This will now be the seventh god I have completed on the book I am currently writing. Title and book is very much a work in progress, so if you have any additional ideas or critiques, you are more than welcome to toss me a comment below!
The book is about adding piety scores (Perks for worshipping and following your god’s dogma and what they believe in) to the Forgotten Realms deities. Deneir is an interesting god to follow, personally he’s like a goofy old teacher with a extreme passion for facts and knowledge and making sure EVERYTHING is written down. If you are making a character who seeks truth inside long forgotten scrolls in long forgotten dungeons, or a light hearted bard teaching kids how to read on your way to your next adventure, Deneir might be the guy for you.
After the PDF’s scroll to the bottom for additional info accompanied by artwork like: What would their temple look like? What would a priest and/or adventurer look like as a follower?
Denier’s Description
Deneir’s Other Manifestations
Deneir’s Domain
Deneir’s Temple
Deneir’s Clergy
They are also never without their most important identifiers, their ubiquitous writing kits: triangular leather pouches belted to their right hips containing paper, inks, and pens. There is a saying about Deneirrath and their kits: If a Deneirrath is naked in the bath and the ceiling above him catches fire, he will grab any books in the room first, his writing kit second, and the door third, leaving clothes behind for more modest men.
Deneir’s Adventurers
Non-PDF
Deneir (deh-NEER)
Scribe of Oghma
Deneir is the patron of the artist, the illuminator, the scribe, and the cartographer. His is the power to accurately render and describe, to write and to read, and to pass on information. He counts as his foes all who destroy, hide, or distort knowledge. He works for Oghma (The Lord of Knowledge) making sure that all that is known and true is accurately recorded in the Great Library.
Deneir is passionate or borderline obsessive about the recording, filing, indexing, and maintaining all that was even writing, drawn, or otherwise depicted. He may appear absent minded when speaking as he tends to trail off Mid-sentence as he is constantly lost in thought. For how often he stays up to date with the knowledge of the world, it is incredible how far behind he is when it comes to current cultural trends, mannerisms, slang etc. — he may (unintentionally humorously) mix his slang terms or try to sound in vogue and actually sound profoundly dated. If it all possible, try to avoid his stories as he will take up several hours (or perhaps days even given the chance) bouncing from topic to topic. However, for all their length, he always conveys some vital piece of knowledge for those who patiently wait them out.
Deneir’s Influence
Deneir’s faith is one of knowledge, specifically the recording of it, for what is the point of knowledge of it cannot be shared with everyone for
all of time? He oversees the recording, filing, indexing, and maintaining of knowledge whether it be written or depicted. Information should be free
to all and all should be able to read it, so that lying tongues cannot distort things all out of proportion. Therefore he is a huge proponent of
literacy and teaching it to those who wish to know more about the world rather than stay ignorant.
Azuth’s Goals
Deneir’s goals are rather straightforward and simple: all knowledge should be written down, whether it be what people say, what they believe, and what has been observed, for that which is not written is lost, and there must be room for all tastes, all tongues, and all expression. Information that does not harm should be made free to all.
Divine Relationships
Deneir, along with Oghma, Milil(Lord of all Songs) and Gond(Lord of all
Smiths), were known as the Deities of Knowledge and Invention. Like Milil, he acted as an intermediary for Oghma, carrying new information both to him and those he favored. Their relationship was a symbiotic one, and
Oghma appreciated Deneir’s commitment to his studies and truth, though he knew little of the obscure Metatext and suspected that his servant was chasing half-imagined ramblings and shadows of the mind.
Denier had many Allies due to his welcoming demeanor, his scholarly outlook, and magical interests. It made Deneir popular among gods of
magic, including Mystra, Azuth, and particularly Savras. He had forged contracts with the like-minded Thoth, and could count Labelas Enoreth of
the elves and Dugmaren Brightmantle of the dwarves as his allies. Lliira thought that she could scare some fun into him and gained endless
enjoyment from making him uncomfortable, though she too was among Deneir’s allies, as was Lathander.
Deneir counted among his enemies those who sought to hide or distort knowledge, such as Cyric, Mask, or Shar, or those who destroyed it, such
as the Gods of Fury, notably Malar and Talos. The mere mention of these evil deities often sent the well mannered man into a fit of rage that
would often last hours and sour the ears of those within earshot with curse words long lost in time.
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Worshipping Deneir
Followers of Deneir believe that information that is not recorded and saved to be used later is information that is forever lost. Anyone who
defaces or destroys a book should be punished in proportion to the value of the information lost unless she or he makes full replacement of it.
There are rarely exceptions to this belief. Followers of Deneir must write everything down and let copying what is written fill every otherwise idle
hour. They are to bring copies of every writing they gather to every temple of Deneir they arrive in (or make the copies there) so that
knowledge may spread and nothing be lost.
Information should be free to all and all should be able to read it. Free access to information is vital so that lying tongues cannot distort things
all out of proportion. Deneirrath are to write down everything that people say, believe, and observe, leaving others to judge what is true, of value,
and proper —for anything that is not written is lost, and there must be room for all tastes, all tongues, and all expression. Information that
does not harm should be made free and accessible to all, peasant or nobility. Literacy is an important gift of Deneir and should be spread and
taught. Deneirrath must learn to read and write and teach at least 10 mortals who do not venerate Deneir to do so also.
Followers of Deneir have taken an oath of charity as well, such that they cannot turn down the request of another to write letters and transcribe
information. If the one making the request is poor, they can take no payment for doing such duties, though they may charge those who can afford
such services a fair rate. Deneirrath are to keep secrets they are exposed to in their charitable duties when bound to by oath or by their moral
code. Those who betray their patrons by expelling such secrets will incite the wrath of Denier himself.
The primary task of priests of Deneir is to gather and write down or copy out if it is already written—, knowledge and creative things (fiction,
poems, song lyrics, witticisms, and diaries) so that nothing written is lost. Some priests never leave the copying cloisters of large temples, while others wander among cottages and hill farms copying out old half- remembered ballads that they can pay some toothless gray-hair to try to sing. Still others operate wealthy lending libraries in the bustling
cities of Sembia or ride into danger all over Faerûn breaking into old tombs and delving into ruins in search of lost and forgotten writings before such things crumble away forever. These are the sort of deeds that have earned Deneir his nickname
“Scribe of Oghma.”
Many common folk through the Realms, however, see Deneirrath as the scribes of the people because they take a special vow of charity upon
becoming priests: to write letters and transcribe information for anyone who asks them to as long they do not have to copy out anything magical
(mainly for their own safety) or write down anything from their own knowledge that would reveal the secrets of others. (A priest of Deneir
imprisoned and ordered to list all the literate people in his town or list all those for whom he’s drafted letters on matters of finance in the last
decade would refuse to do so.)
It is true that no one outside the faith ever hears or reads of what the Deneirrath priest has been enjoined to silence on. The rumors of secret
writings being written down and kept in secret libraries kept by the Deneirrath are true. These secret entombed libraries may be anything from
secret passages hidden in temple offices behind a bookshelf and hollow pillars in shrines to great vaults and even “forbidden towers” in the
larger abbeys and monasteries. Caches of secret writings are always guarded by spells and horrifying monsters.
Deneir’s Champions
Although these suggestions may give you an idea of who to play or what class to use, these are merely
suggestions and you should play anything that you believe would be more fun!
Alignment: Lawful, but most often good
Suggested Classes: Any Class
Suggested Cleric Domains: Arcana, Knowledge
Suggested Backgrounds: Acolyte, anthropologist, archaeologist, Cloistered
Scholar, failed merchant, hermit, inheritor, sage
Champions of Deneir believe that knowledge is sacred and must be preserved and shared for all in order for all of us to truly prosper and learn. It is the responsibility of the Champion to find unwritten or uncopied knowledge, whether it be myths of old told from an ageing old man from a forgotten village, or a scroll that has been lost for centuries in an underground crypt.
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Deneir’s Favor
The favored of Deneir could generally be anybody, if they hold the belief that knowledge should be preserved for all. Champions, however, go the next step as they attempt to retrieve the information no matter how dangerous or how far they must go to get it.
#### Deneir’s Favor
| d6 | Circumstance |
|:—-:|:————-|
| 1 | I have made it my goal to promote knowledge to all and Deneir had noticed my commitment |
| 2 | A nearby deneirrath temple was destroyed, one of which my family visited often for their teachings and charity. Perhaps I was chosen too exact punishments and fix wrongs |
| 3 | There has been a lack of incoming knowledge written in books throughout the temples. I have been chosen to revitalize temples |
| 4 | Deneirrath priests have taught me how to read when I was a child and I wanted to give back the kindness that they showed me |
| 5 | A ward within a long-forgotten book that you were reading was possessed by a spirit of Deneir. Because of fate, you have been chosen to represent him |
| 6 | You have no idea why he chose you and wish he hadn’t as you feel unprepared for a life beyond what you know|
## Devotion to Deneir
Followers of Deneir encourage the teaching of literacy and the spreading of knowledge that is copied and stored within its library like temples. As a follower of Deneir, consider the ideals on the Deneir’s
Ideals table as alternatives to those suggested for your background.
#### Deneir’s Ideals
| d6 | Ideals |
|:—-:|:————-|
| 1 | **Charity.** I distribute knowledge I acquire to the people who could use
it. (Good) |
| 2 | **Tradition.** The stories, legends, and songs of the past must never be
forgotten. (Lawful)|
| 3 | **Creativity.** The world is in need of new ideas, knowledge, and bold
action. (Chaotic) |
| 4 | **Community.** It is the duty of all civilized people to strengthen the
bonds of community and the security of civilization. (Lawful)|
| 5 | **Generosity.** My knowledge should be shared so others can use them to
benefit the world. (Good)|
| 6 | **Knowledge.** The path to power and self-improvement is through
knowledge. (Neutral) |
Earning and losing piety
You increase your piety score to Azuth when you expand the god’s influence in the world in a concrete
way through acts such as these:
- Writing down information into a book so that it can be recorded and saved
for future generations.
- As a charity, or charging a fair rate for those that can afford, Writing
letters or transcribing information for others. - Teaching others to read and write
- Sharing information that they have learned to others either through
teaching or just from the knowledge that they have learned and have
written down themselves.
Your piety score to Azuth decreases if you diminish Azuth’s influence in the world, contradict his ideals,
or dissapoint him through acts such as these:
- Defacing or destroying a book.
- Purposefully hiding knowledge away from being recorded
- Distorting facts for opinions.
- Being either apathetic or actively promoting ignorance.
- Telling of a secret that was entrusted onto you.
Aspirant Scrivener
Piety 3+ Deneir Trait
Deneir has granted his champion the ability to speak and understand any language in order to better understand and record any and all information.
The Champion of Deneir may speak any language on an as needed basis but cannot speak it on command, unless speaking with someone with that language. The champion loses the ability as soon as you stop speaking with them.
For instance, most people do not speak Draconic. Only when face to face with someone or something speaking that tongue does the champion know how
to speak and understand it. When the Draconic speaker leaves, the champion loses access to that language, although all things discussed are
remembered in a form the champion understands to the extent that any conversation is normally able to be recalled.
Full Scrivener
Piety 10+ Deneir trait
You have proven yourself capable in Deneir’s eyes. He has given you the ability to speak to more than
just the common tongue. In order to best serve Deneir, you may now use the spells Speak with dead, speak with plants, and speak with animals with this trait. You may use this trait, requiring no physical components, a number of times equal to your Intelligence Modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
High Scrivener
Piety 25+ Deneir trait
You have proven your faith and loyalty to the dogma of Deneir. Your work has most definitely been noticed and you may need some space to keep your work in order. You may now use the spell Private Sanctum, once per day, requiring no physical components.
Writer Inquisitor
Piety 50+ Deneir trait
You can increase your INT, WIS, or CHA score by +2 even if you have a score of 20 in that ability, making it 22.
Mighty Flail 