Skoraeus Stonebones

In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Skoraeus Stonebones is the deity worshiped by the stone giant race. He is also known as "King of the Rock" and "The Living Rock". His sacred animal is the cave bear. His holy symbol is a stalactite.

Publication history

Skoraeus Stonebones was first detailed in Deities and Demigods (1980).^[1]

Skoraeus Stonebones was detailed in the book Monster Mythology (1992), including details about his priesthood.^[2] His role in the cosmology of the Planescape campaign setting was described in On Hallowed Ground (1996).^[3] His role in the giant pantheon of the Forgotten Realms setting is detailed in Giantcraft (1995).^[4]

Skoraeus Stonebones was described briefly in Defenders of the Faith (2000).^[5] His priesthood is detailed for 3rd edition in Complete Divine (2004).^[6]

Description

Skoreaus manifests as a huge stone giant with muscular limbs and skin like granite. He knows much of the secret banes, magics, and wonders buried in the core of the world. Skoreaus regards both Law and Chaos with suspicion.

Relationships

Skoreaus is part of the second generation of giantish gods, born at about the same time as Surtr and Thrym. It is said that his brothers' evil drove him to hide himself below the world and ignore everything apart from himself and his people. When he absolutely has to, he'll deal with the gods of the dwarves and svirfneblin. He is allied with Dumathoin, and has been occasionally known to consort with the gods of the svirfneblin.

In many campaign settings, the giantish pantheon of gods consists of the leader Annam, as well as Grolantor, Hiatea, Iallanis, Karontor, Memnor, Skoraeus Stonebones, and Stronmaus. Other powers worshipped by giants or giant-type creatures include Baphomet, Kostchtchie, and Vaprak.

Skoreaus is the son of Annam. His siblings and half-siblings include Diancastra, Grolantor, Hiatea, Iallanis, Karontor, Stronmaus, Surtr, and Thrym. Memnor and Vaprak are also sometimes named as his relatives.

Realm

Skoraeus has no permanent home, and wanders the Material Plane and Outer Planes. Skoraeus is sometimes said to dwell at the heart of the world, where he senses all that occurs while touching stone by feeling the vibrations that reach him. Skoraeus will never venture above ground, and cannot even be gated there.

Dogma

Skoreaus cares for nothing except for that which directly concerns his people, the stone giants. Stone giants, as far as he is concerned, would be better off if they never came in contact with other races at all. Skoreaus teaches his followers that beauty is truth and knowledge is power; a secret is the ultimate power and the Underdark is filled with secrets.

Worshippers

The reclusive Skoreaus is worshipped almost exclusively by stone giants, who may be found in mountains and caves in a variety of places in the Flanaess, including the Crystalmist Mountains and the Lortmils.

Clergy

Skoraeus's priests wear stone gray vestments, and animal skins. They dominate stone giant society, creating an environment of stifling orthodoxy. They are grave, serious, folk, seeing it as their duty to advance their race and guarantee that stone giants continue to make ever-greating works of art and intellectual discoveries. They avoid, and teach their followers to avoid, even other races of giants, let alone other species. Their favored weapon is the warhammer. They are capable of seeing omens in the shapes and hues of rock and subterranean features, and spend much of their time meditating and creating elaborate sculptures and friezes.

Rituals

Once every three months or so, priests of Skoreaus travel underground alone without food, returning four days later. They assure their followers that these expeditions are vision-quests in which Skoreaus supplies them with instructions in the form of omens and dreams.

Skoreaus's clerics force any stone giant, even those who have pledged allegiance to other deities, who violates their god's teachings to atone through meditation.

References

Additional reading

• 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: