Gorm Gulthyn

Gorm Gulthyn is a fictional god in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, a god of the dwarves of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.

Gorm Gulthyn (gorm gull-thin), also known as Fire Eyes, Lord of the Bronze Mask and the Eternally Vigilant, was a dwarven lesser deity who held the portfolios of defense and watchfulness and was the guardian of all dwarves.

Publication history

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)

Gorm Gulthyn was introduced in Dwarves Deep (1990).^[1] Gorm Gulthyn received a detailed description in Demihuman Deities (1998).^[2]

Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition (2000-2007)

Gorm Gulthyn is described in Faiths and Pantheons (2002).^[3]

Description

Overview

Most dwarven enclaves stand in the path of aggressive Underdark enemies as they are built below the surface. The protectors of these realms venerated Gorm Gulthyn, the patron of watchfulness and defense. Gorm appeared as a humorless masked warrior with the goal of ensuring the safety of dwarven clanholds. He manifested on the Prime far more often than his companions in the Morndinsamman to defend the dwarven realms. These manifestations kept vigils on battlements, established traps and deadfalls in neighboring passages, and instructed his clerics on plans for a steady and reliable defense. Those who had seen him fight to defend dwarven communities related his stunning battle prowess, but they also commented that his combat maneuvers increasingly showed a growing desperation, as if he believed each battle might be his last.

Dying

Gorm Gulthyn was dying. Over the centuries, as he kept using his essence to create avatars to defend dwarven kingdoms, his fate seemed to have become tied to those places. Each time one of the clanholds fell, something inside Gorm Gulthyn died. The divine fire in the eye-holes of his mask grew dimmer by almost imperceptible increments every time. With each new manifestation, Gorm became more careless in his defense, perhaps trying to end his condition on the tip of an enemy sword. All hoped for the Thunder Blessing and the resurgence of ancient dwarven bloodlines to restore his strength.

Gorm's divinity was finally spent in a battle with the duergar deities, Laduguer and Deep Duerra in 1383 DR. Gorm and Haela Brightaxe both died in battle.^[4]:159

Followers

Clerics of Gorm were known as barakor ("those who shield") and organized the defense of dwarven communities. They also acted as bodyguards, and taught locals the value of alertness and vigilance. When they entered the church, each barakor was assigned a charge they were to protect with their lives. Gorm's more powerful clerics often chose to defend important clan members, but lower ranked barakor seemed to have their charges determined randomly. These included children, elderly, and infirm clan members. Regardless of their charge's status, they were all willing to sacrifice themselves, also known as "paying Gorm's greatest price" in the church. Gorm's temples were typically plain stone constructions, which featured a central altar that contained the remains of a fallen barakor. Most of his temples also contained a small armory and were well defended from possible attackers.

Rituals

Barakor prayed for spells in the morning, usually followed by a tour of their community to ensure that no incidents happened at night. Each festival they celebrated with tedious procedures containing formal salutes, rhythmic grounding of weapons, and didactic, chanted prayers. Barakor frequently multiclassed as dwarven defenders or fighters. Dwarven defenders in the clergy of Gorm were offered the highest possible honor.

Relationships

Gorm had confided his dying status only to Clangeddin Silverbeard, Marthammor Duin and Moradin. He considered these three his closest friends.

References