage Frontier (TSR, Inc.), p. 52. ISBN 0-7869-0391-0.
  38. Jeff Grubb and Ed Greenwood (1990). Forgotten Realms Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 84. ISBN 0-8803-8828-5.
  39. Matt Sernett, Erik Scott de Bie, Ari Marmell (August 2011). Neverwinter Campaign Setting. Edited by Tanis O'Connor. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 165. ISBN 0-7869-5814-6.
  40. (Ed Greenwood and Jason Carl (July 2002). Silver Marches. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 78. ISBN 0-7869-2835-2.
  41. Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 264. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
  42. Julia Martin, Eric L. Boyd (March 1996). Faiths & Avatars. (TSR, Inc.), p. 15. ISBN 978-0786903849.
  43. Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd (1996). Volo's Guide to All Things Magical. (TSR, Inc), p. 108. ISBN 0-7869-0446-1.
  44. Erik Scott de Bie (April 2009). Downshadow. (Wizards of the Coast). ISBN 978-0-7869-5128-4.
  45. Ed Greenwood (2015). We are Ed Greenwood and Robert B. Marks – Ask Us Anything!.
  46. Cryptic Studios (June 2013). Neverwinter. Perfect World Entertainment.

Connections[]

The Faerûnian Pantheon
Major Deities
AzuthBaneBhaalChaunteaCyricGondHelmIlmaterKelemvorKossuthLathanderLoviatarMaskMielikkiMyrkulMystra (Midnight) • OghmaSelûneSharShaundakulSilvanusSuneTalosTempusTormTymoraTyrUmberleeWaukeen
Other Members
AkadiAurilBeshabaDeneirEldathFinder WyvernspurGaragosGargauthGerronGrumbarGwaeron WindstromHoarIstishiaIyachtu XvimJergalLliiraLurueMalarMililNobanionThe Red KnightSavrasSharessShialliaSiamorpheTalonaTiamatUbtaoUlutiuValkurVelsharoon

Deities of the Post–Second Sundering Era
Ao the Overgod
Faerûnian Pantheon
Akadi | Amaunator | Asmodeus | Auril | Azuth | Bane | Beshaba | Bhaal | Chauntea | Cyric | Deneir | Eldath | Gond | Grumbar | Gwaeron | Helm | Hoar | Ilmater | Istishia | Jergal | Kelemvor | Kossuth | Lathander | Leira | Lliira | Loviatar | Malar | Mask | Mielikki | Milil | Myrkul | Mystra | Oghma | Red Knight | Savras | Selûne | Shar | Silvanus | Sune | Talona | Talos | Tempus | Torm | Tymora | Tyr | Umberlee | Valkur | Waukeen
The Morndinsamman
Abbathor | Berronar Truesilver | Clangeddin Silverbeard | Deep Duerra | Dugmaren Brightmantle | Dumathoin | Gorm Gulthyn | Haela Brightaxe | Laduguer | Marthammor Duin | Moradin | Sharindlar | Vergadain
The Seldarine
Aerdrie Faenya | Angharradh | Corellon | Deep Sashelas | Erevan | Fenmarel Mestarine | Hanali Celanil | Labelas Enoreth | Rillifane Rallathil | Sehanine Moonbow | Shevarash | Solonor Thelandira
The Dark Seldarine
Eilistraee | Kiaransalee | Lolth | Selvetarm | Vhaeraun
Yondalla's Children
Arvoreen | Brandobaris | Cyrrollalee | Sheela Peryroyl | Urogalan | Yondalla
Lords of the Golden Hills
Baervan Wildwanderer | Baravar Cloakshadow | Callarduran Smoothhands | Flandal Steelskin | Gaerdal Ironhand | Garl Glittergold | Nebelun | Segojan Earthcaller | Urdlen
Orc Pantheon
Bahgtru | Gruumsh | Ilneval | Luthic | Shargaas | Yurtrus
Mulhorandi pantheon
Anhur | Bast | Geb | Hathor | Horus | Isis | Nephthys | Osiris | Re | Sebek | Set | Thoth
Other gods of Faerûn
Bahamut | Enlil | Finder Wyvernspur | Ghaunadaur | Gilgeam | Lurue | Moander | Nobanion | Raven Queen | Tiamat



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