Garagos
Encyclopedia
Garagos is a lesser Faerûn
ian deity of war in the Forgotten Realms
fiction
al campaign setting
for the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy
role-playing game
, though he focuses more on destruction and plunder than war itself.
(2002).
sharing the same portfolio, as both have the portfolio of war. Tempus merely tolerates Garagos for reasons of his own; many Realms scholars believe his reasons stem from the fact that Tempus dislikes mindless slaughter and destruction, and would be obliged to take on that portfolio if he slew his rival.
Though both are chaotic neutral in alignment
, Garagos is wild and reckless, reveling in destruction and slaughter while Tempus values honorable combat
; this distinction between the different modes of war they represent may be the reason that Lord Ao does not enforce his otherwise strict edict against portfolio sharing by stripping one or the other of his dominance over War.
In the game's 4th edition, Garagos is an exarch
of Tempus, though he focuses more on destruction than war itself.
of Garagos, known as Bloodreavers, spend their days fomenting strife throughout the continent, knowing that each conflict contributes to Garagos's continuing rebirth. They believe that Garagos eventually will regain his divine strength, unseating the hated Lord of Battles and reclaiming the mantle of Deity of War. They continually create and expand networks of spies, faithful warriors, and other agents to increase the power of the cult, and the leadership of a cult cell is usually determined by the result of power plays between the agents of rival clerics.
—the other gods deal with Garagos simply by staying away from him. Despite his vacant mind, Garagos still harbors deep resentment against Tempus and his catspaw, the Red Knight
. Should these deities meet in the field of combat, there's little doubt that the Reaver would come out the worse of it. Eventually, however, Garagos's destructive capabilities might transcend his tactical weaknesses, and on such a day, the followers of Tempus are sure to know true despair.
Faerûn
Faerûn is a fictional subcontinent, the primary setting of the Dungeons & Dragons world of Forgotten Realms. It is described at a relatively high level in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting from Wizards of the Coast, and various locales and aspects are described in more detail by separate...
ian deity of war in the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al campaign setting
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
for the Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, though he focuses more on destruction and plunder than war itself.
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)
Garagos was mentioned in the revised Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (1993). Garagos is further detailed in Powers & Pantheons (1997).Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition (2000-2007)
Garagos appears in 3rd edition in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book (2001), and was further described in Faiths and PantheonsFaiths and Pantheons
Faiths and Pantheons is a campaign accessory for the 3rd edition of the Dungeons & Dragons, for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.-Contents:...
(2002).
Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition (2008-)
Garagos appears in 4th edition in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide (2008).Description
Garagos and Tempus are the only pair of deities that violate the otherwise strict rule against two gods of the same pantheonPantheon (gods)
A pantheon is a set of all the gods of a particular polytheistic religion or mythology.Max Weber's 1922 opus, Economy and Society discusses the link between a...
sharing the same portfolio, as both have the portfolio of war. Tempus merely tolerates Garagos for reasons of his own; many Realms scholars believe his reasons stem from the fact that Tempus dislikes mindless slaughter and destruction, and would be obliged to take on that portfolio if he slew his rival.
Though both are chaotic neutral in alignment
Alignment (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, alignment is a categorization of the ethical and moral perspective of people, creatures and societies....
, Garagos is wild and reckless, reveling in destruction and slaughter while Tempus values honorable combat
Laws of war
The law of war is a body of law concerning acceptable justifications to engage in war and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct...
; this distinction between the different modes of war they represent may be the reason that Lord Ao does not enforce his otherwise strict edict against portfolio sharing by stripping one or the other of his dominance over War.
In the game's 4th edition, Garagos is an exarch
Exarch
In the Byzantine Empire, an exarch was governor with extended authority of a province at some remove from the capital Constantinople. The prevailing situation frequently involved him in military operations....
of Tempus, though he focuses more on destruction than war itself.
Followers
ClericsCleric (Dungeons & Dragons)
The cleric is one of the standard playable character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. In the game, clerics are versatile figures, both capable in combat and skilled in the use of divine magic. Clerics are powerful healers due to the large number of healing and curative...
of Garagos, known as Bloodreavers, spend their days fomenting strife throughout the continent, knowing that each conflict contributes to Garagos's continuing rebirth. They believe that Garagos eventually will regain his divine strength, unseating the hated Lord of Battles and reclaiming the mantle of Deity of War. They continually create and expand networks of spies, faithful warriors, and other agents to increase the power of the cult, and the leadership of a cult cell is usually determined by the result of power plays between the agents of rival clerics.
Relationships
Though chaotic neutral, the debased, insane Garagos stands on the brink of evil. A nearly elemental force of destruction, the Reaver has no allies in the pantheons of Abeir-TorilAbeir-Toril
Abeir-Toril is the name of the fictional planet that makes up the Forgotten Realms Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting, as well as the Al-Qadim and Maztica campaign settings and the 1st edition version of the Oriental Adventures campaign setting.The name is archaic, meaning "cradle of life." It...
—the other gods deal with Garagos simply by staying away from him. Despite his vacant mind, Garagos still harbors deep resentment against Tempus and his catspaw, the Red Knight
Red Knight (Forgotten Realms)
The Red Knight is the Faerûnian deity of strategy and battle tactics in Ed Greenwood's Forgotten Realms fictional world of Abeir-Toril, for Dungeons & Dragons.-Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition :...
. Should these deities meet in the field of combat, there's little doubt that the Reaver would come out the worse of it. Eventually, however, Garagos's destructive capabilities might transcend his tactical weaknesses, and on such a day, the followers of Tempus are sure to know true despair.