Beltar

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The Dark Mother
Beltar
Beltar, the Dark Mother, as depicted in Dragon #89 (1984).
General information
Portfolio:Malice, Caves, Pits
Home:Tarterian Depths of Carceri
Alignment:Chaotic Evil (Chaotic Neutral tendencies)
Gender:Female
Superior:Lendor
Rules items
Domains:Chaos, Earth, Evil, War

Beltar is the Suel goddess of Malice, Caves, and Pits. Her holy symbol is a set of opened fangs poised to bite.

Description

Though often depicted as a haglike human female, Beltar is known to also appear as a beholder, red dragon, or marilith. Beltar hates nearly everything, even other deities.

Relationships

Beltar was formerly a goddess of earth and mines, but was supplanted by other Suel gods (as well as nonhuman deities such as Moradin and Garl Glittergold, according to Complete Divine), until her only worshipers were nonhuman slaves. It is perhaps for this reason that Jascar is one of her greatest enemies.

Beltar will often take mates in her various forms, but few survive, as she eats them afterward, as well as any young born from such a union.

Realm

Beltar dwells on the plane of Carceri.

Dogma

Worshippers

Beltar's followers are encouraged to mine and explore caverns for riches and foes to kill. Her worshipers are mostly savage humans and evil nonhumans, barbaric dwellers in vast subterranean caverns. She encourages her faithful to join together in great armies and ally themselves with beholders, demons, red dragons, liches, and other powerful creatures. Her followers are relentless explorers and raiders who take whatever they can find in the darkness and make it their own.

Beltar is worshipped in the Bone March, the Pomarj, Stonehold, and even in Erelhei-Cinlu. Some regard her marilith form as evidence that she is the Suloise snake-goddess worshipped in the Vale of the Lamia and the Isle of Serpents.

Clergy

Beltar's priests preach hatred of one's enemies, rather than fear. They are expected to take positions of leadership in their tribes, or to form their own. The priesthood makes examples of the weak-willed and traitors. They usually fight with their natural weapons, cesti, or spiked gauntlets. Devoted priests, within a year of their deaths, often rise from the grave as undead, often to return to their original tribes.

Rituals

Services to Beltar are usually held in caves or points of low ground, and often involve sacrifice of sentient beings.

Bibliography

  • Conforti, Steven, ed. Living Greyhawk Official Listing of Deities for Use in the Campaign, version 2.0. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005. Available online:[1]
  • Noonan, David. Complete Divine. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2004.

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic Type Description Product Page/Card/Image

Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Bastion of Faith 42, 87
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), The City of Greyhawk: Adventure Cards 19
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Dragon magazine #089 20-22
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Dragon magazine #241 42
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Dragon magazine #241 42
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Dragon magazine #298 77
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), From the Ashes: References Card #4
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Ivid the Undying 132
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Living Greyhawk Gazetteer 21, 35, 87, 108, 166, 173
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Living Greyhawk Journal #3 18
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #01 6,7,14,15
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #04 19
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #08 33
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #10 35,71,73
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #11 4,5,42,53,57,59
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #17 18
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #21 23
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #23 10
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Oerth Journal #27 6,33
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Player's Guide to Greyhawk 20, 24
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), Slavers, AD&D 2e 53, 54, 90, 93, 106, 117
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil 120
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), The Scarlet Brotherhood 11, 12, 14, 55, 64, 80, 82, 83
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), WGR3 Rary the Traitor 16
Beltar Deity Worshipped by: Human (Suel), World of Greyhawk boxed set (1983) 63
Beltar, Temple of (Erelhei-Cinlu) Building Temple, Dragon magazine #298 77
Beltar, Temple of (Highport) Building Temple, Slavers, AD&D 2e 90, 93
  1. ↑ a b c Dragon #89 (Sep 1984), p.21.
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